You Don’t Have to Be an Artist:

One of the best things about Visual Journaling is that you don’t have to be an artist or have any “artistic talent” in order to benefit from it.  If you can draw a stick figure, scribble, and draw circles, squares, and triangles, you can express yourself via Visual Journaling more effectively than a skilled artist can! 

It helps to remember that the process is not about creating art, but rather about expressing emotions through images.  Because this imaging is unique to you, there is no “right” or “wrong” way to journal visually.

There are art materials that you will need in order to start journaling, however.  The basic list includes:

·      An 11x14 drawing pad (this size intimidated me at first, but at the recommendation of my husband – a one time art major -- I went ahead and got it, and I’m glad I did.  I was afraid that I’d feel a need to fill the space, but I discovered that my drawings naturally filled the page.  This larger size can be pricy, however, and I have found an inexpensive smaller version at Target.)

·      Multicolored pastels – the more colors, the better!

·      Crayons (larger ones work better)

·      Colored markers with a variety of tips

·      Adapted from Visual Journaling : Going Deeper than Words, by Ganim & Fox

Have you ever tried journaling and found that you couldn’t stick with it?  Are there certain events going on in your life that spur emotions that you have a hard time putting into words (like what it feels like to fall in love!)?  

Like verbal journaling, visual journaling allows you to record and process life events, but it uses a person’s inner vision to imagine what a thought, feeling, or emotional reaction would look like if it were expressed as a color, shape, or image. 

By combining the image and verbal thoughts, you are able to integrate the functions of your visual, feeling-centered right brain with your verbal, logical, thought-centered left brain.  Simply put, visual journaling helps your left and right brain communicate more effectively and bring greater insight to a situation.

Are you ready to try something new?  Join us in learning about the process of visual journaling and how you might put it to use.

·      Adapted from Visual Journaling : Going Deeper than Words, by Ganim & Fox