18 Journal Prompts for Anxiety

Journaling can be a powerful tool for managing anxiety. Discover a comprehensive list of journal prompts for anxiety designed to help you reduce anxiety and promote self-reflection and growth.

Why Journaling is Good for You

Journaling is a healthy coping mechanism, which offers multiple health benefits (1). Journaling can help you relieve stress and anxiety.

Most of the benefits of journaling come from long-term use. This means consistency is key. But this doesn’t mean you have to aim writing every day to benefit from journaling. For example, you could aim at journaling once per week.

18 Journal Prompts for Anxiety

When you are just getting started, it can be difficult to know what to write about. So, here are some prompts to help you get some ideas to journal for your stress and anxiety:

1. What is triggering your anxiety right now? Is there a specific situation, event, or person?
2. How does anxiety feel physically in your body? Describe the sensations. Do you feel any physical pain or just emotional pain or discomfort? Are there any physical symptoms?
3. Think of a similar time when you successfully overcame your anxiety. What coping strategies did you use?
4. Rate your anxiety on a scale from 1 to 10.
5. How long did your anxiety last? Or are you still feeling anxious?
6. What advice would you give to someone who was in a similar situation? And to a younger you?
7. Do you know of other people who had anxiety and overcame it?
8. Can you think of any kind words to give yourself? Any words of empathy?
9. Do you have any small victories this week?
10. Did you take care of yourself today? Did you shower? Did you drink enough water? (You can check out our self-care checklist for anxiety).
11. How can you better take care of yourself during this time? What self-care activities can you do?
12. If anxiety was a person, and you could speak to it, what would you say?
13. List possible coping techniques that you have used for similar situations. Are they healthy? Do you think you could use any of them today? (Check our list of healthy coping strategies)
14. Was someone particularly helpful during this time? How did they help you or support you? Were they a good listener? Did they give you good advice? Did you feel understood, or taken care of?
15. Make a list of possible contacts that you can ask for help, now or in the future.
16. Did you learn something about yourself today?
17. Did you feel an emotion you had never felt before?
18. Did you cry? Do you think crying helped you in any way?

Journal Prompts for Anxiety PDF

You can also access our Anxiety Prompts for Anxiety PDF for free, so you can take them with you anytime, anywhere.

Useful Resources and Tools

We hope you found our journaling prompts useful.

We also created an Anxiety Manager Notion Template, to make journaling an easier task and incorporate it into your routine.

You can also check out our other resources for anxiety management:

• 99 Coping Skills
• Anxiety Triggers Worksheet
• Challenging your Anxious Thoughts Worksheet
• Anxiety Habits Worksheet

Sources

(1) Tartakovsky, M. (2022, February 22). 6 Journaling Benefits and How to Start Right Now. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/benefits-of-journaling