Art-journaling is a wonderful and easy way to ignite your creativity! It helps you relax, find your center, reflect on what you've learned, recharge your energy, and wipe away stress. Give it a try because you might just love it!
My goal is for you to use art-journaling to take daily play breaks. Why?
Because the world is only getting crazier. And all the unreal things are piling up on each other, making life too overwhelming to deal with. And that is EXACTLY WHY you need to boost your life energy. It's a matter of your vitality to self-regulate and reduce stress. Nothing’s gonna get better if our gas tanks are on empty. Play refills that tank faster than anything else.
Play is an energy source, not a luxury. So why not use play as a strategy to reset yourself?
Let me show you how to use art-journaling as a creative self-care practice. Let’s go!
Part 1. Why writing down your worries will quiet your mind.
Did ya know that ancient Guatemalan tribes believed in worry dolls? Yep, they believed that if they told their worries to tiny dolls and placed them under their pillows at night, the dolls would take care of all the worrying for them. Now that’s something.
I’ve always loved this idea of letting go of worries. And it works! It’s one of life’s mysteries that by letting go of control you make room for new insight.
The reason we worry in the first place is that we think we’re doing something helpful. Worry gives us the illusion of control. When we don’t know what to do, we think about it endlessly. It’s just the way our minds work.
Worry is the mind’s way of staying busy when we feel powerless.
Because it’s the fixating on not knowing how to remedy whatever you’re worried about that keeps you stuck. You’re simply not open to new possibilities if you can’t let go.
When you’re art journaling with worry notes, you’re harnessing the power of writing down your thoughts. By externalizing your worries onto paper, you’re literally creating distance from them. This is how you become aware of your thoughts and how you quiet the chatter in your mind.
Plus if you follow my prompts here, you get the added benefits of coloring in your worry dolls. Yay!
And if you want to supercharge the positive benefits of your art journaling with worry notes, then make sure to include strong positive affirmations.
Part 2. Tips for writing positive affirmations.
An affirmation is simply a thought you repeat over and over to yourself. You’ll end up saying it a lot. And you’ll end up putting all your belief into it. But it doesn’t have to be positive. Nope. Chances are, it’s negative.
All self-talk is nothing more than a stream of affirmations.
And did you know you’re already an expert at doing affirmations?
Yep, like when you’re repeatedly saying or telling yourself this:
• I’m always behind on everything
• People are so rude
• Nobody cares anymore
• I’ll never figure this out
• I’ll never get my act together
But also this:
• Everything works out in the end
• I have such lovely people as friends
• Everyone’s doing the best they can
• I like learning stuff
• Tomorrow is a new day
All this to say that you don’t need to learn how to do affirmations. What you need to do is practice being more intentional about how you want to feel.
Here are a few simple tips that help you create strong positive affirmations:
• Use “I statements” that start with the words I am, I have, I know, I can, etc.
• Use the present tense
• Keep it short
• Use your favorite words to describe how you want to feel
And here are a few examples of worry notes:
FRONT: I’m worried about not having enough time.
BACK: I always have enough time to do what matters most to me.
FRONT: I’m worried about disappointing people who depend on me.
BACK: I am doing the best I can and keep learning as I go.
FRONT: I’m worried about finding a new job.
BACK: Every time I change my job, it’s always for the better and worth all the effort.
FRONT: I’m worried about not knowing my purpose.
BACK: I know that the more I trust my intuition, the more inspired I feel about my life.
Part 3. Your prompts for art-journaling with worry notes:
Most of your resistance lives at the beginning of a task. And there are two ways to get past that resistance:
1. You shrink the task.
You’ll feel a lot less resistance to spending a short amount of time.
2. You simplify the task.
You use prompts as on-ramps to get started. Prompts keep you from overthinking.
Prompts set you up for an easy-peasy play break:
• No big prep
• Easy to start
• Easy to find a stopping point
• No big clean-up
Does that sound good? Alrighty then. Let’s do this already!
Here are your prompts for art-journaling with worry notes. You’re going to play with an accordion book format that you can put together in just minutes by using envelopes. For making the accordion book check out the fun video link below.
Okay, so you’re gonna be doodling worry dolls and coloring them in on the FRONT of your accordion book. And then you’re gonna write yourself some WORRY NOTES to put in the secret pockets. This is why using envelopes to make your accordion book is such a fun idea! Because you get built-in secret pockets on the backside. Yay!
SET-UP:
Fold and glue 3-5 envelopes together to make an accordion book. I’ve got a video that shows you how here: https://youtu.be/ysv9AyxeM78
STARTING RITUAL:
STEP 1. Center yourself:
Put your hand on your heart and take a few nice, long, deep, relaxing breaths.
STEP 2. Gather your supplies:
• A folded accordion book
• A pen or pencil
• Your favorite doodling tools - markers, highlighters, color pencils, crayons, etc.
• Extra sheets of paper
• Scissors
15 MINUTES TO CREATE:
STEP 3. Write your worry note:
Now comes the moment to write your worries. So grab your scissors and cut your paper down into 4 strips. These are your paper slips for your WORRY NOTES.
What you’re doing by writing your wishes down is getting clarity on your thoughts. AND you’re also letting yourself be curious and open as to HOW your problems will go away. You’re letting go of thinking you know how things should happen.
Think of your WORRY NOTES as answered prayers. On one side you write your worry. And on the other you reframe your worry into a positive thought. You stop focusing on what you don’t want (the worry), and start activating what you do want (feeling good). The key is in letting go of trying to fix everything yourself and trusting your worry dolls have got this. Yay!
• Write one big worry down on one slip of paper
• On the back, write a new thought that feels better - use the tips and examples for writing wishes in Part 2
• Fold your note to make it smaller
STEP 4. Create your worry doll:
Turn your accordion book to the FRONT side. Now it’s time to doodle your worry dolls. Think of your worry dolls as those gingerbread cookie figures. Keep it simple and have fun with it.
You can go about this in a few different ways:
• Doodle worry dolls ALL OVER in different sizes until the whole FRONT of your accordion book is populated
• Doodle just ONE page of your accordion book with a few worry dolls
• Doodle just ONE page of your accordion book with ONE big worry doll
Next:
• Have fun coloring in your worry doll(s)
• Place your WORRY NOTE from STEP 3 in one of the pockets on the backside of your accordion book
CLOSING RITUAL:
STEP 5. Release your worries:
Now comes the big moment to give thanks to your worry doll. This is when you get to surrender and release your worries to your worry dolls. Remember to think of your WORRY NOTES as answered prayers.
Turn your accordion book to the BACK side and write the words “THANK YOU” all over. You can include hearts or anything else that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy. Smile.
Optional: In addition to giving thanks, you can also say the following affirmation:
“All is well. Everything is working out for my highest good. Out of this situation only good will come. I am safe.” *
Note:
*Affirmation by Louise L. Hay:
Hay, Louise L. (2004). I can do it. How to use affirmations to change your life. Hay House, Inc.
STEP 6. Prep for next time:
Make it super easy to come back for more worry dolls coloring. Remember, you can always expand your accordion book by adding more envelopes.
You can revisit your WORRY NOTES every few weeks and replace old ones for new ones.
Keep your accordion book and your supplies in a big folder or shoe box. And schedule your next play break into your planner or calendar.
More for you:
If you love the idea of worry dolls and worry notes, I’ve got a great course for you. Here's the link to learn more: https://twinkiwinki.com/products/worry-dolls-play-time-online-workshop
Want me to show you how to art-journal with a simple accordion book format and easy-peasy prompts? If yes, I’ve got a series of videos made just for you:
• Art-Journaling With Collage (Envelopes-Accordion-Fold, #1)
CLICK HERE to check out my video: https://youtu.be/p3eNpEdI0I8
• Art-Journaling With Collage (Envelopes-Accordion-Fold, #2)
CLICK HERE to check out my video: https://youtu.be/PH2NX6qJIJQ
• Vision Board With Collage (Envelopes-Accordion-Fold, #3)
CLICK HERE to check out my video: https://youtu.be/K3BPyrNyqow
• Art-Journaling With Mandalas (Envelopes-Accordion-Fold, #1)
CLICK HERE to check out my video: https://youtu.be/DDrPiblfiRc
• Art-Journaling With Mandalas (Envelopes-Accordion-Fold, #2)
CLICK HERE to check out my video: https://youtu.be/uPdL-U1fvUA