Keeping a diary makes you happier

I have looong been an advocate of writing things down in order to clear my head and de-stress but keeping a diary, apparently, goes even further than that.

I recently stumbled across an article in the Guardian that reveals just how therapeutic diaries can be. Ian Sample of the Guardian writes:

Brain scans on volunteers showed that putting feelings down on paper reduces activity in a part of the brain called the amygdala, which is responsible for controlling the intensity of our emotions.

Psychologists who discovered the “Bridget Jones effect” said it worked whether people elaborated on their feelings in a diary, penned lines of poetry, or even jotted down song lyrics to express their negative emotions.

Matthew Lieberman, a psychologist at the University of California in Los Angeles, said the effect differs from catharsis, which usually involves coming to terms with an emotional problem by seeing it in a different light.

When people wrote about their feelings, medical scans showed that their brain activity matched that seen in volunteers who were consciously trying to control their emotions.

“Writing seems to help the brain regulate emotion unintentionally. Whether it’s writing things down in a diary, writing bad poetry, or making up song lyrics that should never be played on the radio, it seems to help people emotionally,”
Dr Lieberman said.

Who knew that the Dairy Diary could be so beneficial?! Keep up with your diary writing folks.

Oh and, of course, as well as therapy Dairy Diary also gives you AMAZING recipes like this. Enjoy!

Watch out for the 2017 Dairy Diary, which goes on sale very soon!

#tripletested

#dairydiaryrecipe