The Rogue Mind Journaling Club | Nervous System, Overwhelm, Writing Prompts, Burnout, Anxious

Katie Crews: Journal Therapy and Life Coach, K-12 Educator, Blogger & Author
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Mental Health

Do you ever feel like your mind has just gone rogue? Is everyday anxiety, ADHD, and burnout sapping your energy, time, and presence? Are you ready to untangle your thoughts and power up your mind? I’m Katie. I’m a mom, educator, and longtime journal-keeper. I’m a little bit crunchy and a lot bit full of Jesus joy. For years, I was held captive by an unfocused mind that also buzzed with everyday anxiety. I was stuck. I finally realized that the solution to my overwhelm had been there all along. Writing, journaling, expressing. I just needed to modify my journaling into something more strategic. In this podcast, I share simple journaling strategies to help organize your thoughts, unload your intense emotions, and bring relief to overwhelm. And through it all, you’ll create a written record of your growth. My mission is to help you reclaim your mind so you can be your powerful, fierce and regulated self. So, if you are ready to tackle your anxiety, reclaim order in your ADHD brain, and power-up your rogue mind, pull out that pretty notebook you bought years ago, because it’s time to fill it with all your beautiful and messy thoughts.

  1. 4d ago

    020: From Mental Clutter to Clarity: How Handwritten Journaling Helps You Untangle Your Thoughts

    Hi Loves! You're invited to come join my Substack for more journaling content here: https://theroguemindjournalingclub.substack.com/ And if you're interested in journal therapy or life coaching with me, you can book a free Meet & Greet at www.roguemindliving.com/roguemindcoaching. And if you're more of a casual follower for now, you can find me on Instagram @roguemindliving. On today's episode, I share with you the timeless practice of journaling by hand. I took my son roller skating recently at a classic rink and they replaced their easy lock-and-key lockers with digital access ones, pulling me out of the nostalgic story of the rink. It got me thinking about certain timeless things we just shouldn't mess with. Like writing by hand. Writing by hand has so many cognitive and emotional benefits! By connecting body and brain, writing by hand helps with learning, memory, and emotional regulation. I have a wonderful long-term memory and I credit that in part to all my writing by hand. The return to hand-writing and physical textbooks is making a huge comeback in the education realm, and there's scientific reason for that. Come join me as we learn about the science behind journaling by hand and how it can help us manage mental clutter so we can live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

  2. Oct 13

    019: Feeling anxious, scattered, and stuck? 10 Mental and Emotional Benefits of Journaling Over Time

    Hi Loves! You're invited to come join my Substack for more journaling content here: https://theroguemindjournalingclub.substack.com/ And if you're interested in journal therapy or life coaching with me, you can book a free Meet & Greet at www.roguemindliving.com/roguemindcoaching. In this episode, I share ten ways that journaling over time can really benefit our connection with our whole self. A long-term journaling practice helps us discover patterns, build self-trust and emotional awareness, and reconnect with our core identity when we feel lost.  I also share a practical prompt for seasoned journalers and newbies alike. And if you are new to journaling and wish you had these long-term benefits, this prompt is a great jump start to that practice. The Practical Prompt: Pick out one of those pretty notebooks you've been afraid to write in, and start writing out different scenes in your life as if you were watching a parade pass by and each scene is a different float. Have fun and be creative and see you what you learn about yourself! May this week bring you lots of discovery and insight. Go live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

  3. Sep 22

    018: Is your nervous system flooding? Grounded journaling for anger, grief, overwhelm, and anxiety

    Hi Girls! If you're interested in journal therapy or life coaching, I would love to meet you. You can book a free Meet & Greet call here: www.roguemindliving.com/roguemindcoaching  In this episode of The Rogue Mind Journaling Club Podcast, I focus on the words drainage and containment. Both words have conjure pretty specific images of natural disasters and medical problems, but both are also beautifully applicable to journaling. When our thoughts overwhelm us, when we are emotionally flooded, we need an outlet, a place for our emotions to go so we can free our body of the flight-fight-freeze response. When we stay there too long, it can have actually physical effects on our body like headaches, indigestion, and illness. Our journal is the container and the act of writing is the drain. This grounded journaling method can be really helpful in moments of intense flooding or just afterward to help you process what just happened. Place your palms on your legs and press firmly. This practice grounds us, pulling us out of our minds and back into our body. Take three long deep breaths. Breathe in to the count of 4, hold for 4, breathe out for a count of 7. Set a timer for 5-10 minutes and pick up my pen and write stream of consciousness until the timer goes off and then stop right away. This signals a safe boundary to your nervous system. Close your notebook and press your hands firmly down, mimicking the opening exercise. Take three more deep breaths, but this time visualize the most beautiful and safe locked container. Visualize putting your journal into this container where you can return to them if needed, but where they stay contained. Put the cap on the pen, closing the session. Connect with me on Instagram @roguemindliving to let me know how it goes for you! Check out my content about journaling, my journey, and the transformations possible with life coaching. May you find solace in your journaling practice this week, so you can live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

  4. Sep 8

    017: Struggling to start the tasks on your list? The exact to-do list framework to hack your brain into high gear.

    Hi Girls! If you're interested in journal therapy or life coaching, I would love to meet you. You can book a free Meet & Greet call here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowercoaching  You can join my mailing list here, for monthly newsletter content about journaling tools, life coaching transformation, and my own journaling practice:  www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowerjournalingclub In this episode of The Girl Power Journaling Club Podcast, I share about how if task initiation is a struggle for you, your to-do lists might be incomplete. Now, not to worry, I'm not suggesting adding more to your actual list. Instead, in this episode, we talk about making space for your future self as part of the list-making process. My to-do lists are often just brain dumps, and that's a good start. But for those of us who have difficulty actually starting things, a brain dump list is overwhelming. So how to fix it and trick our brains into starting? Practical Prompt: The Future Self To-Do List 1. Do the brain dump. Write out all the things to do and remember. 2. Pause. Visualize your future self. What does she need from you today? 3. Look back at your list and highlight only 3 things--one thing that is genuinely urgent, one thing that would make life easier for your future self, and one thing you can definitely accomplish in your timeframe. 4. Write those 3 things in their own list, away from where you can see the rest of the list. When those 3 things are accomplished, you can revisit the rest. In the meantime, your notebook will hold the rest of the list safe so you don't have to carry it in your working memory. Accomplishing those three things will do wonders for our momentum. When we see what we can do, we'll want to keep going. Connect with me on Instagram @roguemindliving to let me know how it goes for you! Check out my content about journaling, my journey, and the transformations possible with life coaching. May your week be full of redeemed productively and pride in all that you’re able to get done, so you can live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

  5. Sep 1

    016: Stuck in overthinking a big decision? Try this 3-step journaling method for clarity

    Hi Girls! If you're interested in journal therapy or life coaching, I would love to meet you. You can book a free Meet & Greet call here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowercoaching  You can join my mailing list here, for monthly newsletter content about journaling tools, life coaching transformation, and my own journaling practice:  www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowerjournalingclub In this episode of The Girl Power Journaling Club Podcast, I share about what happens in our minds when a big decision looms and how we can use journaling to settle our minds and create clarity. Decision-making can be really overwhelming, especially if we're also managing ADHD and general anxiety. Journaling can help! Practical Prompt: 3-Step Structured Journaling Tool Divide your paper into three columns, labeled FACTS, FEELINGS, and VALUES. Then write the options of your decision down the side of the paper. Fill in each column with the objective facts (i.e. salary, proximity to family, etc), how you feel about each option (i.e. scared, excited, open, sad, etc), and your personal values that would be fulfilled with each choice (i.e. independence, responsibility, challenge, etc). Take a little break, maybe a shower or a walk, and come back to your writing with fresh eyes. You'll be able to see your own wisdom and clarity form on the page. Connect with me on Instagram @roguemindliving to let me know how it goes for you! Check out my content about journaling, my journey, and the transformations possible with life coaching. May your week be filled with clarity and peace, so that you can live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

  6. Aug 8

    015: Do Big Life Changes Rock Your Identity? How to Journal for Self-Trust and Confidence

    Hi Girls! If you're interested in journal therapy or life coaching, I would love to meet you. You can book a free Meet & Greet call here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowercoaching  You can join my mailing list here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowerjournalingclub And connect with me on Instagram @roguemindliving In this episode, I share the ways journaling can support us during big life changes that seem to rock our sense of identity. Journaling can ground us in ourselves and our God-given identity over time. Journaling provides a place to explore different parts of our identity and our values as life changes around us. Journaling offers a stable, concrete foundation. This week's prompts: 1: Write down everything about the transition in present tense, even if it’s over or not yet. What is happening? What are you feeling in your body? What competing thoughts about the change are filling your mind? How is this change affecting how you think of yourself and who you are? What changes in your identity do you expect? How does that make you feel? 2 (Advanced): Choose two core parts of your identity that battle for dominance during a big life change (anxiety vs. empowerment, wise self vs. impulsive self, future self vs present self.) Write a letter from one to the other, or a dialogue between the two. See what comes up for you regarding how you see yourself during big change. May your journaling practice this week restore a strong and confident sense of self so you can live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

  7. Jul 22

    014: Journaling When You Don’t Have Words--Writing Scripture to Calm Anxiety and Transform Your Mind

    Hi Girls! If you're interested in journal-based life coaching, I would love to meet you. You can book a free Meet & Greet call here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowercoaching  You can join my mailing list here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowerjournalingclub And connect with me on Instagram @roguemindliving In today's episode, I talk about the amazing benefits for our mind and soul of writing Scripture when we're feeling overwhelmed with anxiety. Starting with God's words is the best thing we can do when we don't have our own. Here are some verses to get you started: Here are some Scripture verses to get you started. Start by just copying the verses 5-10 times. In parentheses, I've added some extra prompts for when your own words begin to flow again. 1 Peter 5:7--Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. (Visualize or draw a picture of throwing your anxiety at Jesus, because He can handle it) Psalm 94:19--When anxiety was great within me, Your consolation brought me joy. (Write about a time where this was true in your life) Prov. 12:25--Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. (What are some kind words you can write to yourself?) Philippians 4:6--Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, present your requests to God. (This offers a solution for when the command feels overwhelming. Make a list of all the things making you anxious and hand them over to our God who can handle our big feelings). May God's words meet you when your mind is flooded, so you can live joyful, not anxious this week. Love, Katie

  8. Jul 13

    013: Overtaxed and Overstimulated-Journaling for a Grumpy Nervous System

    Hi Girls! You can join my mailing list here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowerjournalingclub Connect with me on Instagram @roguemindliving And if you're interested in journal-based life coaching, I would love to work with you. I'm in the process of getting my ICF coaching certification and for now, my prices are super low! You can book a free Meet & Greet call here: www.roguemindliving.com/girlpowercoaching  In today's episode, I share how the overwhelm manifests in me when my schedule gets overtaxed and I feel overstimulated. When I don't give my emotions breathing room, they take the space anyway, usually directed at the people around me. I share how journaling can help us make margin for our emotions and help us deflate the fight or flight response in our brains. Journaling helps us put words to feelings welling up and threatening to overflow. When we write them down, we are able to see patterns and build self-awareness for future situations. Today's Practical Prompts: Quick and Easy: Three columns Overtaxed--list out your pressing schedule Overstimulated--list out your sensory inputs from the day Overwhelmed--list where you feel overwhelmed in your body, how is the overwhelm manifesting physically or psychologically? Then sit back and reflect on any insights or connections you see.  Deep Dive Journaling: Name the weather: If my nervous system had a weather system right now, it would be… Empty the backpack: Brain dump everything weighing on your mind (don’t organize or self-edit as you go) Interview your body: What do my shoulders say? How about my stomach? Am I clenching my fists unconsciously? Where have I been pushing through instead of processing? (Love this question!) What is constantly demanding my attention? Separate weight from responsibility: two columns (What am I actually responsible for? What have I accidentally made my responsibility?) May you meet your nervous system with grace and space this week so you can live joyful, not anxious. Love, Katie

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Do you ever feel like your mind has just gone rogue? Is everyday anxiety, ADHD, and burnout sapping your energy, time, and presence? Are you ready to untangle your thoughts and power up your mind? I’m Katie. I’m a mom, educator, and longtime journal-keeper. I’m a little bit crunchy and a lot bit full of Jesus joy. For years, I was held captive by an unfocused mind that also buzzed with everyday anxiety. I was stuck. I finally realized that the solution to my overwhelm had been there all along. Writing, journaling, expressing. I just needed to modify my journaling into something more strategic. In this podcast, I share simple journaling strategies to help organize your thoughts, unload your intense emotions, and bring relief to overwhelm. And through it all, you’ll create a written record of your growth. My mission is to help you reclaim your mind so you can be your powerful, fierce and regulated self. So, if you are ready to tackle your anxiety, reclaim order in your ADHD brain, and power-up your rogue mind, pull out that pretty notebook you bought years ago, because it’s time to fill it with all your beautiful and messy thoughts.

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