• An exercise in self-care through prompted journaling

Many authors use their writing as a means of self-care. As a medium, writing helps you organise your thoughts better, which in turn gives you better clarity. But what does that mean for those of us who aren’t writers? How do we experience the same kind of clarity and calm that writing often brings? And more importantly, just because we write, does that mean we need to write something that others need to read? 

That is something Zainab Hudha’s first publication ‘self-muse’ attempts to answer. Falling within the genre of self-help books, ‘self-muse’ is a prompted journal written by Zainab which looks to give readers an interactive experience in journaling through a series of prompts that help them examine different areas of their lives and map out their thoughts. 

A qualified psychologist, Zainab has been writing for as long as she can remember. She ventured into creative writing during her O/Levels and then transitioned into writing poetry and one-liners. ‘self-muse’ is her first book and focuses on blending both her passions – creative writing and psychology – to create an experiential book that allows people to explore their thoughts. 

What is journaling? 

Before we dive into prompted journaling, it’s important to address journaling itself – the practice of regularly recording your thoughts, feelings, experiences, and observations in a written format, typically in a journal or notebook. Journals serve as a private space for self-expression and reflection, allowing you to capture your inner world, track your personal growth, and document significant events in your life. 

Journaling can take various forms, including free-form writing, prompts, bullet points, sketches, and even multimedia elements like photos or collages.

As a form of self-care, journaling offers many benefits:

• Self-reflection: Journaling deepens self-understanding through exploring thoughts and experiences.
• Emotional outlet: Writing eases stress, clarifies emotions, and manages challenges.
• Goal setting and tracking: Journaling fosters focus, accountability, and celebration of achievements.
• Problem-solving: Journaling spurs creative solutions by organising thoughts and perspectives.
• Creativity and insight: Journaling inspires innovative thinking and self-discovery.
• Memory preservation: Journals capture moments, preserving memories and feelings.
• Personal growth: Journaling tracks progress, guiding intentional development.
• Stress reduction: Writing in a journal calms the mind and relieves stress.
• Communication skills: Journaling enhances writing and communication abilities.
• Privacy and freedom: Journals offer a safe, judgement-free space for honest expression.

Overall, journaling is a versatile practice that can provide numerous benefits for your mental, emotional, and personal wellbeing. Whether you’re seeking self-discovery, stress relief, or a tool for personal development, maintaining a journal can be a meaningful and rewarding endeavour.

This is part of why Zainab has developed ‘self-muse’ – to serve as a tool for wellbeing. “‘self-muse’ is a guided journaling tool. It’s an interactive journal with clear prompts that can facilitate an honest conversation with yourself. I have used my educational qualifications and passion for the science of wellbeing to develop this journal that can encourage you to turn inward and look into yourself, not just at the good, but at both the light and the dark.” 

‘self-muse’ is not meant to be a diary, with Zainab sharing that to her, what set journaling apart from maintaining a diary was that journals, by their nature, were reflective and proactive. They deal with examining emotions and feelings, making plans for growth and looking to what comes next. Diaries, on the other hand, tend to serve as accounts of day-to-day events and aren’t necessarily introspective. 

The shape of ‘self-muse’ 

‘self-muse’ comes together in four sections, each of which was designed by Zainab to help users look at and explore different areas of their lives. 

The first chapter, ‘Small Talk,’ is to do with introductions – small talk and understanding your identity 

The second chapter, ’Move Out,’  looks at the past – your past experiences and what your childhood and growing up were like. 

The third chapter, ‘Look Inside,’ is all about interpersonal relationships, how you view the world, and navigate relationships. 

The fourth and final chapter, ‘Take Care,’ looks at the future and provides prompts on how to take care of your future self. 

“There is no right or wrong way to journal. There are also many forms of journaling: from art journaling to doodling to structured journaling and gratitude journaling. Overall, what defines journaling is the act of looking at what you’re thinking and feeling, and putting those concepts that are in your head onto paper,” Zainab said on what guided her when creating ‘self-muse’. In the end, what she wants to create is a tool that people can use to better understand themselves and improve their wellbeing.

“Sometimes we have all this information in our heads that we can take and put onto paper and begin to notice patterns and similarities in thoughts and experiences and take away understandings that we can use to improve our decision-making and overall quality of life,” Zainab went on to share. “‘self-muse’ is a journaling tool that has everything you need. All you need is the book, yourself, and a pen. The prompts are thematised for each section, and there is enough space within the book itself to write down what your thoughts are.”

The beauty of ‘self-muse’ is that it also features a selection of quotes, poems, one-liners, and reminders that inspire users during the process to navigate the journey. There are also task lists peppered in, as well as prompts for letters you can write to yourself as part of your self-introspection. ‘self-muse’ is also not designed to be linear. Any section or any prompt can be tackled at any time. 

The name ‘self-muse’ in itself is also something Zainab chose very carefully: “As a person, names are quite important to me (for the longest time I wasn’t even happy with my own given name). I’ve always found it interesting that in life we look for muses outside ourselves. We look to creative art or movies, for example. 

“Even when it comes to writing something, even just life-based activities, we tend to look outwards. We rarely spend time looking inwards into our pain, into what we have been through, into how we have changed, or how we can learn from what has happened to us, and this is because to do this requires focus and thought into ourselves. We have to sit down and have these conversations with ourselves. This is not something we practise widely, here or internationally.” 

As such, the name ‘self-muse’ represents looking inward to understand ourselves and gain inspiration from ourselves and what we have been through – to make ourselves our own muses. 

Prompt journaling as a journaling tool

‘self-muse’ is not just an introduction to journaling; it can be used by those who are already familiar with journaling, as well as those who have never tried journaling before. This is because it is a prompt journal, encouraging users to respond to specific questions and examine specific experiences or times in their lives.

“We all have certain preconceived notions about a lot of things. For example, not everyone will have the openness to try out ‘self-muse,’” Zainab said, adding that for this reason, she had taken a minimalist approach to the book, keeping things as neutral and approachable, from the colours used to gender-neutral prompts and use of open-ended questions. 

“It’s not linear, so you can go to any page you want and pick any question. We all like answering questions in private, and this is what ‘self-muse’ offers; private reflection, to think, and to answer questions. Hopefully, this practice will extend beyond the book into your own little journal you can use and maintain.” 

Zainab said that while she had designed ‘self-muse’ to be as inclusive as possible across age and gender, she recommends those over the age of 16 to try ‘self-muse,’ as they may have the requisite sense of self-awareness needed to truly take something valuable away from the experience. 

As a psychologist, Brunch also asked Zainab about what the potential repercussions for those with unacknowledged trauma could be when it came to taking the journey of reflection that ‘self-muse’ offered. 

Zainab noted that in such cases, any media had the potential to trigger a trauma response, but also stressed that ‘self-muse’ was not therapy, nor could it aspire to be so. “It is a prompt journal. In no way, shape, or form is it equivalent to therapy or an alternative to therapy. However, to be able to feel something when answering a question [as you would if you were responding to the prompts of ‘self-muse’] means that there is work that needs to be done. We all have many moments in time where we have experiences or situations where we don’t feel comfortable,” Zainab said, adding, “That begs the question – why is there this discomfort, what is this situation trying to teach me?” 

The non-linear nature of ‘self-muse’ is such that even if someone doesn’t feel like finishing a question, they can simply skip to another question. But responding to a prompt, even if it can be uncomfortable at that given moment, can prove valuable. As an educationally qualified person, Zainab has worked this sensitivity to discomfort into her work as much as possible to create a tool that is safe to use in a genre of self-help that is virtually unheard of in the Sri Lankan context. 

“It all comes down to whether people want to learn more about themselves,” Zainab said. “We spend all our lives with ourselves. The fairest treatment we can give ourselves is to get to know ourselves with genuine interest, and this is what ‘self-muse’ as a prompt journal can help with. If someone does pick up this book and go through its journey, they will come to understand themselves and how to take themselves into the future better.” 

‘self-muse’ by Zainab Hudha launches today (27) and will be available for purchase through The Jam Fruit Tree Publications. You can also learn more about Zainab through her Instagram pages @from.zainab and @muse_collective