What are 'morning pages', and how can we make the most of their wellbeing magic by doing this activity every day?

Many of us know the wellbeing benefits of writing, whether it’s creating a gratitude list each week or penning poetry that explores our experiences. Morning pages is an activity that involves writing three pages of stream of consciousness in longhand, first thing each morning. This, according to its inventor, Julia Cameron, can help us think through problems and improve our creativity.

Cameron outlines ‘morning pages’ in her 1992 book, The Artist’s Way, where she explores how we can discover and recover our creative selves. She recommends morning pages as a tool to help overcome creative blocks. And it’s not just for artists: boosting creativity can help us to problem solve in all areas of our lives, making it a worthwhile exercise for everyone.

As a writer, I was curious about trying morning pages. I’ve seen others talk about how they find it useful, and wondered whether it would help me feel more energised to write creatively each day. So I decided to give it a go.

The wellbeing benefits of morning pages

I asked counsellor Jenny Warwick for her insights into how morning pages can support our mental health and wellbeing.

“It gives you the chance to think about, and state, what’s going on for you,” she tells me. “It’s an opportunity to put down literally whatever is at the top of your head without fear of judgement. You can get those thoughts out onto paper and clear them from your mind, so that you can start the day fresh. You may well be surprised at what comes up as a result.

“While it may be tricky initially, it may give you some insight into what’s actually going on in your head, which is surely worth doing for your mental health and wellbeing.”

By writing morning pages every day, we can, Julia Cameron says, work through problems. “It is very difficult to complain about a situation morning after morning, month after month, without being moved to constructive action. The pages lead us out of despair and into undreamed-of solutions,” she writes in The Artist’s Way.

Morning pages, of course, are written first thing. Which Jenny explains gives you the chance to put your thoughts down on paper before the rest of your daily stuff gets in the way.

“It’s time that you are making specifically for you, and you alone,” she adds. “It’s before the day has gotten in the way of what’s going on in your head. Your mind has been working overnight to process the previous day and is fresh. You could catch some insights as a result of this processing before you start your new day.”

Morning pages involves writing whatever comes to us, without worrying about spelling and grammar, or what other people will think. This, Jenny explains, allows us to pour our thoughts out as they are beginning to take form, knowing that no one else is going to read them. “This means you can tap into thoughts and feelings you might not even realise or recognise that you had, which would be really valuable to know,” says Jenny. “You might even surprise you

We explain more about the different types of coaching, and how working with a coach can help to increase your confidence, redefine your goals, and guide you towards your true potential.

The coaching industry has exploded in popularity in recent years. In the US, life coaching is the second fastest-growing industry after IT. In the UK, there are now over 370,000 coaching professionals. Yet despite the growing interest in coaching, many people aren’t sure where to start. With so many different types of coaching available (and just as many different price points for single sessions, packages, and block bookings), how do you know the right coaching style for you?

What is coaching (and what can it help me with)?

Coaching (often referred to as life coaching) can refer to any process where a coach helps support you in making positive changes, learning new skills, and setting or achieving goals. A coach may work with you in person, online, or over the phone. Ultimately, a coach aims to help you make progress in one or more areas of your life (personal or professional).

A coach is there to help you make changes, discover more about yourself, and set goals, through using techniques such as questioning, active listening, observation, and reflection. The idea is that, over time, this helps you to gain a greater sense of self-awareness and personal insight, thanks to working with a non-judgemental, unbiased coach.

With help and support, you can discover a sense of clarity, direction, and focus. Many find that coaching can help boost their confidence, self-worth, and self-esteem. By working with someone, it can be easier to feel motivated, as you create a sense of accountability. You can also learn new skills, and discover new techniques and approaches to help you improve different areas of your life, from building emotional resilience and setting healthy boundaries, to setting career or financial goals.

What can’t coaching do?

In order for coaching to work, you need to be committed and open to the process. If you aren’t ready to make changes, or aren’t willing to put in the time and effort needed, you aren’t going to see the results.

If you’re in the right mindset, and find a coach that you feel comfortable being open and honest with, coaching can be a life-changing experience offering numerous benefits.

It’s important to remember that, while many coaches can help with wellbeing issues, coaching and counselling are not the same. If you are struggling with ill mental health, addiction, trauma, or other serious concerns, it is important to work with someone who is trained to help within that area.

Here we share more details about the different kinds of coaching on offer, and how you can figure out which one is right for you.

Health and wellness coaching

When you think about improving your health and wellbeing, what first comes to mind? Practising mindfulness, working with a nutritionist, talking with a therapist?

From challenging circumstances to unexpected traumas, there are times in our lives when we all have had, or will have, to face adversity. Here, columnist Grace Victory explores what it takes to truly get through the hard times, and shares the secrets to cultivating your own form of resilience

The societal focus on ‘resilience’ is often rooted in a somewhat toxic need to always be strong at any given moment.

The ‘strong woman’ trope, which is particularly felt by black women, can diminish softness, vulnerability, and lead to a lack of truth. I, like many of you reading this, have endured so much pain throughout my life that resilience and ‘bouncing back’ feels relatively easy. What other choice do we actually have? But also, at what cost does this resilience come?

Of course, resilience is something that’s needed in order to be OK after we experience something difficult. That’s life, and we can’t run from it. From name calling in the playground to an egotistical boss at your new job, or maybe even a narcissistic parent – all of us go through things that eventually help us to grow, but there is a sadness in having to be tough, too.

Often, resilient behaviours are in who we are, or shown to us subconsciously through at least one healthy relationship or attachment relating to our childhood – but this is something not everyone is fortunate enough to have experienced. As adults, I guess we have to reclaim what resilience looks like to us, and mourn or grieve our childhood experiences that perhaps shaped our bounce back ability (or lack thereof).

Now more than ever, resilience is something we need on a soul level, in order to navigate life with all its ups and downs. From the pandemic, which affected so many of us, to the political climate that, let’s be honest, is a complete and utter sh*t show. From the constant rise in the cost of living, to personal trauma that we are still trying to overcome, being able to carry on through such stress is important and necessary for our survival.

In my opinion, resilience is no longer about constantly being strong, but about making it through the day, the month, or the year. It’s about surrendering to your personal path or journey, and ultimately using your wellbeing tools to carry you through.

Resilience doesn’t need to be fighting an internal war, or stopping yourself from crying because you don’t want to appear weak. Resilience is leaning on your community, practising self-care, and doing more of the things that fill up your cup.

We cannot avoid what life throws at us – that’s something I’ve learnt, particularly in the past two years. Life is unpredictable, but if you do not have strong foundations and aren’t actively working towards them remaining strong, you could falter the moment harsh winds arrive. We can not only survive through the storm, but we can go on to thrive, with due care, self-compassion, and grace.

So, how do we be

Author and content creator Louise Pentland joins Happiful's podcast to talk about adulting, boundaries and grief

Author of Time After Time Louise Pentland brings a beautiful energy to the opening episode of our new season of I am. I have, as well as a ton of talk about continuing to learn, boundaries, her thoughts on grief and what she hopes the future will look like…

Our full interview with Louise can be read in Issue 66 of Happiful Magazine.
Find out more about getting your copy

Louise on

Learning

Just when I think I've got the knack of things, whether that's Motherhood, my job, friendships or just adulting, I learn something new or I learn that I don't know something, because you don't know what you don't know.

In terms of relationships, I'm still learning that the impacts of those, how they can affect you, how things you've said to people can affect you too and how to make peace with that, as well as how to validate your children's feelings.

The effects of poverty can last a lifetime, regardless of your current financial position. So how can you recognise the damage it causes, and begin to live life on your own terms?

Coming from a place of financial poverty, I have become all too familiar with money trauma.

Moving homes nine times before the age of 10 years old, I didn’t have a place to call ‘home’. Even then, when I say home, I mean a shack.

I spent part of my childhood living with my grandparents in Cairo. We didn’t have clean water, and had little food. Being the poor girl, with dirty, hand-me-down clothes from my uncles, you can imagine I wasn’t the most popular kid.

Even when I lived with my mum in the UK, and we were in a better financial position, I was still unpopular. All the other children had new clothes, video games, and went on days out – all of which were beyond me.

The teasing was humiliating. Kids would shout at me, tell me I was garbage, point, laugh, and make gestures that I smelt. One of the teachers actually joined in, publicly yelling at me for not wearing the correct uniform, because I couldn’t afford it.

As you can imagine, I felt abnormal, like there was something fundamentally wrong with me. Even though I progressed from a place of third-world poverty to the breadline, I was always falling behind. I was inferior and never good enough.

Money and self-beliefs

Anyone can see the negative impact of poverty in terms of quality of life. We hear how money worries can be stressful, but I’m not sure we appreciate its magnitude.

As a clinical psychologist, looking back at my upbringing, I know that I suffered traumas attached to money. My story is not unique, and money trauma, sadly, often leads us to have an unhealthy relationship with ourselves and with other people.

I’ll never be good enough

This was hard for me. Having those negative and critical messages from other people in society was excruciating. On top of that, the messages I received from family members were also painful (“We can’t afford X”, “We’re not good enough to deserve Y”, “We must accept being below the threshold”).

I ended up believing that I wasn’t good enough, that other people were better than me, that I deserved to be treated badly, and that was my life forever.

Unfortunately, these beliefs continued through my life, and negatively affected my self-esteem, mental health, and relationships. I would constantly be living in a state of anxiety, watching my every move to make sure I wasn’t being ‘weird’ or ‘shameful’.

I would tolerate emotionally and physically abusive behaviours from friends or ex-partners, because I felt that was what I deserved and I was worthy of no more. I would constantly try to please other people, so they didn’t have a reason to criticise me. I worried that if I voiced my needs, I would be rejected, and all I wanted was to be accepted.

I’ve got crabs, and I bet you do too

Have you ever heard of what happens to crabs in a bucket? One crab may want to escape – and why not? It’s crowded in that bucket, and there’s the e