Journaling, and why it's awesome

Back in the blackest days of binge eating disorder, I started a journal. Since my early teens, I'd filled notebook upon notebook with story ideas, sketches, and photos that caught my eye, and loved it.

But journaling was different. It was a BED breakthrough, my first one. I discovered the release that comes from telling the truth. I wrote about the hurts bottled up inside me; the fears I couldn't bring myself to share with anyone else; how angry I was with myself for my behaviour; and how desperately I wanted to change. It was quite something, the things that flowed out of my ballpoint pen tip and onto the paper.

Sounds depressing, you say? Okay, I admit it. It does sound that way. So far. But it isn't. Journaling is DIY psychotherapy. It's cheap, easy and effective. You can do it anywhere. All you need is a few minutes and a cell phone, computer or piece of paper. There's no obligation to journal daily. Better still, no one's looking over your shoulder to make sure you're using spot-on punctuation or perfect spelling. The questions you ask don't have to be fancy, either. Here are a few easy ones to get you started:

• Why do I have BED?
• When did it start?
• How does it make me feel?
• What triggers a binge?
• Are there warning signs I can look out for?

But the best is yet to come: once you get through the bleak stuff, you'll start to see and think more clearly. You'll start recording your successes, what you're grateful for, the strategies you'll use to cope the next time the urge to binge strikes.

Try it. You'll see. Journaling is awesome.