A Scribble a Day Keeps the Gremlins Away
Brain Gremlins Suck!
Let’s be honest. Life can be a lot.
Some days it feels like you’ve got it all sorted. Other days, just choosing what socks to wear feels like trying to solve climate change. And in between? A bit of a mess, a bit of magic—and a whole lot that doesn’t make sense.
Which is exactly why we need something that doesn’t have to make sense.
Something private. Playful. Honest.
Enter: journaling.
But not the stiff, “Dear Diary” kind you were forced to write in Year 8 with your maths homework stuck underneath. Nope. We’re talking about visual journaling—where your brain gets to talk in pictures, scraps, splats, stickers, and whatever else you feel like sticking down.
It’s journaling… with glitter and guts.
Why Journaling is Good for the Ol’ Noggin
Mental health isn’t just about the bad days. It’s about how we make sense of the everyday chaos. Journaling gives you a place to do that—without judgement, without pressure, and without anyone watching over your shoulder asking, “What’s that supposed to be?”
Studies show journaling can reduce anxiety, improve emotional regulation, boost mood, and even help with sleep. And the best part? You don’t need to be a writer or an artist. You just need a notebook, a glue stick, and maybe a bus ticket from 2016 that makes you oddly emotional.
Journaling visually gives you a chance to tell your story your way. It can be messy. It can be scribbly. It can be full of vintage ephemera and old envelopes that someone else might chuck in the bin but you see as gold.
Not Everyone Likes Words And Its Totally Okay
Some people process with words.
Others? Pictures. Symbols. Shapes. Patterns.
And let’s be honest—sometimes there are no words.
That’s where visual journaling shines. It allows you to process your mental world through images and layers, not just paragraphs. You’re still telling your story. You’re just letting it speak a different language.
Six Prompts to Get You Started (No Writing Required!)
-
Create Your Inner Weather Forecast
Use colours, shapes, or textures to show how your brain feels today. Stormy? Sunny with patchy clouds? Bit of a nor’wester with a chance of meltdown?
-
Collage a Page About What’s Weighing You Down
Tear, glue, layer—use bits of ephemera, newspaper, or recycled packaging to visually represent stress, pressure, or overwhelm. Then scribble over the top. Or don’t.
-
Make a Map of Your Day (or Week, or Brain)
Doodle a “mental map” of what your day felt like. Not what happened, but how it felt. Use arrows, road signs, cliffs, detours—get metaphorical with it.
-
Your Inner Critic as a Character
Give that annoying voice in your head a name and face. Draw it. Collage it. Turn it into a scrunched-up tea bag with angry eyebrows if you want. Bonus points for giving it ridiculous hair.
-
Gratitude Page, But Make It Weird
Create a visual thank-you list for the odd little things that made you smile today. That one pigeon. The smell of toast. The moment you remembered pants before leaving the house.
-
Rip-and-Release
Write or collage something you want to let go of, rip it up, glue it into a chaotic new shape, and let it become something else. Mess is magic.
Mental Health Isn’t a Straight Line
Sometimes you’re thriving. Sometimes you’re hanging on by a glittery washi tape thread. Journaling won’t fix everything—but it gives your feelings somewhere to land. And sometimes, that’s enough to shift things. Even just a little.
And hey—if it helps you slow down and look at something differently (even if it’s just that weird receipt from a dairy run in 2018), that’s a win.
Use What You’ve Got (and What We’ve Got, Too)
At Lil Bit Different, we believe in the beauty of imperfection and the power of storytelling through scraps. Our vintage ephemera packs are full of rescued paper, hand-curated oddities, and wee treasures that were almost forgotten. Now they’re ready to be part of your story.
Whether you journal every day or just when the gremlins come knocking—your pages matter. Your scraps matter. And your story? It’s yours to tell however you like.
So go on. Grab some glue. Make a mess.
And if anyone asks what you’re doing, just tell ’em:
“I’m working on my mental health, mate.”
(And maybe buy a pack of vintage nonsense while you’re at it.)