Does anyone keep a daily journal?

If so, what do you write in it?
Do you summarize your day and connect it to your mood?

I've never done it before, so I would like to see how others do theirs.

I used to do it sometime ago (before this current depressive episode to be exact). Summed up my day, the parts of the 'schedule' I was able to stick to, the parts I needed to improve on, what I learnt (was living at a center where there was a lot to learn, apart from the healing), insights etc. Basically I kept it very 'normal' instead of worrying excessively about the moods aspect. It does help you greatly to keep you on track. Wish I had been less lazy and continued...sigh

Not daily but probably weekly, since june, before i even knew i had bp. Ots great really brings things into perspective. I see what i was thinking at times over the past six months.

I write about my activities, my worries, my stressors, thoughts feelings, and anything and everything else.

My pen just flows i dont think hard about what im writing or worry about how im wording things, i just write.

I have a physical journal but im working on typing it all up to have on the computer as well.

I don't write daily...just when my heart desires to. When Im in crisis or prolong turmoil (for instance, when I've been hospitalized..many times) I will write A LOT. Most of it is dark, scary and plain sad. When I am writing though, its a release...a way to get it all out in private and I can choose to share, which I have, or be private with it. I have one that is full and right now I am half-way through my new one. The other 4 I filled up in recent years I have gotten rid of. That was powerful for me.

When I write....I free associate. I just write whatever is in my mind, whether it makes sense or not at the time. My pencil never leaves the page and sometimes I will write 6 pages! Lol

And sometimes, if I am brave I will look back on what I've written and I am amazed. It makes perfect sense. Often times we know exactly how we feel but its just hidden by all the other crap swirling in our thoughts.

..... I'm relatively new to it. I keep a running commentary on my mood, sleep patterns, thoughts and activities that I've done for the day.

I have tried many times... To be honest for "me" it annoying and or depressing .... I would begin writing and would remark on every single thing I was feeling to the extreme ( hyper focused) and it just seemed to turn into a pity party type deal .. yes! no need for that in my life.

I do chart my moods daily but its a number based system and take me 1-2 mins at night and its done to watch for shifts in moods that I may not be aware of yet.

I used to journal by charting my moods on a scale of one to ten, mainly my depressive and anxiety symptoms to see if there were triggers I wasn't noticing or how much it fluctuates throughout a given day.
I work as a mental health counselor and some people I work with find it a very useful and cathartic tool to journal daily or when they're experiencing symptoms. But it's not for everyone. Worth a shot maybe it'll help.

I've been journaling since I was 19 and I'm 43 now. So I have 24 years worth of journals. It's pretty amazing to go back and read what I wrote when major events happened in the world.

I write often. Sometimes every day, some times it's a few times a week. I occasionally go a month or so without writing but that's pretty rare.

I write how I am feeling, I write what is going on in the world and what is going on in my little world. Sometimes I write just to write.

One of my favorite things to do is find journals. Every time I see a store that sells journals I have to go in and look at them.

I've journaled since I was in the fifth grade.
It's wild to look back on the poetry and the anxiety of my 11 yr old self and see "Yep, there I am."
When my babies were small I journaled a lot about them and their daily life/schedule.
Now, I journal when there is nobody to talk to, or when I'm overwhelmed, or bored, or ecstatic. It's been a great tool for me.
I have this notion that maybe one day all that I've written will be of some use to somebody else.

Use it to vent and put thoughts on paper. Makes things more tangible for me. Can see some of the irrational thinking at times. I also can see some of the changes I go through. Use to journal everyday when charting mood. Now use different app so journal when really having hard time. Use facingus.org to journal in. Good support site.

Oh! I chart my moods several times a day on a phone app

Yes I keep one in a form of sketch/diary pad. Some of these I would like to burn... but it helps me.

I have kept journals on and off, but I recently started to again, and I'm finding it to be incredibly helpful to be aware of how you are feeling every day, and record trends, and other thoughts and ideas. Basically whatever is going on in my life, or in my head. It can help you draw connections to things.

Personally, I would totally recommend finding some way of journaling that works for you! Everyone is different. If it means filling out a little chart, or just writing ideas, or even drawing pictures or whatever, then by all means, go for it!

That's actually so smart! And definitely quite convenient! What's the name of the app?

imoodjournal. easy and simple to do! my pdoc looks at it each visit and its very helpful for her as I have a hard time recalling things.

She has me chart 5-6 times a day and its helpful.

I'm going to give that app a try. I'm convinced I'm bp 2, but my pdoc doesn't listen to me. Maybe this will help!

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I write in my journal...but not every day. I have slacked off.

I used to but when I read what I had written I found it very depressing .. so now I'm trying to be more upbeat.

I don't keep a daily journal but I do journal. I write what went on during the day/week, how I'm feeling, etc. I also track my weight loss progress. It will be lots of fun when I'm way older to read back on my entries from now. I try to journal a few times a week. I also add in a journal topic every Sunday and write about that.

I use an app called MoodLog. I've been using it for over a year now. I use it to track my moods, the meds that I've taken (or missed), the sleep I've gotten the previous night and it has a daily journal tool. The only thing I don't like about it is it only accounts for what your mood is one time per day. For a rapid cycler your mood could change several times during the day.

So I also keep an "FTD" journal. It stands for "what am I Feeling? What am I Thinking? What am I Doing?" I can make entries several times a day, so I can track my moods better.

For me, it's been very helpful to track everything sink can see patterns. Those patterns can help me see why I feel what I feel, and it's been extremely helpful in working with both my doctors. Sometimes I get it wrong (I mark my mood as depressed when I'm actually hypomanic) but for the most part...I have over a year's worth of daily mood, med and sleep tracking information.