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The mental health memo of the day: guided journals are an amazing tool to use, especially when you don’t have access to social services or you don’t know where to start. Here are the best guided journals for anxiety that can help to get you back on track!

Anxiety is a common emotion we all feel, and it’s normal to have once in a while. For example, when you’re doing something nerve-wracking like a job interview, a presentation, a test, or meeting your partner’s parents for the first time.

However, when anxiety is persistent, consistent, and starts to negatively impact your life, you might have a problem. You may not necessarily have an anxiety disorder, but you may just be experiencing some chronic anxiety,

There are a lot of things that you can try to improve your symptoms, but guided journals for anxiety are one of the best possible ways. And shortly, I will be outlining what the 6 best guided journals for anxiety are that you can use to improve these symptoms.

*This post may contain affiliate links. By using the links on this article, I get a small amount of commission that I put back into my blog and Youtube channel. This does not compromise my integrity and I only recommend things I actually believe in or find of good quality. You do not get charged extra by using these links. Thanks for supporting my content if you end up using these links :)*

Reminder: As per the nature of online shopping, the journals go in and out of stock. I’ve picked journals that should be accessible for many countries but if you click on the link and the book isn’t available, I recommend adding it to your cart regardless and waiting for it to come back in stock. I’ve also provided alternatives sites where possible!

What is a Guided Journal?

Typically when we think of a journal, we imagine a pretty book with lined paper inside to write all our thoughts into. Kind of like a diary.

But a guided journal is a journal that has either prompts, exercises, activities, coloring, drawing, or information (or all of the above) for you to follow to reach a certain goal.

There are all kinds of guided journals for various types of goals, but for the purpose of this article, we will be discussing the best guided journals for anxiety and anxiety disorders.

Why Guided Journaling is Effective

You might be wondering what makes guided journaling better than just regular journaling. It’s important to note that regular journaling is effective and can work great for you.

But guided journaling, in my opinion, is better because:

• It can help guide and direct you towards improving what you want so it’s less overwhelming and confusing for you
• You don’t have to think about what you need to be writing because the prompts and activities are already done for you
• It can be hard to know what you need to ask yourself to achieve the goals you need, so having someone else create those questions can be really helpful
• Since a lot of the work is done for you, it can be less intimidating to start and to be consistent with your journaling
• You might feel less alone as you’re almost “working” with someone else except it’s in a journal form
• Since some journals also have extra information, you might end up learning a lot about what you want to improve on

So with all that in mind, let’s get onto the most effective guided journals for anxiety!

The Best Guided Journals for Anxiety:

1. The Anxiety Journal: Exercises to Soothe Stress and Eliminate Anxiety Wherever You Are

This is the first journal on our list. It’s a fabulous journal if you’re looking for something a bit more educational as you’re still trying to understand anxiety, its impact on you, your triggers, etc.

Because of that, it’s not a “write to your heart’s content” type of journal, but rather a more informative journal with exercises and prompts to try out.

Its goal is to help you better understand your anxiety and help you to find effective strategies for calming it down. Hence, why it’s more content-heavy.

On top of that, the design and illustrations are absolutely beautiful!

Top Pros:

• Stunning design
• Very educational
• Lots of tools for understanding how your anxiety works (as everyone is different)

Top Cons:

• Doesn’t have the most amount of writing room so it’s unideal if you really enjoy writing a lot
• If you’re well versed on the actual topic of anxiety you might benefit from a journal with less information and more prompts

2. Create Your Own Calm

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

I mentioned this in my round-up of best journals for all types of goals which you can check here!

Unlike the previously discussed guided journal, this one has a lot more writing space. For most of its prompts, you have the entire page to write! It is also less content-heavy which will be ideal if you’d prefer more prompts and activities over learning materials.

What I also really love about this journal is its approach to asking questions. In it, you’ll find prompts such as “What color does your stress look like?” or “List or draw 3 things that always make you happy”, or  “Close your eyes and imagine your most beautiful life. What does it look like? Draw or describe it here”.

This is a very mindful-arts-based way of asking questions, and it reminds me of when I was working with children that were exposed to domestic violence. It was much less aggressive and traumatizing for the kids when I would ask things like “Can you draw for me what your anger looks like? Does your anger have a name? What things help your anger feel better?” vs “Tell me about the violence you saw and how it makes you feel”.

Art and mindfulness can be a really gentle and grounding way to explore difficult experiences, thoughts, and feelings. Hence, why I adore the approach this journal took with its prompts.

There are also inspiring quotes littered throughout the book, which are a great way to add some food for thought and positivity into your days.

Also, If you’re into that minimalist but cute aesthetic that has recently become super popular, you’ll love the visual aspect of this guided journal for anxiety!

Top Pros:

• A very unique approach to asking and exploring difficult thoughts and feelings
• Beautifully designed pages
• Lots of room to write

Top Cons:

• If you prefer a bit more educational content this may not suffice

3. No Worries: A Guided Journal to Help You Calm Anxiety, Relieve Stress, and Practice Positive Thinking Each Day

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

This is a 12-week anxiety journal that is meant to help you process the anxious thoughts going on in your mind, and then it gently helps you to reframe these thoughts.

The guided journal is divided into daily journaling, weekly summaries, and monthly summaries. It also incorporates mindfulness and self-care in its activities. 

Also, something unique found in this journal that I haven’t seen in any other journal is therapy reflections. If you’re currently going to therapy for any reason, this is an amazing tool to have. Being able to debrief what happened during a therapy session in the privacy of your own journal can allow you to reap the most benefits possible. It can help you see what is or isn’t working, or where you might need further support. You can then bring this information to your therapist so they can give you the best experience possible (extra important if you’re paying out of pocket).

I think this is a very well-organized journal (maybe my favorite organization style on this list), and it has a bit more structure in comparison to the other journals. Rather than just random prompts, you have a bit of consistency due to the daily, weekly, and monthly categorizations. This can be helpful if you want a hybrid between a planner-style journal and a regular guided journal.

Top Pros:

• Has a lot more structure in comparison to the other journals on this list (daily, weekly, monthly categories) so it’s ideal if you want more of a consistent tracking guided journal
• Has the unique feature of therapy reflections- super useful if you’re currently receiving therapy of any sorts
• Incorporates mindfulness and self-care

Top Cons:

• Since it is more structured, there are less creative prompts to take you by surprise which, depending on your goals with using a guided journal, could be disappointing
• It’s simple white and black pages inside which can be a let-down for people that really enjoy journals being aesthetically pleasing

4.The Mindfulness Journal for Anxiety: Daily Prompts and Practices to Find Peace

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

This is a guided journal for anxiety that specifically uses mindfulness to reflect on your symptoms, experiences, and how you cope. If you’re a person who enjoys approaching things through a mindful lens or you want to try it, this will be a great journal for you.

There is also lots of space for writing which is going to be a big factor for those that write lots. Usually, the prompt is at the top and then you have a bunch of lined paper to respond to it.

I would also say that this journal has the most amount of illustrations and designs. Every page looks different than the other, and there are some very interesting and pretty drawings included in the journal. So, in contrast to the previous journal we talked about which really had no colors or designs within the pages, this one has LOTS. If you really enjoy colorful and intricate designs for your journals, this might be a better option for you. 

On top of that, it has lots of provoking and inspiring quotes so if you’re a person who believes in the power of word, this will definitely satisfy that desire.

Top Pros:

• One of the most colorful and uniquely designed journals on this list
• Has lots of writing space for its mindfulness-oriented prompts
• Includes some extra mindfulness resources at the beginning of the journal in case you’re interested in furthering your practice

Top Cons:

• While this journal’s extravagant designs make it special, it may also be a turn off if you like simple designs
• The journal is almost entirely prompts and exercises so if you need more education around anxiety from your journal, you may want to look elsewhere

5. Zen as F*ck

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

Let me just start by mentioning that this journal is not always in stock, especially on the U.S site. However, if you’re interested in it, I recommend just adding it to your wishlist and waiting until it makes a return!

If you’re a person that likes to approach things with a sense of humor, this is the journal for you. As the title gives away, this guided journal approaches improving anxiety in a very unique and straightforward way. It supports your journey to understanding your anxiety and improving your coping by using humor, wit, and a lot of swearing.

I bought this for a friend who I thought would appreciate its approach to personal development, and she says that she loves it and has found a lot of the prompts helpful.

Speaking of the prompts, they’re all very creative, humorous, but also seriously effective. There are also informative pages within this journal, so you do get an educational element in there too. In addition, the designs are spunky and fun, very much like the journal itself.

Top Pros:

• Brings a unique flavor to self-help journals while maintaining integrity in its prompts
• Beautifully designed
• Definitely one of a kind

Top Cons:

• This is definitely not for everybody. There is a lot of swearing in the book and a particular style of humor that may not be everyone’s cup of tea

6. Tiny Buddha’s Worry Journal: A Creative Way to Let Go of Anxiety and Find Peace Hardcover

If you’re from the U.S, buy me here 🙂

If you’re from Canada, buy me here 🙂

This journal is filled with great prompts to help you identify what you’re feeling and thinking, and then helping you in challenging those ideas.

For example, while of course there are regular prompts in which you just write your response, there are also doodle prompts and coloring pages to express yourself artistically, “Let it Go” pages to allow you to release worries, and “Plan Ahead” pages to help you minimize future anxiety.

This journal also included beautiful quotes to help inspire your journey, OH, and LOTS of space to write everything you could ever want.

The pages are simply designed in black and white, just like the “No Worries” journal, but there is just a bit more of design in this one (though not particularly much).

Top Pros:

• Lots of different prompts with a lot of space to respond to them
• Unique coloring and doodling pages which are great for visual people

Top Cons:

• Basic design with no color which may be off-putting to some

In Summary

Guided journaling has so many incredible benefits that will surely help your anxiety! All of these guided journals for anxiety are fabulous picks, and you just can’t go wrong with any of them.

But it’s important to identify what you need out of this journal and ensure those requirements meet up with what the journals above offer.

Regardless, I hope you enjoyed this list, and start your journey to recovery with a guided journal!

All my love,

T