Daily journaling
10 minutes of expressive writing reduces rumination and improves stress markers.
Why
Pennebaker's expressive writing protocol (write freely about emotionally loaded topics for 15–20 minutes) has decades of evidence for reducing physiological stress markers and improving immune function. Daily lighter journaling (gratitude, reflection) shares some of the same effects without the intensity.
Slot in your day
How to do it
How
10 minutes each morning or evening. Free-form. Optional prompts: what's on my mind, what went well, what I'm anxious about.
Sticking with it
Same time, same place. The cue is half the practice.
Evidence
Frattaroli 2006 Psychol Bull meta-analysis (146 RCTs of experimental disclosure): expressive writing produced a small but reliable improvement in psychological, physiological, and functional outcomes (mean weighted r ≈ 0.075). Effects are modest in absolute terms but the evidence base is among the largest in psychosomatic medicine.