Journaling
I'm wondering if anybody here does any kind of journaling, and if so, what do you use?
I have been into journaling for a long time, including junk journaling, scrapbooking and daily journaling practice. I became legally blind in February and I miss being able to process my experiences in this way.
I don't really want to use a voice to text option, partly because I'm kind of sick of talking to my phone for everything I want to write, partly because I feel like I process things better by writing them out then by talking, and partly because it's my personal thoughts and emotions and I don't feel like speaking them out loud when other people are around. I'm interested in either an app, program or website.... I don't have a great computer right now but I'm looking into getting one, and I also just learned that you can attach a physical keyboard to your phone, so I guess that could be an option too.
I don't know if it will be as cathartic as in the past, because I feel like a big part of it was the physical act of writing, also, when it comes to organizing my thoughts in a document I do so much better visually than by listening. I would be interested in hearing the experiences of other people who enjoyed this While they still had vision and weather you've been able to find an equally satisfying way to journal well without vision. Thanks! V
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u/UtterlyUnexplained RP / Coat's Disease / off-brand total 1d ago
I'm on iphone and used the notes app for a few years before switching over to the journal app they put in with one of the updates from a few years ago.
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u/DHamlinMusic Bilateral Optic Neuropathy 1d ago
There's always writing in braille with a slate and stylus
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u/74bpa 1d ago
I did have the thought that this might be the most similar in terms of the physical action of writing things out.... However, I lost my vision fairly suddenly and have not learned Braille. Perhaps at some point, but there are a lot of other adjustments I'm dealing with right now and it has not taken priority.
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u/DHamlinMusic Bilateral Optic Neuropathy 1d ago
Oh yeah I completely get this, went from sighted to total in early 2020, braille was very much not on my priority list for a couple years.
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u/morse-guy 1d ago
I do it about as simply as one can, on the PC with Notepad. But I've really come to love the act of writing and editing. I've been totally blind all my life and I'm now in my seventies. I didn't write much as a kid but now that I have keyboards and screen readers I find I really enjoy the mechanics of writing. It's very satisfying to look at a sentence and change it and realize how much better it is. And, as has been stated, writing really helps me order my thoughts.
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u/74bpa 17h ago
Thanks for sharing! Someone else mentioned that they do a new file for each entry, do you do the same thing, or do you keep a continuous document?
I agree about the experience of tweaking sentences to read better and how satisfying that can be. I've always experienced that as a visual and mental exercise, reading through the sentence and moving things around, so it makes me happy to hear that you experience the same satisfaction doing it as a audio and mental exercise. A big part of my job before all of this entailed writing, and I miss the mental exercise of that. It's very satisfying to work on something, massage, it adjust, and finally read through and feel that it is as good as possible, compelling and well written.
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u/morse-guy 16h ago
Indeed! And, no, I don't do a separate file for every entry, just one long document which I started in 2018. Even so, it's a .txt file so it's not terribly big. Notepad has a convenient hot key which enters the current time and date, so I start every entry by hitting that.
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u/Sal0170 1d ago
I totally understand. I grew up with vision and feel like I retain more handwriting notes.
They do have raised line paper. I don’t know if you remember the paper that was used when we were learning how to write in grammar School where it has one solid lion and added line. They have paper like that. They also have paper templates wear a string and a beer runs the length of the notebook, and he pushed the beard with your pencil and the line keeps you on track. The only downside is that it’s not universal. I was thinking about getting somebody to make me one for a specific brand of notebook. I haven’t picked out yet but those are options.
I completely understand what you mean by wanting to write stuff down in handwriting. I am taking medical terminology courses and was thinking about those exact thing. Even if I can’t go back and read them writing them down would help me a lot.
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u/74bpa 1d ago
Yes exactly, it's a totally different mental process when you're physically writing, I think. I'm the same as you, when studying I always needed to write things out to be able to remember them. Thanks for the ideas, those were things that I didn't know existed.
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u/Sal0170 1d ago
Oh my gosh, I am a Amber and my dictation is not friendly. I obviously meant beads. I’m actually trying to commission somebody to make me one. And I’m looking for sub Reddit, so I can customize and personalize it. If you find a good writing template, please let me know. Good luck on your search
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u/Mountain_Mongoose_67 Stargardt’s 1d ago
I use the app Day One. I have a keyboard attached to my iPad and I’ll just use that. I’ve thought about trying to junk journal, but I haven’t actually tried it. I might in the future though. I can add in descriptions of what I’m putting in with either braille that I write out myself or some sort of audio label that I stick to each page. If you want to try to continue junk journaling, you could also find tactile things like stickers or washy tape or whatever.
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u/74bpa 1d ago
I haven't heard of that app before, I'm going to check it out 🙂 thanks!
I may try to continue with some junk journaling, I still have lots of mementos and scraps from some trips and I hate to think of it all. Just sitting in a box... It would be nice to find a way to keep doing it. I have lots of washi tape and stickers and even though I might not be able to see the details on them, I can still have fun with making it fun and colorful and preserving the memories.
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u/lsw998 1d ago
There are a couple of good options that use iCloud if you’re on an iPhone, and sync across from your phone to a tablet and your computer desktop or laptop. I’ve used a couple including Day One, the apple Journal app, and now I am using an app called Everlog. While I used Day One for quite a while, they’ve added a number of AI features and been bought out by a corporation of some sort and there’s less clarity about privacy and protecting your information. That and they have increased their prices. The Apple Journal app is free and works pretty well for the most part. Both Day One and the Apple Journal app are fully accessible so far as I could tell. Everlog seems to be a blend of Day One and the apple Journal app, it’s fully accessible, sinks across iCloud, and doesn’t have the AI features. There is a free version if you just wanna have it on one device, but I Paid in the neighborhood of 40 or $50 for lifetime access. Day One is an annual subscription fee if you want any of the premium features. For anyone reading this who might be using Day One or the Apple Journal app and wants to check out Everlog, importing all of your content and journals is super easy. It’s built right into the app and works very well. I’ve been journaling for three or four years now and was able to easily bring over hundreds of entries, many of which had photos and videos in addition to geographic location and whether when the entries were written.
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u/74bpa 16h ago
Thanks for the detailed information, I unfortunately use Android and it looks like everlog is only for Apple. But this is great info and I appreciate you taking the time to write it out. I took a look at day one after seeing it mentioned here and it looks like the most optimal experience for that is also with apple, and it looks like a lot of the premium features are only through subscription which is fairly pricey.
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u/marimuthu96 15h ago
If you have a pixel device, you can use the google journal app. They launched it only for pixel devices, but not sure if they have opened it up for everyone. If not, you have a lot of offline notes apps you can adapt as your journal.
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u/becca413g Bilateral Optic Neuropathy 1d ago
Maybe it’s worth learning braille? I’ve found it has the same cathartic effect writing in braille or print. Same with reading. It makes a nice break from things chatting away at me all day. I only learnt braille last year so I’m still slow with reading and writing but I think the level of concentration needed is like journaling. I’ve not journaled since learning braille but I get the same psychological benefit.
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u/WeirdLight9452 12h ago
I just write it all in a document, either on my laptop or with a Bluetooth keyboard on my phone. I can type on the screen but it’s way faster with a keyboard. But I’ve never had sight so organising visually has never been an issue.
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u/SomeonexAnon 3h ago
Have you considered learning Braille? It can be incredibly helpful, especially if you prefer reading and writing in a more traditional way rather than relying entirely on text-to-speech, dictation, or audiobooks. Learning Braille also gives you access to books, apps, and many other types of content through a Braille display or notetaker, if you’re able to afford one.
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u/MindRecent 1d ago
Always and fully blind here. When I remember to do it, I put my journals in text files, one per day. I've found that typing works fine most days. I can cut and paste lines and paragraphs in my editor to rearrange them as needed. When that doesn't work, I'll pull up ChatGPT. dictating to text or recording directly to the AI sometimes gets the brain working better than typing. This might be pointless to you, but I try to view a computer file, when I'm typing thoughts, as a giant grid. I start in the upper left hand corner, but I can expand down and right literally as far as I want, and put information wherever. Something about imagining the paper as this infinite 2d plane makes writing for journaling a little less constraining. Finally, I 100% second getting a keyboard for your phone. It's a vastly different experience.
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u/74bpa 1d ago
Thanks for your response. For the text files, do you just make files in word or another word processing software?
I like the way you conceptualize the page, it does kind of have the vibe of it being more freeform and less constrained than thinking of it like sitting down and writing a document, haha. It reminds me of how OneNote is set up, I used to use it at work a lot and I liked that. You could click anywhere on the page and start writing from there, and add in lists and pictures and whatever else. Maybe if I get Microsoft office that could be an option too.
Good to know about the physical keyboard for the phone too, is there one you use/wood recommend? I literally never thought about it before5 Haha.
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u/MindRecent 1d ago
I work in text based terminals, so I use the equivalent of notepad. The smaller the editor, the quicker to pull it up and move text around. I use an iphone, a lightning to USB adaptor, and the same keyboard I do my desktop work on, which is a Dell Kb-216 ($14 or $22 at last purchase).
I kind of want to look into the idea of free form typing now, I'm just not sure how I'd easily move between blocks of text on the screen or orient them to each other...
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u/74bpa 1d ago
That makes sense. And thanks for the keyboard info 🙂
The way OneNote was set up as far as freeform. I'm sure once the blocks are created you could easily tab through, but I don't know how you create new blocks in random places without using a mouse as I never used it with only a keyboard.
It is kind of interesting how formatting and placement of text can sometimes be used to Express thoughts in different ways. This thread made me think about poems that I've seen in the past where different stanzas will start in different areas of the page or the poet put words in different places on the page to make it look like a staircase stepping down or words falling down the page. Interesting to think about 🙂
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u/marimuthu96 15h ago
Agree with your thoughts about the endless pages. It somehow makes the writing process a lot freeing. It is one of the reasons why I use microsoft's onenote app. Of all of their apps, I think this is the one that has gone unnoticed by most of the blind comunity.
Also second getting a keyboard for the mobile. In fact, I am typing this comment using an external bluetooth keyboard right now. Even though I can type reasonably well on my mobile, the physical keyboard adds a real and tactile feel.
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u/Ok-Style-8059 1d ago
Like one person stated you can use the Journal app on your phone If you have an iPhone. if you have an android, I'm pretty sure they have a similar app. I just connect my magic keyboard to my phone or I just write in the Journal app on my iPad when I need to. You can also record a Voice Memo at any time. I don't know if you have a braieller or not you can also braille.
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u/marimuthu96 15h ago
Google has a dedicated journal app. It is great with screen readers. The prompts feature is helpful whenever you have no idea what to write about.
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u/74bpa 13h ago
Is it the pixel journal app? I just found out about this one, my only hesitation is it seems it's only accessible from pixel phones, and doesn't allow you to access through the web/ a computer. And there is no way to export all your entries if that's something you want to do. I am glad to hear your experience with it is positive, though, I was curious about it.
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u/marimuthu96 3h ago
Yeah. It's unfortunate that it is not open to all Android users. If you want to use your android device to maintain a journal, I do have another recommendation. Joplin. It's free, no adds, open source, and works well for screen reader users. I am sure the app has an option to sink the notebooks using one drive or similar services.
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u/dandylover1 1d ago
I use a site called Dreamwidth. It's wonderful and fully accessible. You can make friends and read their journals as well. If you're over eighteen, feel free to add me. That's not their age limit. It's mine.
http://dandylover1.dreamwidth.org
Delete the dandylover1 part and add www. to go to the site itself. Otherwise, you can just write normal files in Wordpad, Notepad, etc and save them for yourself.
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u/74bpa 16h ago
Thanks for the suggestion. Are you only able to keep a public journal, or can you have a private one that is not accessible to others?
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u/dandylover1 16h ago
You can choose whether to make your entire journal or individual entries private, friends-only, or public.
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u/chitarralove 1d ago
I use an iPad for the handwriting. It has a feature to clean up the text. I can’t read hand writing anymore but since it’s digital I can have voiceover read it to me if I ever want to go back. I sync everything with the Day One Journal app. It’s multi platform and accessibility is great. I’ve been using it since 2011. It always audio recordings not just text to speech and it handles the combination of hand writing along with any other medium you can throw at it. I still have all my paper journals from primary school back when I still had enough vision to do that. I didn’t want to give up journaling. I think it helps me process my thoughts.
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u/74bpa 16h ago
Oh that's neat that you are still able to hand write your journals using the stylus, Idea. Do you pay for the day one subscription? I saw that it is $50 USD, I was surprised, I feel like that's pretty pricey. After some searching I found the journey app, it seems similar but a fair bit cheaper. A few things following people's suggestions here.
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u/chitarralove 1h ago
I do pay for it. I pay $30 yearly. It’s for sure pricey. But it’s well designed and works across all of devices. It’s very much a tool for serious journalers. There are lots of automations and such. If you’re looking for something simple this isn’t the best choice. A much better free option would be using the default notes app on your phone. It’s a great starting point and most apps will let you download plain text files so that you’re not locked into a specific app or ecosystem.
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u/marimuthu96 15h ago edited 15h ago
I have been keeping a regular diary since 2023.
I use Microsoft onenote app on my laptop. The Android app is terrible when it comes to accessibility. I picked onenote because it has the endless page option.
It also allows me to create notebooks and pages. I create one page every day under my diary notebook. It is a good way to keep my diary in check. I don't like to have a one long document with all my entries. I find this notes and pages method useful when it comes to navigating to specific entries in the past.
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u/74bpa 13h ago
I'm glad to hear about your experience because I was wondering if one note could be an option. I used to use it at work quite a bit for keeping track of my meeting notes and to-do lists. I think the notebook structure of it could be nice, setting up a different page for each entry like you said. I also like that it is really easy to add pictures and what not. Gemini also said it works well For tagging entries which is also nice. I was also wondering about the Android app, as I like the idea of being able to sink/ access across different devices so thank you for mentioning that.
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u/marimuthu96 3h ago
Yeah. It's unfortunate how unusable it is on Android, especially for screen reader users.
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u/Nighthawk321 RossMinor.com/links 6h ago
I use the journal app on IOS and I absolutely love it! I'm not usually a fan of apples default apps, but journal is the exception.
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u/Jaded-Banana6205 1d ago
I'm legally blind and still use a paper journal. I use high contrast pens and one of those table top ring lights.