{"id":30453,"date":"2023-08-01T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-01T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dayoneapp.com\/?p=30453"},"modified":"2024-09-30T14:46:46","modified_gmt":"2024-09-30T19:46:46","slug":"how-i-journal-francesca-omisakin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dayoneapp.com\/blog\/how-i-journal-francesca-omisakin\/","title":{"rendered":"How I Journal: Francesca Omisakin"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Francesca Omisakin, a consultant community paediatrician based in Thurrock, Essex, England, offers a uniquely profound insight into her life through the fascinating lens of her lifelong journaling habit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the continuous exploration of her thoughts, emotions, and daily events, Francesca weaves a tapestry of self-discovery and self-improvement. In this interview, we explore her journaling journey that is reflective of her love for literature and her passionate dedication to helping others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Journey Begins: An Inspired Childhood<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Influenced by the likes of Adrian Mole and Margaret from Judy Blume’s work, Francesca began journaling at the age of 11. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“That’s 36 years of writing. I was drawn to idea of documenting my incessant internal monologue. Then helped me make sense of all the confusing feelings and social situations that I experienced at that time. It was also practice writing for the book that I wanted to have written and published by the time I was 15 years old (that didn\u2019t happen!).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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“My journal is a safe repository of those first thoughts that enter and flow uninhibited and unrestrained through my mind, musings that I don\u2019t want to discuss with even my closest companions.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

“I discovered Day One in 2019. I still keep a paper journal, old habits die hard, I do love the physical act of writing (very similar to the conversations about paper books vs Kindle), but I very much enjoy the versatility a digital journal brings.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The intimate act of penning her thoughts appealed to her need to make sense of her internal monologue and understand the complexities of adolescence. As Francesca fondly reminisces, “My journal is a safe repository of those first thoughts that enter and flow uninhibited and unrestrained through my mind, musings that I don\u2019t want to discuss with even my closest companions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I still write about drama that is my life, with me at the centre stage! There was a phase in my life where my journaling was not unlike Bridget Jones in \u2018Bridget Jone\u2019s Diary\u2019 by Helen Fielding, but with my entries starting with seemingly motivational phrases and quotations like YOU\u2019LL FEEL CALM IF YOU WALK AWAY FROM THE THINGS YOU CAN\u2019T DO ANYTHING ABOUT AND CONCENTRATE ON THOSE YOU CAN INFLUENCE<\/em> and then me proceeding to write how I was not living up to those standards!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Life Chronicled: From Personal Insights to Professional Reflections<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Over the years, Francesca’s journal has grown into a testament of her life. As a paediatrician who has been working in the National Health Service for over two decades, her journals bear witness to the emotional and physical toll of her gruelling journey. She shares, “The blank pages of August in my 2000 journal speak volumes about the exhausting first weeks as a junior doctor.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to her professional reflections, her journal serves as a platform for self-evaluation and growth, capturing her aspirations, experiences, and personal check-ins. Her journal entries are a balance between reflecting on the past, processing the present, and dreaming about the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Multi-Faceted Journaling With the Day One App<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Francesca transitioned from traditional journaling to using the Day One App in 2019, keeping separate digital journals for different aspects of her life. Ranging from her daily thoughts and feelings, food and exercise tracking, writing exercises, and reflections on therapy sessions, each journal is a rich chronicle of Francesca’s journey in its own right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The features of the Day One App, including the ability to open multiple journals, fill in entries from past years, reflect on what she was doing on the same day in previous years, and the capability to upload pictures, add a distinctive touch to her journaling experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Francesca’s shares her favorite things about the Day One app:<\/p>\n\n\n\n