These are prompts from some other place besides a book that ask to examine certain aspects of yourself. I will not have created these prompts myself, so I want to pay respect that they came from somewhere.
This months’ prompts are going to be coming from this substack that I recently started following:
https://open.substack.com/pub/theebookclubx/p/31-journal-prompts-for-november-learning?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
November Prompts
- What part of yourself are you finally ready to understand?
- What does “peace” mean to you now and what used to disturb it?
- Write about a moment that changed how you see yourself.
- What habits or patterns do you want to leave in this year?
- Who in your life feels like warmth and why?
- Describe a version of yourself that you’re growing into.
- What would your younger self thank you for today?
- What does emotional maturity look like to you?
- Write about a time you chose peace over proving a point.
- How do you know when it’s time to let something end?
- What part of your healing still feels unfinished?
- What lesson did this year try to teach you, gently or otherwise?
- Write about a time you surprised yourself.
- How do you show up for others without losing yourself?
- What are you no longer apologizing for?
- Write a letter to someone you’ve outgrown, even if you never send it.
- What boundaries have made your life better?
- How do you comfort yourself when you don’t feel understood?
- Describe your relationship with stillness.
- What does authenticity mean to you right now?
- Write about something you’re proud of but rarely mention.
- What truth have you been avoiding?
- How does solitude make you feel? peaceful or lonely?
- Write about a time you felt seen without needing to explain yourself.
- What are you learning to forgive yourself for?
- How do you measure growth without comparing yourself to others?
- What does “home” mean beyond a place?
- What are you currently seeking, emotionally, spiritually, or mentally?
- Write about a moment of clarity you’ve had recently.
- How have you changed since January?
- What kind of person do you hope to be walking into the new year?
What part of yourself are you finally ready to understand?
The part that I am finally ready to understand is the part of me that has always been autistic. The part of me that operates differently from other people. I have always recognized that I operate on a different frequency than other people, but recently I have started to develop an acute understanding that this is attached to my autism. I do not find myself operating in these weird hierarchical structures that society has and it often gets me into trouble when I am in environments that operate on it solely. While I have now been diagnosed with autism for over a year, I still do not feel like I fully grasp how it has impacted my life. I am still learning and maybe the correct term is unlearning how I have had to exist within a world that tells me to survive that I have to mask and be less than authentic.
I know that many autistic people struggle when they first get a diagnosis with the knowledge that comes with the official diagnosis (self-diagnosis IS VALID). When I got that official diagnosis, I felt like I saw myself for the first time. I understood an existence that I had been in, but now I notice that there are elements of my brain that because I am not like fellow co-workers, friends, and others that impacts my day to day life. When I first got the diagnosis, I devoured books related to the concept of autism, but I moved away from it because I was overwhelming my brain. I own several books that I have not read because I needed that respite, but I think if I am honest with myself I need to go back to reading these books to better understand how I operate as an autistic individual on this planet. I need to start to understand why hierarchies do not matter to me because I did find myself getting into trouble due to this recently. I think taking the time to continue to understand a diagnosis that I should have had for 40+ years probably would be vital for me as a human right now.
The way my brain works and operates feels like it keeps getting me in trouble because other people do not exist in the same way. They do not get my weird quirks. They do not see me as myself. It is starting to impact how I operate on the planet. Last year, I dressed up for Halloween and this year, I did not. I did not want to participate because I felt like I did not belong. I did not feel like it was proper for me to actually be dressed up. This isn’t normally like me, but I think the challenges I am currently mentally facing have impacted that, so developing a better understanding how my autistic brain works feels like a good goal for these new few months. Not a “New Year’s Resolution” but more of a “Life Goal”.
