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In this episode of The Coaching Edge Podcast, hosts Erwin de Grave and Dr. Steve Jeffs sit down with Kay Adams, a psychotherapist, journal therapist, and founder of the Center for Journal Therapy. From her early days as a lifelong journaler and journalism major to discovering, almost by accident, that journaling could become her life’s work, Kay shares the story of a 40-year career at the intersection of writing, psychology, and healing.
Kay explains how a simple request from friends to “teach a journaling workshop” led her to codify 21 different journaling techniques, and later to develop the Journal Ladder—a structured hierarchy of writing methods designed to support safety, pacing, and containment, especially for people with trauma. She describes working in psychiatric hospitals with women diagnosed with what is now called dissociative identity disorder, and how she realized that unstructured free writing could unintentionally retraumatize them. Her answer was to design more guided approaches using tools like sentence stems (“Right now I feel…”, “Today the most important thing is…”) to help clients self-regulate on the page.
The conversation also explores who tends to be drawn to journaling, and how gender patterns show up differently. While many women privately process their emotions in journals and hesitate to share their writing, Kay noticed that men often prefer to talk first—and, once they do write, they’re surprisingly eager to read their work aloud. Underneath these differences, she emphasizes, we’re all dealing with the same human struggles; journaling just gives each person a way to externalize and clarify what’s going on inside.
One of the most practical ideas in this episode is the power of the five-minute sprint: writing fast for just five minutes about a realization, conflict, or problem. For busy coaches, leaders, and entrepreneurs, Kay frames this as a simple act of self-permission—five minutes of presence with yourself. Paired with a short reflection write (“As I read this, I notice…”), it becomes a powerful tool for insight, action planning, and tracking growth over time.
Kay also touches on AI as an ally rather than a threat to journaling. She suggests using AI to generate writing prompts—“Give me 10 (or 30) journal prompts about the conflict I’m having with my team leader”—as a way to expand perspective and deepen self-exploration. For professionals who support others—coaches, therapists, and facilitators—she points to the Therapeutic Writing Institute, a three-year training program she designed for those who want to build a practice around expressive and therapeutic writing.
If you’ve ever thought, “I don’t have time to journal” or “I don’t know what to write,” this episode offers both reassurance and a toolkit. Journaling doesn’t have to be elaborate or perfect; it can simply be five minutes, a few prompts, and the willingness to meet yourself on the page.
Guest: Kay Adams