Shadowing Practice: The Best Journaling Habits for Your Brain, Backed by Neuroscience - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
122 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
If you pick up a pen and spend about 10 minutes writing about what's stressing you out,
2
this simple act can change how your brain handles stress.
3
And we have brain scans that can prove it.
4
The thing is that after 40 years of research, scientists still don't fully know why something so simple works so well.
5
People who journal visit the doctor less, and even students who journal get better grades, and in interesting places too,
6
like faster healing, better sleep, and even stronger immune responses.
7
And again, this is people with no changes in diet or exercise, the only difference is what they wrote down.
8
So how can writing with just a pen and paper make such a difference?
9
Here's what this video is about.
10
Why journaling works, the four ways that writing affects your brain and the science behind each one.
11
We'll look at real studies with really interesting findings and some common myths.
12
By the end, you'll have a page you can fill out tonight and know exactly why it works.
13
Let's start with the simplest thing, words.
14
Researchers at UCLA ran a study in 2007.
15
They showed people photographs of angry and frightened faces while they scanned their brains.
16
So one group just looked at the faces, the other group had to pick a word for the emotion that they saw,
17
things like angry or afraid.
18
That was the entire task.
19
But amazingly, they found that just picking a word calmed the amygdala, the threat detection system of the brain, and at the same time,
20
it increased activity in an area behind your forehead called the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, which helps you control your reactions.
21
Researchers call this affect labeling.
22
Simply put, you feel something, you name it, and the feeling loses its grip.
23
Which is interesting because we tend to assume that naming a hard feeling or thinking about it might make it louder,
24
but actually putting it into words turns the volume down.
25
And we've known this before we had brain scans.
26
It's just a philosophy of looking inward, reflecting, and identifying how you feel.
27
So that's the first mechanism at play, naming, because journaling is essentially affect labeling stretched out across a page.
28
But the second mechanism behind journaling explains a problem we all face.
29
Now here's the thing, your brain doesn't like leaving things unfinished.
30
You might keep thinking of a text you didn't answer, a bill that you forgot to pay, or maybe something you wish you'd said last week.
31
Things like this stay in the background, repeating in your mind, and taking up attention.
32
And there's a study on this from 2011 with a quite fitting title,
33
Consider it Done, where researchers gave people a list of unfinished tasks, and those tasks started to distract them,
34
even affecting their performance on unrelated reading tests.
35
Then the researchers asked them to write down a plan, when, where, and how they would do each task.
36
And the mental noise stopped.
37
Just writing the plan made people feel as if the job was already finished.
38
Again, you're not solving the problem.
39
You're just moving it out of your mind so you don't have to keep thinking about it.
40
Psychologists call this cognitive offloading, anemic space for you to think.
41
But there's one important detail.
42
Making a vague plan doesn't help.
43
The effect only worked when people truly intended to follow through
44
and they tracked with whether they actually did the task later on.
45
So your brain knows the difference between a real plan and a fake one.
46
And this little trick pays off.
47
One of my favorite examples comes from a sleep lab at Baylor.
48
They split people into two groups.
49
One group spent five minutes before bed writing tomorrow's to -do list, while the other group only wrote down what they already did
50
that day the to -do list group fell asleep faster
51
and the longer and more detailed their lists the quicker they actually fell asleep.
52
Now the next mechanism behind journaling is a little bit different because it changes the way you write about yourself.
53
Remember when LeBron James went on TV to announce he was leaving Cleveland
54
and he kept saying he wanted to do what was best for LeBron James?
55
You can view it as arrogance, but I think he stumbled onto a technique our brain loves.
56
That is, addressing yourself by your name and not I.
57
Ethan Cross, a psychologist at Michigan, tested this across seven experiments.
58
In one experiment, people had to give a speech with almost no time to prepare, which was intended to stimulate high stress.
59
The ones that coached themselves by name walked in calmer and performed better, and also spent less time beating themselves up afterward,
60
and the brain responds fast.
61
In a 2017 study, as soon as people switched to using their own name, the brain stress signal dropped within the first second.
62
So just by seeing ourselves or addressing ourselves from a more distant perspective, we get a larger buffer room.
63
And there's an old truth here.
64
We're amazing at solving other people's problems, but often we're stuck with our own.
65
If a friend calls you about relationship problems, you can see the answer right away.
66
But when it's your own problem, you often can't see where you're stuck.
67
Psychologists call this Solomon's Paradox, named after the wise king who offered legendary wisdom even as his own house fell apart.
68
Now, bring it home to journaling.
69
In one study, people wrote about their day in the third person, by name, every day for a month.
70
Not, I felt or I did this, but he walked in and felt.
71
And by the end, they reasoned more wisely about hard situations than a group that was writing in the first person.
72
And this is great because it addresses a common concern about journaling, that is that writing about your feelings can turn into rumination,
73
where you keep replaying everything that's going wrong.
74
But scientists have found the difference.
75
Asking why do I feel this way from inside keeps the feeling stuck.
76
But asking from outside of yourself actually leads to insight.
77
We don't remember our lives as a list of facts.
78
We remember them as stories.
79
And the story you tell yourself matters way more than you might think.
80
Dan McAdams, a psychologist at Northwestern, has spent his career on this.
81
And his research shows that when people tell their story as something good turning into bad, bad, they tend to do worse.
82
People who tell it the other way, as bad turning to good, or as failure that taught them something,
83
or a low point that led somewhere else, they tend to be happier and healthier.
84
Now, it's a correlation and it's partly shaped by your culture and upbringing, but the pattern is there and it's enough to take seriously.
85
So in journaling, how we write about what happens to us is equally important.
86
A team of researchers reviewed the writing of 177 people from earlier studies.
87
The people who go healthier weren't the ones to express the most emotion, but those whose words changed over time.
88
What's interesting is they started using more words like realize, understand, because, and reason.
89
They stopped describing what happened to them and began making sense of it.
90
Worth noting, the clearest gains showed up in physical health more than mood.
91
And those because words also appear when people write in the third person, so it all connects.
92
So that's four mechanisms, naming, offloading, distancing, and story.
93
And you can do all of them before bed with just five minutes.
94
Here's one template you can follow tonight.
95
First of all, write a few lines on what happened today.
96
and write it like a scene, not a summary.
97
You don't have to write your entire day, just focus on one event.
98
Number two, write one feeling and your best guess at why it's there.
99
Three, just five things to handle tomorrow, specific enough that you can actually picture.
100
And the final thing to write is one thing that you're grateful for, just one small thing that went right.
101
Naming will cover the feeling, offloading covers tomorrow's to -do list, and the scene and the reasons are where distance and story can come in.
102
You don't need anything else, just a pen and paper or a computer if you want.
103
And one last thing, because it's one of my favorites, the most influential journal in history was never meant to be read.
104
Marcus Aurelius wrote his journal during wars and plagues, leaving private notes to himself.
105
about how to stay steady and act more righteously.
106
He never titled it or planned to publish it.
107
But now centuries later, we call it meditations.
108
And people to this day still read it to feel less alone.
109
He was doing exactly what we've been talking about, using a page to think more clearly and steady himself.
110
And for me personally, I've kept a journal for years.
111
And the science is only one part of the reason.
112
The rest is that I love that I can open it up and revisit a version of myself I might have forgotten.
113
The highs and the lows kept somewhere outside of my memory here.
114
For me, that alone is reason enough to do it.
115
You don't have to journal every single day or do it perfectly.
116
Most of the benefit comes from showing up and when you can simply pay attention, naming what you notice and stepping back to reflect.
117
So tonight, just give it 5 -10 minutes.
118
Your brain and body might not thank you right away, but months from now, your future self almost certainly will.
119
Also, let me know if you want more videos like this one about the benefits of journaling, writing, and how to do it.
120
There's so much research and I'm happy to cover it if you want.
121
And make sure you subscribe so you don't miss the next videos.
122
Thank you.
Download App
Everything you need to speak fluently
AI PronunciationScore every sentence
IPA PracticeMaster every sound
VocabularyBuild your word bank
Vocab GameLearn while playing
Same Channel
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
C13
81 sentences
The #1 Journalling Method for Brain Health You Need to Know | Dr. Arif Khan
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C11
347 sentences
Doctor Explains: How to Train Your Brain to Crave Doing Hard Things
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C13
33 sentences
Your Memories & Emotions Impact Immune Status
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C11
90 sentences
How to Journal (Like a Philosopher)
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C11
206 sentences
Anxiety, Stress, Loneliness & Depression Cured In 9 Weeks? | Dr. Sahar Yousef | Raj Shamani Clips
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
C11
188 sentences
Learn To Write And You Will Become Unstoppable. It's That Simple
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C150 sentences
The Science of Stress: How Does Stress Affect Our Brains and Bodies?
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C12
227 sentences
How to Lock In and Actually Get Things Done | Andrew Huberman
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C181
42 sentences
How playing an instrument benefits your brain - Anita Collins
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B22
28 sentences
The Amazing Effects of Gratitude
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C158
40 sentences
How Social Media Is Rewiring Our Brains
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C12
203 sentences
How To Rewire Your Brain | Andrew Huberman Motivation
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “The Best Journaling Habits for Your Brain, Backed by Neuroscience”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: brain, write, writing, journaling, word. This video has 122 sentences and 1668 words to shadow. The speech runs for 11:29. The speaker talks at a steady 145 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| researcher noun | /ˈɹiˌsɝ.t͡ʃɚ/ | One who researches. |
| mechanism noun | /ˈmɛk.ə.nɪ.zəm/ | Any mechanical means for the conversion or control of motion, or the transmission or control of power. |
| psychologist noun | /ˌsaɪˈkɑl.ə.d͡ʒɪst/ | An expert in the field of psychology. |
| scan verb | /skæn/ | To examine sequentially, carefully, or critically; to scrutinize; to behold closely. |
| distress noun | /dɪˈstɹɛs/ | Physical or emotional discomfort, suffering, or alarm, particularly of a more acute nature. |
| label noun | /ˈleɪ.bəl/ | A small ticket or sign giving information about something to which it is attached or intended to be attached. |
| solve verb | /sɒlv/ | To find an answer or solution to a problem or question; to work out. |
| reflect verb | /ɹɪˈflɛkt/ | To bend back (light, etc.) from a surface. |
| experiment noun | /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/ | A test under controlled conditions made to either demonstrate a known truth, examine the validity of a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of… |
| asleep adjective | /əˈsliːp/ | In a state of sleep; also, broadly, resting. |
| steady adjective | /ˈstɪdi/ | Firm in standing or position; not tottering or shaking; fixed; firm. |
| scientist noun | /ˈsaɪəntəst/ | One whose activities make use of the scientific method to answer questions regarding the measurable universe. A scientist may be involved in original research… |
| emotion noun | /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/ | A person's internal state of being and involuntary physiological response to an object or a situation, based on or tied to physical state and sensory data. |
| intend verb | /ɪnˈtɛnd/ | To fix the mind upon (something, or something to be accomplished); be intent upon |
| unfinished adjective | /ʌnˈfɪnɪʃt/ | Not completed; unresolved. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| write down verb | To produce or set (something) down in writing; to record something. | |
| fall apart verb | To disintegrate, to break into pieces. | |
| fill out verb | /fɪl ˈaʊt/ | To complete a form or questionnaire with requested information. |
| follow through verb | To execute or complete a commitment. | |
| pay off verb | To bribe, especially to deter oversight. | |
| pick up verb | To lift; to grasp and raise. | |
| show up verb | To appear, arrive, or attend, especially suddenly or erratically. | |
| take up verb | To pick up. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | we've known · have found · has spent |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | People who journal · prepare, which was · People who tell |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | was intended · was never meant |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 25 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, you're, doesn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, unfinished /ʌnˈfɪnɪʃt/, essentially /ɪˈsɛnʃəli/, publish /ˈpʌblɪʃ/, influential /ɪnflʊˈɛnʃəl/
- Long words — get the stress right: mechanism /ˈmɛk.ə.nɪ.zəm/, psychologist /ˌsaɪˈkɑl.ə.d͡ʒɪst/, experiment /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/, essentially /ɪˈsɛnʃəli/, legendary /ˈlɛd͡ʒ.ənˌdɛɹ.i/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like researcher, mechanism, psychologist.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.