Journaling with Tarot Healed My Heart
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BY NICOLE LAU
Heartbreak broke me open. And for months, I couldn't put myself back together.
Therapy helped. Friends helped. Time helped. But something was still stuck—a grief I couldn't name, a wound I couldn't reach.
Then I started journaling with tarot. And the healing that had plateaued finally moved.
This is how combining tarot and journaling accessed the emotional depths that talk therapy couldn't touch.
The Heartbreak That Wouldn't Heal
The relationship ended. Not dramatically—just... ended. And I was devastated.
I did everything "right":
- Therapy (processed the relationship, understood the patterns)
- Self-care (exercise, meditation, healthy eating)
- Social support (leaned on friends, didn't isolate)
- Time (gave myself months to grieve)
But I was still stuck. I could talk about the heartbreak, but I couldn't feel through it. The grief was lodged somewhere words couldn't reach.
Discovering Tarot Journaling
A therapist suggested: "Try tarot journaling. Not for prediction—for excavation."
The method:
- Pull a tarot card
- Journal on the card's symbolism and how it relates to your question/situation
- Let the card guide you to emotional layers you can't access through direct questioning
I was skeptical. But I had a Moon Tarot journal sitting unused. So I tried.
The First Session: Three of Swords
My question: "What do I need to understand about this heartbreak?"
Card pulled: Three of Swords (the heartbreak card—literally a heart pierced by three swords)
My first reaction: Of course. Too on the nose. This is stupid.
But I committed to journaling on it anyway.
What came out:
I started writing about the three swords. What were they? As I wrote, I realized:
- First sword: The actual breakup
- Second sword: The betrayal of my own intuition (I knew it wasn't right, but I stayed)
- Third sword: The grief of who I'd become in that relationship (small, accommodating, not myself)
I wasn't just grieving the relationship. I was grieving myself.
That realization broke something open. I cried for an hour. Not sad crying—release crying.
The 30-Day Tarot Journaling Practice
I committed to daily tarot journaling for 30 days. One card, one journal entry, every morning.
Week 1: Excavation
The cards kept showing me layers I hadn't seen:
- The Tower: The relationship had to fall apart. It was built on a false foundation.
- The Hanged Man: I'd been stuck in a perspective that wasn't serving me. I needed to see it differently.
- Five of Cups: I was so focused on what I lost, I couldn't see what remained.
Each card was a doorway into a different emotional layer.
Week 2: Integration
The cards started showing me what I needed to do:
- The Empress: Nurture yourself. You've been depleted.
- Strength: You have the inner strength to get through this. Trust it.
- The Star: Hope is returning. You're healing.
Journaling on these cards wasn't just reflection—it was instruction. The cards were guiding me through the healing process.
Week 3-4: Transformation
By week 3, the cards shifted:
- Death: The old you is gone. Let her go.
- Temperance: You're integrating the lessons. Finding balance.
- The Sun: Joy is returning. You're emerging.
I wasn't just healing. I was transforming.
Why Tarot Journaling Worked
1. Symbolic language accesses the subconscious
Talk therapy uses words. But some grief lives below language. Tarot uses symbols, which speak directly to the subconscious.
2. The cards ask questions you wouldn't ask yourself
I would never have asked: "What part of myself did I lose in that relationship?" But the Three of Swords made me ask it.
3. Journaling externalizes the internal
Writing makes the invisible visible. Emotions stuck inside become words on a page—and that creates distance, perspective, release.
4. The practice creates a container
Daily tarot journaling became a ritual. A sacred time to feel, process, and heal. The consistency created momentum.
The Healing Timeline
Before tarot journaling (Months 1-3 post-breakup):
- Understood the breakup intellectually
- Still emotionally stuck
- Couldn't access the deeper grief
- Felt numb or overwhelmed, no middle ground
After 30 days of tarot journaling:
- Understood the breakup emotionally and spiritually
- Grief was moving, not stuck
- Accessed and released layers I didn't know existed
- Full emotional range returning
After 3 months:
- Heartbreak integrated, not just "over it"
- Reclaimed parts of myself I'd lost
- Grateful for the relationship and the ending
- Open to love again, but from a whole place
The Tarot Journaling Method
- Get a dedicated journal: I used a Moon Tarot journal for intuition work
- Set an intention or question: What do you need to understand/heal/release?
- Pull one card: Don't overthink it. First card you're drawn to.
- Observe before interpreting: What do you see? What do you feel? What stands out?
- Free-write: Let the card guide your writing. Don't censor. Let it flow.
- Look for patterns: Over time, certain cards/themes will repeat. That's where the work is.
- Trust the process: Some days will feel profound. Some won't. Keep going.
The Cards That Healed My Heart
Three of Swords: Showed me I was grieving myself, not just the relationship
The Tower: Helped me see the breakup as necessary destruction, not failure
Death: Gave me permission to let the old version of me die
The Star: Reminded me hope was returning, even when I couldn't feel it yet
The Sun: Confirmed I was emerging into joy again
Tools That Supported My Practice
- The Moon Tarot Journal - For intuition and subconscious work
- The High Priestess Tarot Journal - For divine wisdom and inner knowing
- A tarot deck I connected with - The imagery matters. Choose one that speaks to you.
What I Learned
Healing isn't linear. It's not about "getting over it." It's about going through it—layer by layer, card by card, journal entry by journal entry.
Tarot didn't tell me my future. It showed me my present—the parts I couldn't see, the grief I couldn't name, the healing I couldn't access alone.
And journaling gave that invisible, symbolic wisdom a place to land. A way to become real, visible, integrated.
Six months later, I still journal with tarot. Not for heartbreak anymore, but for everything—decisions, creativity, spiritual growth, self-understanding.
Because tarot journaling taught me: the answers aren't out there. They're in here. And the cards are just mirrors, reflecting back what I already know but can't yet see. For deepening this kind of reflective practice, I've found the Tarot Journaling Prompts invaluable for excavating new layers, the 30-Day Tarot Practice Workbook to build the kind of consistent momentum that moved my own healing, and the 52-Week Tarot Journey for sustained transformation across a whole year of turning inward.
Have you used tarot for healing or journaling? What cards have been most transformative for you? Share your tarot journey below.
