At 83, Amitabh Bachchan is still awake past midnight, not for a film shoot, but for football. As the FIFA World Cup 2026 entered its final week, BigB recently took to his personal blog to admit that the tournament’s late-night match schedule had thrown his routine into disarray: “the timelines and the idea of time has gone awry.. the reason of course, is the WC 2026”, he wrote.With odd viewing hours making the days feel harder, even as the matches brought cheer, remorse, and frustration over unfair decisions, he described the heightened emotions amid the ongoing tournament.Just days earlier, when the tournament paused for a three-day break before the semi-finals, he had written simply that he needed a “respite” too.Apart from following the FIFA World Cup 2026, what makes his habit of blogging interesting isn’t just when he talks about games alone, but the consistency with which he has been following it.Bachchan launched his blog on April 17, 2008, and has probably been updating it every single day since, without missing an entry.That kind of unbroken daily writing habit, sustained for nearly two decades, is commendable and brings us to what journaling does for an ageing, active mind.So, here are 5 ways in which writing every day, whether through journaling or blogging, impacts wellbeing:
Photo: Tumblr/ SRBachchan
Shehanshah’s daily habit that has outlasted trends
Bachchan’s blog began in 2008 and has been updated daily ever since, and is based upon everything across his day from film shoots and family moments to sport and current affairs.Most habits fade within months, but his has run for over 17 years. And he doesn’t necessarily write blogs every time, some of the most popular and interesting ones are just punchy oneliners.Psychologists who study journaling often point to this kind of unbroken repetition, not any single entry, as the real source of benefit. A daily habit builds a structure the mind can lean on, especially valuable once formal work routines loosen with age.
A routine the brain can depend on
Research from the Rush Memory and Aging Project found that older adults who engaged in cognitively stimulating activities, including reading and writing, showed a notably slower rate of cognitive decline over time, even after accounting for other health factors. A fixed daily writing habit gives the ageing brain something to keep exercising.
Talking about emotions to lessen their impact internally
A landmark UCLA study using brain scans found that putting feelings into words reduces activity in the amygdala, the brain’s alarm centre, while increasing activity in the prefrontal cortex, which handles regulation and control. Researchers call this “affect labelling.” Writing down a frustrating or overwhelming moment, even briefly, appears to genuinely calm the brain’s stress response rather than just distracting from it temporarily.
Keeping the brain curious and active
James Pennebaker’s expressive writing research, beginning with his 1986 study with Sandra Beall, found that writing about personal experiences and emotions was linked to impactful improvements in physical health and fewer doctor visits over time.
Satisfaction comes with keeping a gratitude journal
Another study by Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough found that participants who kept a gratitude journal reported greater life satisfaction, more optimism, and fewer physical complaints than those who journaled about hassles or neutral events.
Writing as a bridge to others
A 12-year Rush University study found that older adults who were more socially engaged showed 70% less cognitive decline compared to those who were least socially active, even after adjusting for other health and lifestyle factors. Public writing, like a shared blog that engages in replies and conversation, extends journaling’s private benefits into this kind of ongoing social engagement.
