Imagine being able to send an email to yourself that gets delivered 30 days later. You write it today, forget about it, and then receive it in your inbox a month from now - like getting a message from a friend who knows your situation perfectly, except that friend is you from the past.
This simple idea can be particularly useful for mental health. Anyone who's been through therapy knows that progress isn't a straight line. You have breakthrough moments and difficult patches, often forgetting how capable you felt just weeks earlier. Writing emails to your future self is one way to create a record of your better moments that you can revisit later.
The idea is simple: when you're having a clearer day or feeling more like yourself, you write an email that gets delivered to you a month later. It's not about predicting the future or solving problems you haven't had yet. It's just documenting what's happening right now from your current perspective.
Some people write about what's been helping them lately. Others note small things they're proud of, or remind themselves about strategies that actually worked. There's no right way to do it - it's just honest thoughts from the version of you who has a bit more perspective in that moment.
A month is long enough that you'll likely have forgotten writing the email, but not so long that your life has completely changed. When it arrives, many people say it feels like finding a note they forgot they wrote.
The content often feels relevant because mental health struggles can follow patterns. If you're someone who has regular dips in mood or motivation, there's a decent chance your email will arrive during a period when you could use the reminder.
Looking at what works for others, the most helpful emails tend to be ordinary rather than profound:
Small wins. Things like making a difficult phone call, asking for help when you needed it, or getting through a social situation that felt overwhelming. These might seem minor, but they're evidence that you can handle difficult things.
What's actually helping. Not what you think should help, but what genuinely is working for you right now. Maybe it's a particular routine, setting a specific boundary, or something your therapist suggested that finally clicked.
Perspective you have today. Sometimes you have moments where you can see your progress more clearly, or you feel more compassionate toward yourself. Capturing that perspective while you have it can be useful later.
The key seems to be honesty over motivation. People report trusting their own messages more when they acknowledge that things are hard while also noting their ability to cope.
This isn't therapy or treatment - it's just a way to create continuity between different versions of yourself. Some people find it helpful, others don't connect with it at all.
The emails don't solve problems or replace other support systems. They're more like getting a text from a friend who knows your situation well, except that friend happens to be you from a month ago.
If you're going through a particularly difficult time, an email from your past self might provide some comfort or perspective. But it might also feel irrelevant or even frustrating if your situation has changed significantly. There's no guarantee it will arrive at the "right" moment or contain exactly what you need to hear.
This tends to work for people who are already doing some form of self-reflection, whether through therapy, journaling, or just thinking about their mental health. It's an addition to other practices, not a replacement for them.
It seems particularly relevant for people who have recurring patterns in their mental health - those who experience regular dips and recoveries might find the timing of the emails coincides usefully with their cycles.
If you're someone who struggles to remember your progress or tends to be hard on yourself during difficult periods, reading your own words of acknowledgment can feel different from hearing similar things from others. But this varies greatly from person to person.
Send an email to hello@dearme.email and we'll deliver it back to you in 30 days.
Send an email to future me