I definitely agree with you. I often try to do it as I go, assessing my feelings and then deciding if I need a personal "debrief" for myself. If I do, I sit down and think about stuff for a while.
Actually doing it like what I just described is sometimes difficult, finding the time to sit down and really think about stuff is what I find hard about the process. I don't have excellent time management skills so it is problematic for me to find the time. I am trying to improve this though, so I hope it becomes easier as I go.