Have you ever been depressed? Sad? Bored? Lost interest in previously important activities? Have you ever been manic? Done too much? Been excessively busy? Felt pressured to be busy, then be busier, and then busier still? How have you handled these moods? Have you found a way to effectively manage your activity levels? Have you ever told yourself when you feel blue: ‘I just need to call a friend’? Or ‘I just need to…’ do some fun activity?
Research shows us that there are very effective ways to manage activity levels. It is clear that when we are depressed we need more activity to feel better, need to socialize more than when we feel good. It takes more activity to get out of a depressed mood than it does to stay out of a depressed mood. But how much?
Research also shows us that being very busy can bring on or exacerbate a manic mood in people who have Bipolar Disorder. So, is the key to just do less? Does it matter the time of day? How much activity is the right amount?
In decades of depression research done by professionals like Peter Lewinsohn, Paul Rhode, and others, it becomes clear that there is a magic number of activities that helps people get out of depression. By modifying this information, you can also figure out how much activity will help prevent mania.
If you were to spend a week tracking your mood on a consistent scale, then for another week track your mood and pleasant activities, you could discover your baseline for mood and pleasant activities. Then, if you have depression, you could begin to increase the number of pleasant activities, thereby increasing your mood.
If you’re manic, you could begin to decrease those activities and potentially you could calm your mood. Bipolar disorder is more complicated than depression, so more adjustments need to be made. Mania tends to escalate during the day, so it helps to increase the number of calm activities, like sitting still and watching nature or meditating, and decreasing the number of active activities particularly social activities with more than one other person. It also helps to do less in the evening and to get active activities out of the way in the morning or early afternoon.
Give it a try! In time you can figure out how many activities are ideal for you. I will load a mood chart developed by researchers at Oregon Research Institute in Eugene, Oregon. To use this chart effectively, the first step is to anchor the 1 and 7 of the mood-scale. For example, for your lowest mood, your one, what is the worst you have ever felt? At the bottom of the chart, write your example next to the one. This is what one equals. When you chart a one, you feel that bad. It doesn’t have to be the same event, just the same feeling. Then do the same for the seven. What is the best you’ve ever felt? Write that example next to the seven at the bottom of the chart. If you chart a seven you feel that good. Then notice that four is right in the middle, so if you chart a four, you don’t feel down or sad and you don’t feel up or happy, just neutral.
For the first week, just chart your mood each day at the end of the day with a number equaling your average mood for the day. During this week, also begin to brainstorm pleasant activities, things you either enjoy doing or feel satisfied because they are done. These include social activities you do with friends or on the phone. They include hobbies, chores, and other activities you do alone. They also might include relaxing activities like meditation, relaxation, or just sitting and watching the river go by, watching squirrels playing and so on. Brainstorm at least twenty activities which are accessible to you. Feel free to add activities you think of later.
Next begin charting your mood at the end of the day and counting/charting the number of pleasant activities you did. Some find it helpful to also track which activities they did. I recommend people who want to do that to write the number of the activity up the arm of the pleasant activity box.
The third week you will add up all your mood numbers, divide by the number of days, and find the average mood. You will do the same thing for the pleasant activities. Now you know how many activities it takes on average to have this mood. Do you like this mood? Or would you rather increase it? Or decrease it?
To increase it, try to add one pleasant activity per day. It’s important not to add more than one activity at a time. You want to make realistic changes. You can always add more later after you see how adding one activity impacts your mood. To decrease your mood if you are manicy, subtract one or at least reduce the ones in the evening. It can also be helpful to think about which activities you do that have a high impact on your mood. These are the activities which you enjoy so much, you lose track of time. For everyone this can be a different thing. For one it could be hanging out with your best friend, for another it could be dancing, singing, knitting, or making love. Think about the things that make you laugh! Increase these activities for an improved mood.
Good luck!
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