Energising vs Draining Activity
The Relationship between Mood and Daily Activity.
When our mood is pretty good, we tend to do a large variety of enjoyable activities, in addition to the more mundane stuff we need to do.
As our mood drops, we feel more tired, and we tend to do less, and start to stay home more, withdrawing and isolating ourselves. As our mood and energy levels continue to drop, we do less and less, until eventually we struggle to even do the necessary daily chores.
What do we notice about the first things we stop doing? What are the first things we drop? Yes, we stop doing the fun and nourishing activities, and keep doing the mundane necessary things that we can't avoid.
That mundane necessary stuff is what we often find really depleting and draining. We already have little energy, and this stuff just drains us more.
What happens to our energy and mood normally, when we do our fun and enjoyable activities? These activities are nourishing, energising, motivating and lift our mood.
The Battery
It can be useful to think of our energy levels as a battery. We charge our battery by looking after ourselves (See Positive Steps) and doing activities which energise us, which helps compensate for those draining activities which we have to do.
Nourshing Activity
- Energises
- Motivates
- Uplifts our mood
Depleting Activity
- Drains our energy
- Exhausts
- Demotivates
- Worsens our mood
It can be helpful to write a list of a typical daily activities, then writing alongside whether they are energising or draining, maybe write N or D alongside. You can do this for work days and non-work days. Write down everything you typically and habitually do, then decide how that activity affects you - whether it nourishes and energises you or depletes and drains you.
You might notice that a lot of your daily activities are draining, and not so many are nourishing.
You can decide how you can find a healthier balance by increasing your nourishing and energising activities and considering what draining and depleting activities you can change.
- What will you do differently? When? How? Who with?
Or you might choose to change the meaning you give those draining activities that you cannot avoid doing:
- Is that fact or opinion?
- Perhaps that's the voice of .... (depression etc) talking and not how it really is
- What is another way of looking at this?
- Does this activity have a more meaningful purpose?
We cannot stop doing the mundane necessary activities, but we can aim for more of a balance.
Plan to do more nourishing and energising activity every day to energise your body and uplift your mood.
The Battery: LIFT vs DROP activities - video
Useful Links
Nourishing vs Depleting as PDF
The Battery as a PDF
