Behavioral activation is a tool based on the idea that our actions affect how we feel and think. You can use behavioral activation to change your behaviors with the intention of improving your mood.
Start by recording what you do each hour of your day for a week. For this exercise, you can begin recording all the activities you did today. Activities include brushing your teeth, making coffee, doing laundry, exercising, meeting a friend for lunch, working, etc.At the end of each activity, rate your mood on a scale of 0 to 10.0 represents feeling very depressed, and 10 represents feeling your happiest.
- Which activities were associated with your best mood?
- Which activities were associated with your worst mood?
- What happens to your mood when you're more active?
- What happens to your mood when you're less active?
Now make a list of activities that helped you to feel good. Rank them according to how difficult you think they will be to accomplish.
0 means it's not at all difficult, and 10 means it's very difficult.
Schedule activities into your calendar for the next week. Be realistic about what you can accomplish, and prioritize activities that will be the easiest to incorporate into your schedule.When adding your activities to your calendar, be specific about which activity you plan to do, when and where you plan to do it, and who you will do it with (if anyone else is involved). Try adding an alarm to remind you to do the activity.Do your best to stick to your planned activities. Take note of how you feel before and after each scheduled activity.
Engaging in your interests can improve your mood and fill your life with meaning. Depression can impact the motivation to do these activities. This can lead to a cycle of engaging in fewer hobbies, which leads to worsened depression and less motivation to pursue fulfilling activities.
