Understanding Mood Dependent Behavior

Hi there!

Welcome back to the MoodiNews. Every Thursday, we discuss a variety of matters related to mental health and self-improvement.

I’m so glad you’re here.

This week, we are going begin discussing some common obstacles that keep people from experiencing self-improvement.

The obstacle that we will be reviewing today is: succumbing to mood dependent behavior! YAY!

Let’s start first with a definition:
Mood dependent behavior is any action that is driven purely by emotion. It involves decision-making that is shortsighted, reactive, and typically moves a person away from their long-term goals.

In therapy, mood dependent behavior is attached to negative outcomes, and is often the culprit behind immovability, stagnation, and relapse.

For instance, not feeling like doing something—even if it’s really important for our well-being—and then not doing it; that’s mood dependent behavior.

A few common examples of mood dependent behavior:

1) Avoiding every day, housekeeping activities like checking the mail, doing the laundry, washing the dishes, and cleaning the bathroom (because we hate doing chores and we would rather watch Netflix).

2) Canceling our plans with friends last minute because we don’t feel like getting up and going out (even though staying at home makes us feel worse overall).

3) Procrastinating on important activities like replying to email, sending out our resume, or getting to the gym (because these things feel unpleasant in the moment or seem too daunting to begin).

Interestingly, when people say that they struggle with motivation, what they really struggle with is mood dependent behavior.

(Of course, we’ve all been there—not wanting to do something, dragging our feet and avoiding scary/unpleasant tasks, or ignoring our responsibilities in order to forget about life for a while.)

Mood dependent behavior is all about the here and now—it thrives on immediate gratification and requires prioritizing short-term relief over long-term progress.

As a result, mood dependent behavior is one of the main reasons why people quit on the road to self-improvement—as the road gets harder, they don’t like how it feels, so they relinquish their long-term goals and eventually give up.

Therefore, overcoming the temptation to succumb to mood dependent behavior is absolutely critical for self-improvement.

In the process of building a life worth living, challenging things will inevitably be required of us, and it will only be possible for us to accomplish anything meaningful if we can find a way to push through uncomfortable urges in the moment.

In therapy, the skill of challenging emotionally-driven behavior helps people get into the habit of doing hard things. Recognizing when we are in the grips of mood dependent behavior—and then regaining control over our actions as quickly as possible—is essential for success.

We will talk more in a few weeks about how to overcome mood dependent behavior.

Next week, however, will continue to discuss another common obstacle to self-improvement: the perpetuation of self-defeating thoughts and behaviors.