Session Six: On Activity

Prepared by Nicole Carter, MSW, RSW
Please do not copy or distribute this material without permission.

What We Do (or Don’t Do) Affects How We Feel

During a training I recently attended by Randy Paterson, he offered the following scenario for us to consider: “Let’s say we kidnap the next 10 people walking outside my office, and we give them your life for two months. During these months, they do everything you do, eat everything you eat, sleep the way you sleep, and so on. After two months, we check in with them and ask them how they’re doing. What do you think they would say?” This is a great question to ask ourselves to gain perspective on whether the activities and habits that fill our lives are serving us in a beneficial way and cultivating a fulfilling life.

If you’ve ever struggled with low mood, then you know how incredibly difficult it is to change your life circumstances when you’re feeling down - even the most seemingly small tasks can feel impossibly laborious. Low mood often strips us of energy and motivation, making it difficult to complete daily tasks, engage in hygiene routines, fulfill obligations at work or at home, and so on. This can lead to guilt, further sadness, hopelessness, helplessness, and other unpleasant emotions.

As showcased below, the vicious cycle then continues - the lower we feel, the less interest or pleasure we have in things, the more inactive we become - leading to worsening mood.

Activating Ourselves When we Feel Down

It might not be surprising that engaging in more activity (especially a variety of activities that elicit a sense of mastery/achievement and/or pleasure/fun) can help increase our mood, elevate our energy and motivation level, and reduce cognitive symptoms associated with depression (like lack of concentration). But how can we possibly get started when we feel so low? One way to get started is to give up our big goals.

Goal-Setting by Giving Up: Choose a Goal That’s so Easy it Feels Pathetic

This advice might sound strange, but it’s true and typically very helpful to remember. People who are struggling with low mood can often be too motivated, choosing goals that are so big that even people who aren’t struggling with depression would find difficult to master. If you’ve been struggling with low mood you might be able to recall goals you’ve generated that have yet to be completed. It can be helpful to choose goals that are so small that they feel silly. For example, if your goal is to clear off your kitchen table, start with clearing one piece of paper or one item.

Low Mood can be a Motivation Thief

Depressed mood can make us particularly vulnerable to amotivation (the feeling of being unmotivated) and inactivity. Engaging in less activities that we find interesting and/or pleasurable can lead to more sadness, less motivation, and anhedonia (a lack of interest or pleasure in things we typically find interesting or pleasurable). So how can we better understand the meaning behind our amotivation?

Scheduling Activities

IT IS HELPFUL TO TRY TO ENGAGE IN ACTIVITIES THAT AVOID AVOIDANCE, ARE MASTERY-BASED, ARE PLEASURABLE AND FUN, AND ARE IN LINE WITH YOUR PERSONAL INTERESTS AND VALUES.

Self-help Exercises

  1. Scheduling activities. Consider choosing valuable, pleasurable and/or masterful activities and/or activities that overcome avoidance to engage in each day, as set out in your hourly activity schedule from this session. Take note of your mood before and after the activity’s completion.

  2. Generating SMART goals. Consider developing a SMART goal in order to stay active and stay accountable to yourself.

  3. Consider the motivation equation. Consider how the different parts of the motivation equation are impacting your unique motivation levels, and consider ways you could shift each one to set yourself up for more success.

The Motivation Equation

Motivation can be defined as how energized you feel to engage in something. There are several things that can influence how motivated we feel, as explained by the motivation equation below: expectancy, value, impulsivity, and delay. When we generate goals that are too big and difficult to achieve, it can reduce our expectancy, delay the feeling of mastery making us less motivated to do things, and may even make us more vulnerable to giving in to our brain’s impulsivity (for example, we might engage more in excessive behaviours, substance use, and so on).

The motivation equation can suggest the following trends:

  • EXPECTANCY: When we are more certain that we will receive success or rewards for our efforts, our motivation increases. If we often choose goals that are too large when we feel down and fail to achieve our goals, our expectancy to receive rewards weakens, leading to less motivation.

  • VALUE: When we are engaging in something that we value or enjoy, and if we will enjoy the reward of completion of the task, the more motivated we will feel. Many of us might not enjoy the tasks we feel we have to complete while depressed, making our motivation to do things lower. Alternatively, if we’re able to schedule ourselves a pleasurable activity, our motivation may be enhanced.

  • DELAY: When we expect to get a quicker reward, we tend to feel more motivated. If I were to offer you $20 today, or $30 in two months, chances are most of you would prefer to get $20 today. Given the uncertain timeline that low mood brings, it can reduce our motivation by means of not knowing when things might bring us reward again. It can also take time for our mood to improve even when we do engage in more activity, leading to less motivation to keep going (it does get better, so hang in there!)

  • IMPULSIVITY: Those of us who struggle with impulsivity might also have a tendency to discount future rewards and seek more immediate pleasure or reward - especially when we’re depressed. Sometimes this can look like substance use, excessive TV watching or video games or screen time, and so on. Because low mood can be so draining and impairing, it can make us more vulnerable to behaving impulsively now, rather than waiting for future rewards.

Turn Cliff Faces into Staircases: Generating “SMART” Goals

To help yourself stay focused and accountable, consider using the acronym SMART to increase your chances of goal attainment. Make sure your activity goals are specific (what specifically is my goal?), measurable (how will I know when I’ve reached my goal?), attainable (is my goal reasonable and would I succeed in it 8 or 9 times out of 10? Remember: give up the big goals!), relevant (is this goal personally meaningful in some way?), and time-based (the ‘when’ and ‘how long’ of the goal).

Increasing pleasurable and mastery-based activities can improve our mood, reduce rumination, and ease symptoms of depression over time.

Below is a list of pleasurable and masterful activities to consider engaging in while we might have more time on our hands.

Note: Not all of these activities might be pandemic-appropriate, so be sure to always follow directions from public health officials.

Pleasurable Activities Ideas

  • Print brain teasers or inspirational quotes to post on your door or in your window for those passing by to enjoy

  • Grow a new flowering tree branch in your home using a vase with warm water (and rooting hormone if you have it)

  • Attend or host an online trivia night in person or by using Zoom’s free screen sharing function and Kahoot

  • Spend time in nature

  • Spend time watching the clouds drift by

  • Sign up for an online debate

  • Manicure your hands or nails

  • Go ice skating/rollerblading

  • Schedule a day with nothing to do purposefully

  • Give positive feedback about something (e.g. writing a letter or email about good service you received somewhere, tell someone you appreciate them, bake something for a grandparent, comment something kind on someone’s post)

  • Hang a bird-feeder or leave birdseed out for birds and squirrels

  • Initiate an online hangout with friends or family

  • Make jams or preserves with local fruit

  • Order something new in for dinner

  • Buy someone a gift online and send it to their home

  • Have a political discussion with someone

  • Repair something around the house or apartment

  • Wash your car or someone else’s

  • Start a new show

  • Watch motivational videos on YouTube

  • Send a loved one a card or letter in the mail

  • Bake something to share with others (e.g. family, neighbours, friends, work colleagues, a local retirement facility)

  • Have a video call with someone who lives far away

  • Organize your wardrobe

  • Play a musical instrument or sign up for online lessons

  • Light a scented candle, oils or incense

  • Exercise in a way that feels good to you

  • Put up a framed picture or artwork in your room

  • Schedule an online dinner party with friends

  • Offer to plan or host a friend’s future birthday

  • Ride a bike

  • Taste a new wine

  • Visit the zoo or planetarium online

  • Birdwatch

  • Do something spontaneous

  • Go on a picnic to a destination that does not have others present

  • Order or make your favourite warm drink

  • Fantasize about the future in a positive way

  • Laugh by watching a comedy video or show

  • Play tennis or badminton

  • Clear your email inbox

  • Plant a vegetable garden

  • Generate a plan to get out of debt/paying debts if you’re in debt

  • Organize your camera roll

  • Upcycle old items

  • Practice a musical instrument

  • Buy a new clothing item

  • Plan a trip to a speedway

  • Listen to an audiobook

  • Start a gratitude journal with things you’re grateful for

  • Teach a special skill to someone else online (e.g. knitting, woodworking, painting, language)

  • Participate in a peaceful protest that you support

  • Initiate a movie date online with a friend

  • Skip/jump rope

  • Talk to an older relative and ask them questions about their life

  • Make your bed with freshly laundered sheets

  • Whittle wood

  • Learn calligraphy

  • Have a daytime nap

  • Go for a drive (if you have access to a car)

  • Donate blood

  • Create a calm meditative space in your home

  • Teach your pet a new trick

  • Take an online photography class

  • Offer to walk the pet of someone with mobility concerns

  • Contact the SPCA to look into volunteer options for after the pandemic (affection programs or dog-walking)

  • Create a schedule for yourself

  • Research a topic of interest

  • Write an opinion piece for a local newspaper

  • Start a blog based on one of your favourite hobbies

  • Plan a trip to the beach when all of this is over

  • Redecorate your room

  • Volunteer for a cause you support online

  • Purchase or pick a fresh plant, succulent, or flowers for your house or room

  • Open the curtains and blinds to let light in

  • Do a jigsaw puzzle

  • Donate old clothes or items to charity

  • Lay in the sun

  • Learn a magic trick

  • Listen to a podcast or radio show

  • Take a walk with an intention to notice the architecture of buildings

  • Engage in a DIY project or other arts/crafts

  • Sign up for a ghost tour

  • Sketch, paint

  • Yardwork

  • Plan a future horseback riding activity

  • Organize your dishes

  • Sit outside and listen to birds sing

  • Look up future public lectures/workshops at your local university to attend when this is all over

  • Research or plan a trip to national parks

  • Plan a camping trip with friends for when this is all over

  • Play cards

  • Re-watch a favourite movie

  • Create front planters at your front door

  • Play volleyball

  • Ride your bike on the trails

  • Find a babbling brook to visit

  • Journal beside a river

  • Enter a competition

  • Do crossword puzzles

  • Cuddle a pet

  • Learn how to cook a special meal you haven’t cooked before

  • Soak in the bathtub for at least 20 minutes

  • Do an at-home facial

  • Put extra effort into your appearance for the day

  • Do a favour for someone

  • Build a bird house

  • Look at pictures of beautiful scenery

  • Listen to new music

  • Learn a new language

  • Taking a free online class

  • Buy new good smelling shampoo/conditioner

  • Sing out loud

  • Flip through old photo albums

  • Go sailing

  • Stretch muscles and enhance flexibility

  • Play soccer

  • Plan a visit to a local botanical garden when this is over

  • Watch live comedy online

  • Play frisbee

  • Play chess online

  • Jump on a trampoline

  • Go fishing

  • Doodle

  • Put a vase of fresh flowers in your house

  • Sing karaoke online with friends

  • Cook fresh meals and freeze the leftovers

  • Practice photography

  • Sign up for online meditation

  • Plan a themed party for the future

  • De-clutter

  • Learn to juggle

  • Contact an old school friend

  • Make a new toy for your pet

  • Make yourself an ice-cream cone

  • Organize your desk/workspace

  • Buy new stationery and write someone you care about a letter

Tracking Forms to Help you Increase Activity

Dr. Christine Padesky, author of Mind Over Mood, has developed helpful worksheets to begin engaging in behavioural activation and activity planning.

First, brainstorm (using the above pleasurable activities list for inspiration) activities that you could see yourself engaging in:

Next, fill in as many activities as you feel comfortable with from your list above into the schedule below. Remember, if you’re feeling quite low and are generally quite inactive currently, one small activity would be plenty to start off with. See if you can experiment with what it might be like to follow the plan you create below, rather than what your feelings of amotivation, apathy, or sadness might want you to do instead.

“Try to behave from the outside in, rather than the inside out. In other words, try to follow the plan, not your feelings.”

Note: If you are feeling very down or depressed and feel that your ability to organize activities or follow a schedule is too difficult at this time, it might be helpful to consider seeing someone for help with your low mood. It is never easy to go at this alone.

If you are having thoughts about killing yourself, have googled how to kill yourself, or have started making plans to kill yourself, reach out to someone you trust, call your local 24/7 crisis resource line, or visit your local emergency room department. If you feel imminently at risk, 911 can help direct you to appropriate supports. Hang in there: it does get better.