Quant-Emotional Mechanics©. Here are some notes about my objective observations on energy fluctuations. Also if you're wondering - yes - I did just make this phrase up.
How many times have you let your levels of energy dictate your mood? Consequentially, how have you allowed this to affect your feelings of self-worth? I just recently became aware of how much I inherently tie my energy levels to my mood (especially guilty of this in my early twenties). As many of us do, I have this eager tendency to associate low energy levels with feelings of sadness and extremely harsh self-criticism for being tired or needing to rest. On the other hand, I've noticed how much I correlate high levels of energy directly with happiness and success. It seems pretty natural to do this, right? Interestingly, the predictable outcomes started to blur when I began noticing that my anxiety and neuroticism often have more fuel to spike up and run wild during spurts of high energy. It also became clear to me that sometimes when I am running on a low tank of energy, contentment in the present feels a bit more attainable. Is this relatable?
The emotional rollercoaster and drastic sporadic ups and downs of mood and energy began giving me motion sickness. More like emotion sickness. Last week I decided to try out an experiment and get off the ride for a moment. No more upside down loop-the-loops, no more stomach dropping rides down the arches. I chose to consciously dissociate my mood from how much energy I had in the moment, and it's yielded fascinating results.
Allow me to disclaim that this is not an easy feat. This is also not necessarily a one-size-fits-all solution to enhancing mood whatsoever. This is simply a personal observation in a very specific personal context. I'm seeing that I am no longer so quick to reprimand myself nor reward myself based on how much energy I have in a given moment, day, or week. I'm seeing how my mood can regulate itself without meticulous, tedious micromanaging instructions from my energy levels.
Think of it as letting mood be a young adult child out on it's own for a bit to navigate the world, and energy as a hands-off parent letting the child figure some sh*t out for themselves. This experiment is new and still in process, but the perspective shift is damn interesting. I encourage you to try it if it resonates, and take note of any changes you may feel.
Let me know in the comments below, or reach out to me directly through my contact page if you have questions or desire to connect. Happy Monday from your forever pensive, hyper-analytical yogi.
xo Ney
PS: The scientist//data geek comes out and plays with my creative writer self every now and then. See below data visualizations for samples of what two separate weeks could possibly look like with this shift in perspective. Note: The levels on a scale of 0-10 indicate 0 as worst mood/lowest energy level, 10 as best mood/highest energy level.
Graph 1: Mood sporadically shifting up and down directly based on level of energy
Graph 2: Mood fairly stabilized at heightened levels, regardless of energy fluctuations
