There are thousands of Moodscope users, and I think we all use it in different ways. Some religiously do the test every day, but rarely read the blog. Some read the blog but never do the test. Some only use the test when they are going through a bad time and need to monitor themselves. And, of course, there are those of us who are happy to do the test when we are feeling good, but dread to see the score when we are going through a dark time. It’s a little like if we are trying to lose weight, and reluctant to step on the scales when we know we’ve had a bad week; we don’t want the confirmation of what we already know.

It’s just when we go through the bad times, of course, that we most need to play those cards; but why? Why should we give ourselves more bad news? Seeing a low score will just make us feel worse, surely!

The first thing I will mention – just to get it out of the way – seeing your low scores lets your buddies know you need support. I’ve blogged enough about buddies, so I won’t say more on that subject right now.

For me the most important thing is not the score itself, but how it’s made up. If you do the test every day, you will spot patterns. There are certain cards which stay constant and others which are more volatile.

I am privileged to be a buddy for several people. Some of them do their score every day and some of them more rarely. I asked two of my buddies if they would mind sharing with me (and with you), which are the “constants,” and which affect their score more meaningfully.

One revealed that, when down, all her positives (proud, active, determined, excited) take a nose-dive, whereas the negatives (Hostile, Guilty, Distressed, Scared) pretty much stay the same at zero. In fact, what happens is that she feels – nothing.

Another shared her result with me, broken down card by card. For her, the cards that are most informative – the changeable ones – relate to Upset, Distress, and how Strong or Nervous she feels.

For me, the cards that are most subject to change are the Irritable, Hostile and Jittery cards on the blue side and the Strong, Alert and Determined red cards.

From this, you can see that each of us could have exactly the same score, but it would made up very differently, and we feel very different. When the depression hits us hard – it hits us in different ways.

I have found it helpful to analyse my score (using(the Affectogram), to see if my feelings and score is related to events and therefore a normal reaction, or if it is part of my bipolar cycle.

Analysis can help us to understand our condition. And understanding it can help us control it.

Mary

A Moodscope Member.