Moods: A Fascination of Mine [ Post #95 ]

There’s one thing that has fascinated me for a long, long time. The moods we all experience from day-to-day, and for some people, the (what seem to be) more or less permanent moods they seem to live in. Don’t we all know people who just always, or mostly, seem to be in a bad mood? And, inversely, some perpetually perky, happy, Pollyanna-type of people? And probably most of us are in between these two types, having various moods from time to time. I don’t know why, but this subject just fascinates me. Maybe because I’ve run the gamut in moods during my life and now feel a bit removed from being run by the world’s impact on determining my own personal mood. Not talking perfection here, just having a buffer from being run by moods emanating from this (what I often see as a crappy) world.

I’ve written about my early years being rather negative and dark and pessimistic (and, yes, with good times and moods periodically breaking up my dark times). Thank goodness I never totally surrendered to the bad times. That’s where bad activities occur, such as drug use, other addictions, hateful actions (today’s trend of just going out and shooting people) or even suicide occur. I was tempted to some of those actions but something (I’ll call it God) kept me going on an even keel, not venturing down those paths.

So, moods. Where do they come from? Why do we have such a variety of moods. Do they just happen or do we play a part, perhaps a significant part in the moods we are in? Doing some research on this topic tends to confirm my own theories on this subject from the scientific and psychological perspective.

Now, I’m not talking about the deeper topics of mental illness and emotional disorders and all that. I’m talking about our more superficial-type daily moods. Our wake up out of sleep mood, our before and after our morning cup of coffee moods. Or our wake up in the middle-of-night dark mood. Yes, I’ve experienced all of these, and thank goodness, I’ve learned to have better control over my moods.

I’ve discovered that moods can trigger so much in our lives. I didn’t realize that before. I just assumed they happened and there was not much we can do about them. Now I see that we do have control over our moods and our moods can trigger our emotions without our awareness. My first partner was always in a bad mood, it seemed, unless he was high on pot. Being stoned, he was always in a “mellow” mood. But not stoned, watch out. It took me so long to see that whole process.

So, moods. I find that I have to work at keeping myself in a good mood through daily life. It seems there’s always something to come along and knock us down, potentially putting us in a bad mood. When my doctor recently asked me if I suffered from depression or any mood disorders (Medicare asks and encourages doctors to ask this question every year), I responded, “well, not really; disgusted at times perhaps, have you watched the news lately, doctor?” He laughed and got my point.

I’m always checking on my moods and my spouse’s mood now that I know how important our moods are. There’s always stuff going on and often it can be crappy stuff, but still, I believe that we can determine our moods and that makes all the difference in how we live day to day and moment to moment. I do wish that I had this awareness earlier in my life of the affect of moods on our emotions and phycological well-being.

So, this is a fascinating field of interest for me. I feel sad for those that always seem to be in a negative, pessimistic mood. I do hope people seek help if they are stuck in dark moods. Life can be better, life can be good. But, it takes work, sometimes hard work to experience the good life available to us all.

So, I say, find something you enjoy doing. Do it. Be aware, be mindful of how things affect you, how others may be influencing you and your moods and emotions. If you experience real trouble in all of this, seek some help. You have been given this one life for now. Make the best of it. Seek the light, the good, the bliss! And, I would add, without the artificial and potentially dangerous substances that disrupt so many lives these days. Perhaps explore the metaphysical, spiritual life that many have discovered to help them navigate through it all.

As usual, I could write a book on this subject. But this short essay is enough for now. The point is that I just seek the best life now, and that means paying close attention to my daily moods. I’ve wasted too much of my life energy in the past being in bad moods for some stupid reasons. I just seek the best life now, no matter what is happening. No matter how the news media twists and filters the news to just give us the bad stuff and ignoring all the good that is also occurring in life. I work on staying on the good, the right path. Yes, it is hard work. But I must do it. I must choose to be in a good mood. That is sometimes the hard that I choose.

Wally