Mood and Energy Diary

Who this is for

A diary in your own words, on your own scale. Each line records when it was, how your mood and your energy were as you would describe them, what was going on at the time and what, if anything, helped — and the sheet does nothing with those words except keep them.

Anyone who wants to notice how their days actually go rather than how they remember them going, people asked by someone they see to keep a diary between appointments, and anyone who suspects a pattern and wants something to show for it.

What this helps you track

• Mood and energy at different times of the day, described the way you describe them
• What was happening when you wrote each line — the context that a score loses
• What helped, so it can be found again
• A run of entries to look back over, or to take to someone you trust

How to use it

1. Write your name and the period the sheet covers at the top, and in the last box the words you will use — your own scale, so entries compare with each other.
2. Add a line whenever you notice something, or at fixed points of the day if that suits you better. There is no set number of entries.
3. Describe mood and energy in words, not numbers: flat, restless, fine, running on empty, better than expected. Use the same words the same way each time.
4. Say what was happening — work, a bad night, a good conversation, nothing at all — and what helped, if anything did.
5. Read the sheet back at the end of the period rather than each day, and take it with you if you are seeing someone about how you have been.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Why is there no scale of one to ten?

Because a number means only what you mean by it, and a seven on Monday is not a seven on Thursday. Words in your own scale carry the context with them; a number strips it out.

Does the sheet tell me anything about my mood?

No. It records what you wrote and offers no scoring, no interpretation and no conclusion. If what you see on the page worries you, that is a conversation for a professional, not something a sheet can answer.

How often should I fill it in?

As often as is useful and no more. Some people write a line at the same three points each day; others write only when something shifts. Both produce a diary worth reading.

Can I keep it on screen instead of paper?

Yes. The browser version saves in your own browser on your own device and sends nothing anywhere, and you can add rows for as long as you like before printing or downloading it.