Gain Mastery

Goal

To increase positive experiences and gain a sense of mastery.

Gain a Sense of Mastery (Fulton State Hospital, p. 54)

A sense of accomplishment is a gift only you can give to yourself. People in very desperate situations (concentration camps, prison, etc) find things to do on a daily basis that provide a sense of accomplishment and control. When we do something that is just a little bit hard for us, we gain a sense of mastery in the world, and our sense of hopelessness weakens.

Mastery Exercise

Instructions: Make a list of things that you can do in order to gain a sense of mastery. Make sure that the tasks are realistic goals given your mood. Remember that it is harder to do everything when you are depressed, so pick small tasks for when you are in a low mood:

• How can I improve a good mood?
• What can I do to challenge a medium mood?
• What are some ways I can raise a low mood?

Increase Positive Experiences (Fulton State Hospital, p. 55)

You can increase the amount of positive experiences that you have by building positive experiences, being mindful of positive experiences, and being unmindful of worries. Build positive experiences by doing pleasant things that are possible NOW as well as making long-term changes in your life so that positive events will occur more often. Here are some ideas:

Be mindful of positive experiences by focusing and refocusing. FOCUS attention on positive events that happen (even very small ones)! REFOCUS when your mind wanders to future worries, past regrets, current distractions, and other thoughts while you PARTICIPATE mindfully in the joyful experience.

Be unmindful of worries by avoiding thinking about when the positive experience will end, whether you deserve the positive experience, and how much more might be expected of you now.