Mood management is similar to the Step 11  as its about connecting with a more grounded sense of self.  Mood management involves the regulation of emotions to promote well being.  It is not about avoidance or minimisation but provides strategies that are relevant to spiritual growth and the Step 11 maintenance of self.

If we learn to manage emotions and live life on life’s terms it can help our spiritual growth.  This is relevant to being non-judgemental, observing thoughts, feelings and sensations.  Being open to experiences, being present, and fostering self-compassion.  It can be about letting go of negativity and engaging in behaviour that promotes well-being.

If we are spiritual we can be helped to identify what we really need thus, seeing what our issues really are. In mood management we look at the programming of self which can help this as it relates to our attachments, developmental deficits, core beliefs and the rules we have developed to keep safe.  Its about our “scripts” and how these can impact our moods in a powerful and at times destructive way.

Here mood management can be about keeping a feelings journal or in 12 Steps focus personal inventory and to keep processing so that resentments are not collected which impacts mood.

All of this helps to keep old programming in check as humans become fused with history and script.  Then they act according to the old stuff which makes a loss of identification with self and instead see ourselves as the programming.  This is rather than as someone with the programming in the context of certain experiences.

This is where mood management is an important tool advocate in inviting us to “take a step back”.  It recognises the power of script and that when we automatically believe our thoughts as fact this can generate the most powerful and intense emotion.

Taking a step back is about not treating these as ultimate truths which can lead to unpleasant script cycles and  auto-pilot destruction in addiction.  The step 11 and spirituality is also about taking a step back.  This strengthens the observing self and using visualisation by accepting thoughts but letting then pass through is about defusing compassionately and non-judgementally and accepting the presence of thoughts  but not acting on them.

The practise of the Step 11 helps with acceptance and enables old programming to loose its power over our emotional well-being.  It also help with the observing self as its about staying with connectedness but also being able to step back from script.  In fact the conscious contact cross transacts the script process and old stuff.

It helps us to retrain our minds rather then react automatically.  With this the Step 11 is about a form of mood management.