Before we dive in, here are some of the most surprising findings:

Alcohol makes me happier and doesn’t affect my sleep, happiness, or productivity the next day.
Ramen and chips ~3×'d my irritability intensity. Ovulating ~3×'d my grumpiness frequency.
Polyamory doesn’t hurt my emotional well-being (surprising to me) but it dramatically reduces my life satisfaction.
Antidepressants probably gave me depression.
2020 was actually my best year on record. More on this later in the post.
Weather totally affects my mood, specifically, grey overcast skies. Good thing I spent most of my life in the Pacific Northwest, a place famed for its sunniness.
Starting a charity approximately bajillion x’ed my mentions of the word “stressed”.
Meditation works for me - only when it's a new meditation technique. Then the effect fades and only comes back if I try a new technique.
Cannabis, despite making me very happy in the moment, does not affect my mood overall, one way or the other.
Drugs, meditative states, and Christmas are the source of practically all of my peak days. Work accomplishments don’t show up in this list.
Polyamory and conflict (related) are the source of practically all of my worst days.
Largely my mental health is unpredictable and [...]

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Outline:

(01:52) Alcohol makes me happier, despite "what the science says".

(05:31) Ramen and chips triples my irritability intensity. Birth control stopping ovulation reduces irritability frequency.

(09:53) Polyamory tanks my life and relationship satisfaction

(14:13) 2020. was my best year and it's a mystery as to why

(19:25) Antidepressants probably gave me depression

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First published:
September 1st, 2026

Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/e6LEYbXw4H7ozgz7A/i-tracked-my-emotions-for-11-years-and-here-s-what-i-found

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“I tracked my emotions for 11 years and here’s what I found out about mental health” by KatSpartz

LessWrong (30+ Karma)