What is a social rhythm log?

a social rhythm log A social rhythm log records the clock time of five daily anchors — getting out of bed, first contact with another person, starting activity, the evening meal, and going to bed — alongside mood and how stimulating each day's social contact was. In interpersonal and social rhythm therapy the regularity of those times is treated as a mood stabiliser, so the log tracks times rather than hours.

Source — Ellen Frank's interpersonal and social rhythm therapy (IPSRT) for bipolar disorder, developed from the Social Rhythm Metric.

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Bipolar · Mood

Social Rhythm Daily Log

Two weeks of five anchors

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Interpersonal and social rhythm therapy treats the timing of daily life as a mood stabiliser: when sleep, first contact with another person, activity and meals happen at reliably similar times, mood episodes are less frequent. This is the daily log — two weeks of five anchors, with space for who was involved and how stimulating the contact was.

My five anchors and my target times
Anchor
Target time
Why this one is hard

Regularity beats duration

Same wake time, same first contact, same meal windows — even on a bad night or a day off. A consistently short night disrupts rhythm less than a wildly variable one, which is why the log records times rather than hours slept.

Week 1
Day
Out of bed
First contact with a person
Started activity
Evening meal
To bed
Mood -5 to +5
Week 2
Day
Out of bed
First contact with a person
Started activity
Evening meal
To bed
Mood -5 to +5
How stimulating was the contact each day?
Day
Who (role or initials)
0 = just present · 3 = very stimulating
What disrupted the rhythm
  • Shift change or night work
  • Travel or time-zone change
  • A late social event
  • Screens or gaming past the target bedtime
  • Caffeine after midday, or alcohol in the evening
  • A conflict or a loss
  • Nothing scheduled at all — an empty day
Reading the two weeks
Which anchor varied the most?
What happened to mood in the days after the most variable anchor?
The one anchor I will hold steady next fortnight
What makes that realistic (not ideal — realistic)

Bring it to the session

The value of the log is the pattern across the fortnight rather than any single day. Two weeks is usually enough to see which anchor moves first before an episode — and that anchor becomes the early-warning sign worth defending.

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About this worksheet

IPSRT starts from the observation that mood episodes in bipolar disorder often follow disruptions to daily timing — a shift change, travel, a late night, an empty unstructured day — rather than from stress alone. The log makes that link visible. The client sets target times for five anchors, then records the actual time each one happened across two weeks with a daily mood rating from -5 to +5, plus a note on who they were with and how stimulating the contact was. A disruption checklist covers the usual culprits: shift work, travel, late events, screens, caffeine and alcohol, conflict, and days with nothing scheduled at all. The read-out at the end asks which anchor varied most, what happened to mood in the days afterward, and the single anchor to hold steady next fortnight. Over time the anchor that moves first tends to become a reliable early-warning sign worth defending.

When to use it

  • Bipolar I and II maintenance phase, between episodes.
  • Shift workers, new parents, and clients with irregular schedules.
  • Seasonal pattern or repeated spring and autumn episodes.
  • Recurrent unipolar depression with disrupted sleep and routine.
  • Early-warning monitoring after a recent episode or medication change.

How to use it

  1. 1
    Record times, not hours

    A consistently short night disrupts rhythm less than a wildly variable one. The clock time is the data point.

  2. 2
    Set realistic targets

    Targets the client can hit on a bad week. An aspirational 6am wake time produces an abandoned log by day four.

  3. 3
    Rate the contact, not just the time

    A stimulating late conversation can shift rhythm more than the bedtime itself. The stimulation column is where that shows up.

  4. 4
    Read the fortnight, not the day

    Look for which anchor moved before mood moved. That anchor becomes the client's early-warning sign and the first one to protect.

Frequently asked questions

What are the five social rhythm anchors?+

Getting out of bed, first contact with another person, starting the day's main activity, the evening meal, and going to bed. Times are recorded for each, every day.

Is this the same as a mood chart?+

No. A mood chart records how the client felt; this records when daily life happened, with mood as a secondary column, so the timing-to-mood sequence can be read.

Does it replace medication?+

No. IPSRT is used alongside pharmacological treatment for bipolar disorder, not instead of it.

How long should a client keep it?+

Two weeks is usually enough to see a pattern. Longer stretches are useful around shift changes, travel, or after an episode.

Is it free and printable?+

Yes. Free printable PDF, US Letter, no identifying information collected — contacts are recorded by role or initials.

Worksheet — Social Rhythm Daily Log — provided by TherapistAssist for clinical use. Not a substitute for assessment or treatment.