I work with clients who have chronic health, mental health, alcohol and other drugs issues. I created this three month diary to help track their own activities in daily life. I did this so that they could stay in charge of their quality of life. The World Health Organisation defines Quality of Life "as an individual's perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns".

Mackay and others described a new model of health care based on developing self-care, self-understanding and taking personal responsibility for your own health. Often, clients have treated me like I was the expert on their health. I am not the expert on their health, they are. This diary helped them to develop understanding on how their health conditions impacted their quality of life, and helped me to help them, and it can help you too. From their self knowledge came changes.

Please use this diary to track the 5 Aspects of Living that act as a barometer for how your life is going. You can show this to your counsellor, psychologist, therapist, case manager or Doctor as a way of revealing what your life is like at home, at work, with family and friends. Often when we get into our therapy session or our Doctor's appointment, we forget things that were important to communicate due to the normal anxiety we experience at that time. The diary acts as a prompt for your support person/s to ask questions and for you to share your activities since they last saw you. You can also use it to help advise them what you are planning to do until you see them again.

The 5 Aspects of Living are important measures to indicate how you are travelling in your life. They are:

• your diet – what did you eat and drink – how much and when;

• your sleep pattern and quality;

• exercise you have completed;

• your mood over the day; and

• your social contacts.

Each of these 5 Aspects reveal if things are on track in our self-caring behaviours. There are often anomalies that we don't understand. These anomalies are normal experiences as long as they do not continue to occur repetitively or persist for long periods of time. Everything that you put into your body - food, fluids, thoughts, emotions, and movements - has an impact. Take charge of these.

If we don't sleep well for many days at a time, something will give. If we are not eating well because we can't stomach something, we will lose weight and condition, and our immune system will suffer and eventually fail. If we overeat, we lose freedom of movement in our body.

We exercise to feel good, but there are many other ways of feeling good. We can listen to music, we can watch an inspiring movie, or we can meditate. It's best not to rely on just one thing to lift our mood. This diary is the first tool in your tool box. Gather as many as you can that work for you.

It's important to update the diary every day, whilst the events are still fresh in your mind. But don't panic if you miss a day – this says something too. It's important to review how the day went – so you can plan how to handle similar events in the future. Some days require solitude and some days we need busy activity. Consider what you liked and didn't like about the day.

Above all, be honest with yourself. This is not a test, it's a record for you to develop insight into what is impacting your life or illness. It helps free up our imagination to consider other ways to improve and enjoy life.

Some things to consider that impact our day come under the heading of HALTSSSS:

• Hungry (for food, love, attention)

• Angry (frustrated, upset)

• Lonely (boredom, sadness),

• Tired (emotionally, mentally, spiritually, physically, socially)

• Sick (in body, mind or feelings),

• Sad (anxious, low in mood)

• Sore (emotionally, mentally, spiritually, physically) and

• Sorry (embarrassed or ashamed).

It is normal that HALTSSSS influences how we react, but we risk losing control and our ability to function satisfactorily deteriorates. So, understanding what has influenced our day is vital to keeping ourselves well informed about our behaviour. Decide what you let impact you and talk about it.

Consider how you responded if you have had a lousy night's sleep, or missed lunch trying to pack too much in, or got annoyed at one of life's inconveniences. You are still responsible for your behaviour, however paying attention means you can adjust those areas that need improvement and repeat those things that help you function better and enjoy life. And don't forget to talk to others if you need to - friends, family, a health professional, counsellor, psychologist, therapist or Doctor.

When things are going badly, we increase our risk of lapse and relapse because there is an increase in our vulnerability and we start to make decisions based on emotionalreactivity. This idea of normal fluctuations in our mental health is supported by Barker's Tidal Model, but the Tidal model can apply to any health condition. Keeping a separate journal to record your emotional responses is valuable; an exercise book will suffice. You can fully express your thoughts in that journal and you can keep it private if you wish.

This diary is intended to help you monitor your 5 Aspects of Living and repair or repeat your activities as needed. Palmer and others showed there is great value in keeping written plans to assist with recovery. I believe any chronic or episodic health issue or condition deserves attention to increase our self-understanding, thus we improve our lives and maintain our autonomy as much as possible.

At the back of the book are a Keeping Well Plan (KWP)and Relapse Prevention Plans (RPP). These need to be written by you to ensure that your voice, beliefs, opinions and attitudes are heard by yourself and others. You are responsible to develop these plans. So, it is personalised for you by you. You can change your KWP at any time as you develop greater self-understanding. When things are becoming tough, you can activate some of your ideas that you put in this plan to keep you on track.

There are 2 parts to the Relapse Prevention Plan (RPP).

Part One is for when things are starting to unravel and helps get you back on track.

Part Two is for when things have really gone downhill and you need more external support from health services, your case manager or a Crisis team. Part Two is designed to have your wishes for treatment expressed so that you feel you have some control over the circumstances and reduce the fear associated with being unwell and being unsure of what is happening. Part Two needs to be shared freely with any health service you contact if you are becoming unwell. Every 3 months you can revisit your plans and fine tune them to represent your unique needs and abilities and then share with those people most important in your journey.

I developed a three month diary to encourage reflection on our lives across the seasons as well as day to day. The ability to give a clear correlation between the months across many years can give great insight into anniversaries, weather influences, days of purpose or crisis and how they revisit us over time. I hope this diary becomes a vital and useful tool that you use over and over again to help you maximise your quality of life.