The Importance of Music

🌟Weekly Inspiration🌟

A recent study with Lisa Damour, PhD and the Walton Foundation/Gallup poll surveyed young people about what helps them to feel better when they are upset. The following was all taken from Lisa Damour’s e-blast, which I highly recommend, sign up below!

#1 Listening to Music

The most popular response—endorsed by 58% of those surveyed—was music. Indeed, my work with young people has taught me that carefully curated playlists are, for many, a go-to solution for managing their moods. At times, they’ll use upbeat songs to pull themselves out of a funk. At other times, they’ll listen to sad or angry music that matches their crummy feelings. If that seems like a counterintuitive way to seek emotional relief, research supports what young people intuitively understand: The best way to move through an unwanted feeling can be to embrace it full-on—and mood-matching music may help teens temporarily dial up the intensity of their discomfort to speed themselves toward feeling better.


The other two top coping strategies include:  #2 Connecting with Friends and #3 Playing Video Games.
 

This all rings true for me as a therapist that has spent so many years working with teenagers—and as a mom of three of them!  My youngest seems to have his earbuds in at all times nowadays 😄. I went to a concert last week and was reminded of the power of music. I don’t think I could have survived the upsets of my own life without music—when I was sad or when I needed a hype mix. I even had a Taylor Swift playlist on repeat the entire year before my daughter left the nest, as I grieved her departure. It made me think of her, made me cry alone by myself, and truly helped me!  

Kids today might need to be reminded that music is an incredible coping tool available to them so easily—perhaps they play their own music or sing? Listen to artists on their phones, in the car, or while doing homework? Kids today look too quickly for something outside of themselves to cope—call their therapist, enlist their parent (we need to work ourselves out of this at every turn), numb with substances or scrolling. Music can do wonders.

Ask Yourself

What are the playlists of your youth? How did they help you cope?
What artists do you know every lyric to their songs?
Do you play music at home?
Do your children enjoy music?
Could they be encouraged that they often have the best coping tools available to them anytime/anywhere/free of charge?
If your family doesn’t enjoy music, what is your substitute?

Be well!