Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Music that Calms My Anxiety


Every once in a while, I find myself sword and shield in hand fighting my hardest to keep the pain of anxiety at bay. Like in physical wars, there is no winner in a war against anxiety and fear. In reality, it's just me looking for a place of refuge to escape the inner turmoil that engulfs me from time to time.
I read self-help guides to try to break the cycle, however many guides made me feel as though my anxiety is abnormal and freakishly unacceptable in normal society. I began to try to swallow my anxiety or find ways to get rid of it. Took several months and mini panic attacks for me to realize that anxiety doesn't go away. You can't make your anxiety vanish into thin air because you want it to, but you can manage it and pull yourself into a place of deep calm whenever you feel anxious. I have learned that music is an amazing way to manage and calm anxiety. So create a "calm playlist". Culminate a list of songs that tough your soul, move your spirit and captivate your imagination. It may sound counterproductive but listen to music that allows your imagination to fly to wherever you wish. For example, when I listen to music on my calm playlist my mind is instantly teleported from forests to mountains to villages in Eastern Europe that I've never been to in my life. Then when you stop listening to the music and have to return to the real world, the images will remain with you and you can remind yourself of those images as much as you like. That is the power of music and imagination.
If you're curious, here is my "Calm Playlist"! Hopefully it will give you some ideas for what to add to your own playlist.


1. Joanna Newsom - 81 

2. The Paper Kites - Featherstone

3. The Bombay Bicycle Club - You Already Know 

4. Joanna Newsom - The Sprout and the Bean 

5. Bon Iver - Holocene 

6. Erik Satie - GymnopĂ©die No.1 

7. Rachel Sermanni - Waltz

8. Lucy Rose - Shiver 

9. Lucy Rose - Scar

10. Patrick Watson - Big Bird in a Small Cage

11. Little Tybee - For Distant Viewing 

12. The Weather Station - Everything I Saw

13. Scott Orr - A Long Life

14. M. Ward - The Last Time I Ran Away 

15. Sufjan Stevens - Holland 

16. Eli et Papillon - Coffre Fort


What song suggestions do you have for calming anxiety? What's on your playlist?

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