Musical Motivator #2
They call it stormy Monday, but Tuesday’s just as bad
They call it stormy Monday, but Tuesday’s just as bad
Wednesday’s worse, and Thursday’s also sad.
– by T-Bone Walker first recorded in 1947
So what kind of music do you listen to when you’re feeling blue? I believe that finding music to match your mood can be a great way to assess, validate and recover from momentary sadness..that is unless you have stopped listening to music entirely like I did.
I had my bluest of all Mondays 15 years ago – and it lasted for 14 months. After delivering my beautiful daughter I slipped into a deep melancholic state and didn’t even know it. The result…I stopped listening to music for pleasure. Fourteen months after my daughter was born I remember being stopped at a red light and having the desire to tune in to a station I had once loved to listen to. The moment I turned that dial I learned two things about myself: a) that I had been depressed and didn’t know it and b) today was the day I felt better. I remember smiling as I moved through the green and on to the rest of my life.
My NOT listening to music was a clear indicator that my mood had altered, turning into what I now know was postpartum depression. Over the years I have worked with many individuals who drastically changed their musical listening interests or stop listening to music altogether depending on where they are in their depression cycle.
Studies show that listening to music can reduce chronic pain by up to 21 per cent and depression by up to 25 per cent. So there is good news: If you are having a BLUE MONDAY DAY (and for me that is not necessarily just the 3rd Monday in January) you may want to try selecting music that reflects your mood, NOT necessarily happy music (for me that doesn’t work), but music that reflects your current emotional state. You may just start feeling a little better.
Question of the Week: My favourite blue song is T-Bone Walkers Stormy Monday – what’s yours?
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Jennifer Buchanan is the happy owner of JB Music Therapy, celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2011.
“You on Music” is the 2011 series on JBMT’s “Music Speaks” Blog:
50 Musical Motivators (MMs): to Help you Relax, Reflect and Remember what you Value Most