Taylor Swift isn’t just a superstar, she is nothing short of a mental health champion for her fans. Her music is so well-loved because of the comfort and inspiration it provides to everyone. Let’s find out the reasons why Taylor Swift is good for your mental health.
KEY POINTS
- Open discussions about mental health issues can reduce stigma, increase awareness, and promote well-being.
- Taylor Swift’s songs serve as a source of comfort for many and can bolster their emotional awareness.
- The songs bridge generational gaps, fostering familial and intergenerational connections.
Taylor Swiftโs influence has been with us for a long while now. And unlike others who gained fame in their youth but fell from a โState of Grace,โ she is doing more than simply holding up.
She and her Swifties are thriving. Itโs a subculture, but I didnโt yet get it. So I went to “The Eras Tour” movie to try to better understand the trend.
While in line, a cheerful stranger wearing cowboy boots and a dress greeted my husband and me. (In Los Angeles, that kind of โFearlessโ friendliness is rarely experienced.) She asked if we’d been to the concert.
I said no. She talked about the โAfterglowโ the concert gave her and then complimented me on the movie merch cup I was holding.
Shortly after, someone else, again gleeful, trekked over to my husband and me. She handed us pink and orange friendship bracelets to wear. Mine said TS and his Paris. (So cute! And how cool that we obvious outsiders were so welcomed!)
As people filled the theater, we noticed moms with kids wearing sparkly dresses. Dads showed up with their young ones, too. Probably 10 percent of the attendees were male-appearing.
Related: Swiftโs Symphony: The 10 Most Poetic Taylor Swift Lyrics
Are You โโฆReady For It?โ
Once The Eras Tour film began, I kept glancing behind me. Contrary to complaints about theater-going Swiftie fans โruiningโ the experience, the enthusiasm was robust and quite polite. The whole theater danced while seated in their chairs and sang along.
It was impossible to avoid the sense of connection and joyโall driven by love โEvermoreโ for Taylor Swift. I left the film feeling better and happier than my โChampagne Problemsโ had left me earlier in the day.
Shortly after my Eras experience, CalPsychiatry emailed an invite to a discussion group with Brian Donovan, a sociology professor at the University of Kansas who teaches a course on “The Sociology of Taylor Swift.” OK. I still wanted my โEpiphanyโ about Swift’s power.
Our group included around 25 therapists and psychiatristsโsome were Swifties, and others were, like me, filled with curioSwifty. (Get it?)
The discussionsโ initial โBlank Spaceโ immediately filled with stories of how Swift has touched both therapists and their clients alike, and I began to piece together the likely mental health benefits that Taylor Swift’s fandom seems to offer.
โYou Belong With Meโ
- Sense of belonging. Swifties share a global connectedness. No matter the divisiveness in the larger culture, they unite. Though I donโt personally know all the fandom terminology, the minute I received that friendship bracelet, Iโd been welcomed into the community, and human beings need social connectedness and a sense of belonging to thrive.
- Intergenerational bonding. Generations share an appreciation of Swift and her music. Many women grew up with Swift’s music and now their kids are growing up with Swift and her music. Instead of a generational gap, thereโs intergenerational bonding over a shared interest and icon: Swift. What a powerful familial, intergenerational experience.
โBreatheโ
- Coping skills. As good storytelling and music do, Swiftโs music and lyrics offer comfort to and coping for many. (Just listen to them.) Having and using healthy coping skills is a huge part of mental wellness.
- Emotion expressiveness/regulation. Swiftโs lyrics validate emotional experiences. They seem to teach people a lot about labeling and expressing their own feelings. I believe this is a significant benefit because research shows that an inability to identify and discuss feelings is linked to poor mental health (Weissman et al., 2020; Zhang et al., 2023).
โSpeak Nowโ
- Inspiring messages. With her platform, Swift often delivers humble and valuable life lessons. As she said in her 2022 New York University commencement address: “Learn to live alongside cringeโฆCringe is unavoidable over a lifetime. Even the term โcringeโ might someday be deemed โcringe.โ” Kind but real talk like this may provide fans with coping affirmations and motivational quotes that counter negative thinking and self-judgment.
โChangeโ
- Humor. Taylor Swift appears to not take herself too seriously. Many of us could probably also benefit from being less โMeanโ to ourselves. I imagine that this role modeling positively influences fans.
- Mental health awareness. Various songs reference struggles with mental health. I love that she brings that into the public eye, reducing the shame surrounding mental health issues and increasing awareness.
Related: 12 Most Life-Changing Quotes By Taylor Swift To Inspire Yourself With
โYou Can Call It What You Want,โ but Hereโs Some โClosureโ
Thereโs a lot to be revealed about the sociology and science of Swiftโs impact. A survey released earlier this month suggested that “some artists have a more positive impact on the mood and wellbeing of young people than others, with Taylor Swift coming out on top (32%) as having the most positive effects.”
I get it. While not exactly a โLove Story,โ Swift and her Swifties have, at the least, left me in a โLavender Haze.โ Itโs kinda contagious in a feel-good way.
References:
Weissman, D. G., Nook, E. C., Dews, A. A., Miller, A. B., Lambert, H. K., Sasse, S. F., Somerville, L. H., & McLaughlin, K. A. (2020). Low Emotional Awareness as a Transdiagnostic Mechanism Underlying Psychopathology in Adolescence. Clinical psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 8(6), 971โ988. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702620923649
Zhang, B., Zhang, W., Sun, L. et al. Relationship between alexithymia, loneliness, resilience and non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents with depression: a multi-center study. BMC Psychiatry 23, 445 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-023-04938-y
Written By Alli Spotts-De Lazzer
Originally Appeared On Psychology Today
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