Tuesday, May 31, 2011
That's Not My Name by the Ting Tings and Anxiety
That's Not My Name by the Ting Tings may not necessarily be about anxiety, but it can be inferred that the girl in the song has anxiety about not being noticed. Anxiety can be defined as "a psychological disorder characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety." At the beginning of the song she says "Don't wanna be a loner." She also says "I never say anything at all." Both of these lines show that she is trying desperately to fit in and she is anxious and distressed about it. She also mentions how people continually forget her name which causes more anxiety because all she wants to do is fit in. "So alone all the time at night/Lock myself away, listen to me." The girl is distressed about being forgotten so she sits alone thinking about it. She wants people to listen to her and understand her, but no one does. "Although I'm dressed up, out and all with/Everything considered they forget my name, ame, ame." She tries so hard to fit in, but no one really accepts her because they all forget her name. She gets anxious and distressed by this. It is very persistent because it seems like no one can ever remember her name.
Song Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1c2OfAzDTI
Lyrics: http://www.metrolyrics.com/thats-not-my-name-lyrics-the-ting-tings.html
Christine by Siouxsie and the Banshees and Dissociative Identity Disorder
Christine by Siouxie and the Banshees is about dissociative identity disorder. Dissociative identity (DID) is "a rare dissociative disorder in which a person exhibits two or more distinct and alternating personalities." It can also be defined as multiple personality disorder. In this song, the girl, Christine, is described in many different ways which is typical of DID. The song starts out with "personality changes behind her red smile/every new problem brings a stranger inside." This line in the song shows that her personality is constantly changing and being altered. For example, "Christine-the strawberry girl/Christine-banana split lady." She is first called the strawberry girl and then she is called the banana split girl. The two personalities are very distinct and different; strawberry and banana split are very different. The personalities also alternate because the song keeps repeating "Christine-the strawberry girl/Christine-banana split lady." She is not only going back and forth between strawberry and banana split, but also between girl and lady. "Now's shes in purple/Now's shes the turtle." This is another line in the song and it shows how random her personalities are and how she keeps alternating between them. Christine, in this song, has dissociative identity disorder because she alternates between more than two distinct personalities.
Lyrics: http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/christine-lyrics-siouxsie-and-the-banshees/47de027fb3bb3771482569a40009cef5
Song Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSSlxp0FAS8
Friday, May 27, 2011
Lithium by Nirvana and Bipolar Disorder
Lithium by Nirvana describes bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is "a mood disorder in which the person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of depression and the overexcited state of mania." Many people suspected that the lead singer and guitarist of Nirvana had bipolar disorder, but that is not necessarily a confirmed suspicion. The lyrics go back and forth between a state of depression and a state of mania. He starts in an overly happy, or manic, mood by saying "I'm so happy 'cause today/I found my friends." Then he switches over to a more depressed and angry mood by saying "I'm so ugly, that's okay/'Cause so are you." These lines are right after each other so it shows the back and forth pattern of mania and depression. Another part where he sounds depressed is "I'm so lonely, that's ok/I shaved my head/And I'm not sad." He denies his state of depression and says he is not sad. Then he goes into a state of mania by saying "I'm so excited/I can't wait to meet you there." Whether the singer was actually bipolar is controversial, but many sources say that it is about bipolar disorder and the lyrics follow that theory.
Lyrics: http://www.elyrics.net/read/n/nirvana-lyrics/lithium-lyrics.htmlSong Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkcJEvMcnEg
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Papercut by Linkin Park and Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Papercut by Linkin Park is about someone with generalized anxiety disorder. Generalized anxiety disorder can be defined as "an anxiety disorder in which a person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal." Generalized anxiety disorder is different from anxiety disorder because nothing specific triggers generalized anxiety disorder. In the song you can tell the person has generalized anxiety disorder because it says "Paranoia's all I got left/I don't know what stressed me first." The most common line throughout the song is "It's like I'm paranoid lookin' over my back." The person is always panicking and his heart is racing because he has anxiety. He mentions multiple ideas that could be causing his anxiety, such as "I can't add up to what you can." He has trouble dealing with peer pressure and living up to the expectations of others. That may be causing him anxiety, but he's not really sure.
Lyrics: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/linkinpark/papercut.html
Song Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjVkXlxsO8Q
Adam's Song by Blink 182 and Depression
Adam's Song by Blink 182 is about depression. Blink 182 received a letter that a child wrote to his parents before he committed suicide because he was suffering from depression. Blink 182 then decided to write a song based off of this letter, which turned into a song about depression in general. Depression is a mood disorder which involves symptoms of "lethargy, feelings of worthlessness, and loss of interest in family, friends, and activities." It is clearly stated in the song that the person is depressed: "I'm too depressed, to go on/You'll be sorry when I'm gone." The person is contemplating suicide which also goes along with depression many times. He just has a loss of interest in activities and life. "I couldn't wait till I got home/To pass the time in my room alone." This line from the song also shows the person's lack of interest in family and friends. All he wants to do is spend time by himself in an isolated room. This line is repeated over and over again throughout the song to emphasize the state of depression the person is in and how he wants to commit suicide so badly. Suicide and depression often go hand-in-hand. "Another six months I'll be unknown/Give all my things to all my friends." The person in the song is planning for his death because he is so depressed, and in the end, the boy that inspired this song, did commit suicide. He may or may not have had major depressive disorder, when depression symptoms last for longer than two years, but it can't really be known from the song. The person says that he will be gone in six months, but it's not sure how long he had those symptoms, so you can't tell if he has major depressive disorder or not.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Unwell by Matchbox 20 and Schizophrenia
The song Unwell by Matchbox 20 is about schizophrenia and many of the lyrics reference the disorder. Schizophrenia is "a group of severe disorders characterized by disorganized and delusional thinking, disturbed perceptions, and inappropriate emotions and actions." The song begins by saying "All day/ Staring at the ceiling/ Making friends with shadows on my wall." Making friends with shadows could be characterized as an inappropriate action because it is not something that is socially acceptable and it could also be seen as a disturbed perception because shadows should not be seen as people or friends. Later in the song, there are two lines that say "Talking to myself in public/Dodging glances on the train." Talking to yourself and in disorganized ways is a common symptom of schizophrenia. Also, "dodging glances" is common for schizophrenics because many people look at them differently because they are either talking to themselves or being paranoid. Towards the end of the song, the one line says "I've lost my mind." This line goes along with schizophrenia because schizophrenia literally means split mind, so the person in this song could have "lost" one side of his mind. "But stay awhile and maybe then you'll see/A different side of me" is a common line throughout the whole song which shows that the person in this song knows that they are more than just a schizophrenic, they are a person too. The person in this song probably has disorganized or undifferentiated schizophrenia. The person has some disorganized thoughts, but doesn't necessarily show any signs of inappropriate emotion.
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