[Duo69]

I like to get things all done at once so here's my last post of the night (5/5)

I've always liked music (most folks do), especially as it relates back to my emotional state of being. Recently I've been wrestling with increasingly difficult to ignore bipolar tendencies (nothing formally diagnosed yet) in both me and my spouse. Anyway, there are two songs I've been listening to practically on repeat, "Brilliant" & "Creatures of Habit" (both by Shinedown) and I'm curious if (1) anyone else has heard these songs, (2) if you are grappling with bipolar and find them relatable- I'm interested in discussing the lyrics, etc.

Again, I find I get a TON of insight from music and the interpretations I discover in good lyrics.

[ShadowGX]

I've not heard those particular songs, but am familiar with Shinedown. I like Burning Bright and Fly From the Inside the most, a couple others too. I heard a recent one on the radio some time ago and it upset me. That song and their song Sound of Madness both seem extremely insensitive to mental illness. In SoM he sings about how he's basically been through hell and is still alive, then continues on about how you need to fight and it makes me feel pretty crappy because sometimes I can't fight and no matter how I try I still feel bad.

[Duo69]

That's an interesting take on it ShadowGX. I actually think that the lead singer wrestles with mental illness and find the lyrics to different songs to be snap shots of different mental mood swings.

The two songs that I mentioned in my first post are polar opposites in my opinion (maybe bipolar opposites) but I think what I appreciate in them is the honesty of the emotional state they were written in. I don't know but maybe I just take an artist's approach to it because artists always say some of their best work come from their lows- it's strange relationship to have with something so personal yet so universal.

[Duo69]

I do understand what you mean though. A song about fighting mental illness when you feel like garbage sucks when you're so low it's hard to fight. I probably relate to it through a bipolar lens because I've had moments when I'm like "Yes! I'm gonna fight" then 5 minutes later breathing feels like a chore...

[ShadowGX]

I mean, just read the lyrics for Sound of Madness... He's basically telling someone who complains that their life is crap to shut up and do something about it, like he supposedly did, instead of complaining to him. I was going to get just one or two lines to show you why I feel so bad about that song, but re-reading the lyrics there's just so many I can't pick just a couple since it's the entire song... Sure, there's probably people out there who could fix their situation by just making an attempt at fixing things, but then there's others who have so many struggles - not even talking about myself - that they find it hard to do basic human functions, so expecting them to just suddenly go "oh, I need to change" is insensitive and unrealistic.

Sorry, I didn't mean to derail your thread into an "I hate this song" thread. >.<' It's just that song... Ugh.

[Duo69]

No worries! You can definitely hate that particular song. In general though I like Shinedown's music because I feel like it's relatable and at least someone is attempting to address mental illness (probably his own). Likewise I recognize some of my own bipolar tendencies in his songs which gives me a way to externalize the feelings.

Grandiosity tends to go hand in hand with mania- so I wonder if his 'just get over it attitude' has anything to do with that? Speaking personally I feel like I can literally do ANYTHING when I'm in manic mode, but then the pendulum swings and I hit rock bottom again (depression). My dad used to tell me that I could think my way out if any problem (which I'm starting to think was bad advice), but maybe that's what The Sound of Madness is about to?

[Duo69]

For the record, I also hated it when my dad told me to just think my way out of depression because it made me feel weak when I just couldn't. So there's that too...