Music: Can Music Allow Someone To Avoid How They Feel?

If someone wanted to listen to music, they could listen to the same style that they listened to last time. Then again, they could listen to a style that is totally different to what they last listened to.

Either way, when it comes to what they do listen to, it is likely to be a style that has a positive effect on them. This can be a time when they end up feeling relaxed, empowered and/or confident, for instance.

A Different Type of Nutrient

Therefore, this won’t be a time when they are consuming something physical such as food, but they will be nourished nevertheless. What will play a part in the experience that they have is the dopamine that their brain releases.

Thanks to this neurotransmitter, they will experience feelings of pleasure and wellbeing. After they have stopped listening to the music, they could feel the same way for a little while after, too.

Another Direction

Now, although someone can use music every now and then to shift their inner state, they can also use it to avoid certain feelings. Still, this is not to say that they will always consciously do this.

So, they can experience shame or sadness and end up listening to music that is very aggressive. By listening to this music, they can go into fight mode,  allowing them to feel strong and alive.

Pumped Up

At one point, they would have felt deflated and, at another, they would feel inflated. Due to what the music has triggered inside them, they will have been able to rise above the feelings that were weighing them down.

These feelings won’t have disappeared, though; they will have just been removed from their couscous awareness. When they are not listening to this type of music, they could also experience anger and rage to avoid going into a collapsed physiological state.

Another Example

Alternatively, they might have just experienced a breakup and feel sad and helpless. They could then listen to a style of music that is focused on the theme of love and romance.

What this can do is allow them to feel wanted and loved, which can allow them to rise up and out of the emotional hole they were in. Additionally, they could listen to a style of music that is focused on the theme of betrayal and revenge, with them being able to feel energised and alive.

A Necessary Escape

If they use these escapes from time to time, whilst also facing how they feel, it could be said that they won’t have a negative effect on their life. However, if they use these escapes as well as others and don’t face how they feel, this won’t be the case.

Instead, by avoiding how they feel they will end up losing touch with part of their consciousness. What this comes down to is that they can’t simply avoid how they feel and still operate as a whole human being.

The Outcome

One of the ways that this will impact them is that they won’t be as available as they would be otherwise. If they were to get into an intimate relationship, then, assuming that they are not in one, they wouldn’t be as present as they could be.

The other person will probably be able to tell, either consciously or unconsciously, that they are not fully there. Thus, their physical self will be fully here, but their emotional self won’t be.

Another Outcome

Along with this, the feelings that have been removed from their conscious awareness can end up being unlocked sooner or later. This could take place after they experience a loss, breakup or a setback.

What this illustrates is that not facing how they feel weakens them and sets them up to suffer further down the line. And, the more feelings that are repressed, the harder it can be for them to face and work through them when they are unlocked.

Awareness

If someone can see that they are carrying a lot of repressed feelings and don't feel comfortable facing them, they might need to reach out for external support. This can be prodded with the assistance of a therapist or healer. 

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Oliver JR Cooper
http://www.oliverjrcooper.co.uk