How ditching music on my walk to class helped my mental health
While many people blast their favorite music to set their mood for the day, I have shifted my morning routine to start with podcasts instead. I know what you may be thinking–wow that sounds so pretentious–but hear me out. I am the type of person whose mood is greatly affected by the music I listen to, but sometimes I don’t even notice the correlation of my melancholy mood with the melodies playing in my ears. I also happen to be the type of person who gravitates toward artists like Phoebe Bridgers and Taylor Swift and although they do have some upbeat songs, unfortunately my favorites are on the sad side of their discographies. This year I made it a goal of mine to listen to more podcasts, but I never could have imagined that now I fear my Spotify Wrapped might say I spend more time listening to people talk rather than sing.
This journey started when I realized that the playlists and songs I was gravitating toward at the beginning of 2022 were incredibly depressing. Add that on top of a cold, long Wisconsin winter and my mental health struggles were at an all-time high. I started really looking into podcasts that were uplifting, but also honest about struggling with confidence and other hardships that I was hoping to work on within myself. I didn’t want someone who was giving superficial advice, but rather a community of people who were realistic in acknowledging struggles but also trying to find real and creative solutions to these struggles.
I ended up coming across The Wellness Cafe, Fun on Weekdays, and a few other podcasts by my favorite YouTubers like Emma Chamberlain and Ava Jules as well as people I had never heard of who hosted podcasts that talked about self-improvement in most some of the most welcoming and healthy ways I had seen on the internet. I started listening to these podcasts as I walked to class instead of music and before I knew it I had found a list of podcasts that were released weekly, but on different days, so almost every day I knew I had a new podcast episode from one of my favorites to look forward to.
As I walked to class I would be uplifted by these people’s words, whether they were talking about how they got better at spending time alone, practicing positive self-talk, or how to navigate their 20s and the constant transitions that entail, I had found a way to have voices other than my own remind me that I am doing my best and that self-improvement is a daily task that is worth the investment.
While some people may be able to achieve higher self-confidence by listening to uplifting songs (all the respect to those girls, I wish I was like that) I needed something more concrete to get out of my negative self-talk spirals and I found that through podcasts. Don’t get me wrong, it took me a little while to find ones I didn’t think were cheesy, inapplicable to my situation or boring, but now that I have really settled into my favorites, I look forward to hearing what these girls have to say every week even if it’s just them talking about their current fall favorites, or reading embarrassing moments that their listeners submitted. Now, I am excited to see my Spotify Wrapped this December to see if I spent more time listening to podcasts or music this year… I think it’ll be a close call.