30 Songs That Have Helped People With Anxiety and Depression at Night
Nighttime has always been the most difficult for me. The âoutsideâ world often serves as a great distraction from the internal battles I face during the day. But when I get home at night, the thoughts Iâve spent all day pushing to the wayside hit me like a freight train and semi-truck colliding â and Iâm right there in the middle. My depression leaves me wondering what all of this is for while my anxiety causes my thoughts to spin endlessly. Meanwhile, all I want to do is rest.
So I put in my headphones to escape it all, if only for three minutes.
Music can be an incredibly effective coping mechanism. That is why we asked people in The Mightyâs mental health community who struggle with anxiety and depression to share a song that has helped them through the night. Because sometimes the only place to escape from the outside world, the inside world or the darkness of the night, are melodies and lyrics.
Here is what they had to say:
1. âGuns for Handsâ by Twenty One Pilots
âItâs a very personal song about depression and suicidal thoughts. Itâs message is acceptance from others and learning to overcome it; turn your gun into a fist.â â Ashely A
2. â21 Gunsâ by Green Day
âIn the months leading up to my hospitalization for suicidal thoughts and actions back in late 2009 and 2010, I would listen to it on repeat to fall asleep because the juxtaposition of soft and loud worked perfectly to calm me down but also validate the way I was feeling and how it sounded inside my head.â â Myriah T.
3. âPrayingâ by Kesha
âIt has brought me peace of mind and soul no matter the time of day. Every time I listen to it I feel like I am in control of my existence and I am worthy, which is one of the hardest things to accept when you are in that dark place. I let the tears flow and I am safe inside myself again.â â Rebecca S.
4. âSkyscraperâ by Demi Lovato
âIt really speaks to me and comforts me on those types of nights. The song is just so powerful and it gives me hope.â â Shanelle M.
5. âLet There Be Lightâ by Masketta Fall
âIt has kept me going through rough times, it has a message that basically says no matter how hard it is, keep going, it gets better.â â Tayla E.
6. âThe Night We Metâ by Lord Huron.
âIt just reminds me of good times and good feelings, like Iâm floating in space or under a thousand stars. I feel ânot in this worldâ and just in a place where I feel only the good. Not this chaos in my head, but where there is another place I feel doesnât exist.â â G.J C.
7. âWonderwallâ by Oasis
âAs someone who struggles with depression and anxiety, itâs hard to get through a day, let alone a night. But one night, my husband sang it to me and told me when Iâm feeling down to listen to it. Itâs very calming. He said it will be like heâs there being my rock.â â Lizzie W.
8. âBreaking the Habitâ by Linkin Park
âThere are many habits associated with anxiety and depression and this song helps me scream out the words to break mine and tear my demons down. â â Sheridan R.
9. âDemonsâ by Imagine Dragons
âThe lyrics relate to how I feel with my own anxiety and depression as well as how I want to help my children to relate to theirs. â âYour eyes, they shine so bright / I wanna save that light / I canât escape this now / Unless you show me howâ â To me, it says I want to help you and in turn you end up helping me.â â Melissa F.
10. âOn My Ownâ by The Used
âIt brought me down to earth and made me rethink a lot about what I was going to when I was younger. Sad song, but brings me back down. Everyone struggles and Iâm not the only one. There is always a way to get help.â â Sean F.
11. âBreakdownâ by Jack Johnson
âAside from being very upbeat, this song reminds me to let go of the unnecessary stress in my life. Even if itâs for just a moment. Life can spin out of control in an instant and sometimes, the only thing you can do is breakdown. It reminds me that even when I do breakdown, theres so much beauty around. Look deeper into the tiniest of things and you will find great beauty! Sometimes, a breakdown is necessary to be able to carry on.â â Dania F.
12. âHow Far Iâll Goâ by Alessia Cara, from âMoanaâ
âIt sounds silly because itâs a Disney song, but it just reminds me how much more there is out there and my life doesnât have to be ruled by my mental health.â â Megan A.
13. âSuperheroesâ by The Script
âThe first time I heard this song was when I was harming myself. I had my headphones in and this song came on in the middle of it. I stopped, listened to the lyrics and cried. It changed my life and I now have the lyrics from the chorus tattooed over my self-harm scars on my arm.â â Jordan E.
14. âSleepwalkingâ by Bring Me The Horizon
âActually all of their songs and Marilyn Mansonâs songs. When my anxiety was at its worst, I felt grey; the world was a monstrous grey mess. I was afraid, I wanted to scream. And then their music happened. In the violence of the songs, in their power, in all the emotion, I felt whole again. I wasnât the only one screaming. I wasnât the only one suffering. I was not alone.â â Gianluca P.
15. âUnder the Bridgeâ by Red Hot Chili Peppers
âI just love the feeling that this song gives me and just singing to it. It really relieves my anxiety. Many Red Hot Chili Peppers songs help me tremendously.â â Rianna J.
16. âPeace Pieceâ by Bill Evans
âBill Evans is my favorite jazz pianist and I have taken much strength and support from his song âPeace Piece.â If serenity has a soundtrack, this is it.â â Matt L.
17. âBreathe Meâ by Sia
â[It] embodies feelings of loneliness, anxiety, tortured thoughts, depression, relapse; being overwhelmed by your own inner demons and pain, having a breakdown and feeling suicidal, begging for help and hoping someone with listen.â â Rebecca H.
18. âEye of the Stormâ by Ryan Stevenson
âIt came to me when I was driving home (literally in the rain) having a panic attack, scared I wouldnât make it home. That song came on and instantly I felt the Lordâs presence in my car and I knew Iâd make it safely home.â â Tia T.
19. âTryâ by Colbie Caillat
âIt helps bring me back into realizing that I donât have to be perfect to be beautiful. This song helped me out a lot⌠It helps control the thoughts in my head saying, âYouâre too fat. No one likes you. You never do anything right. Youâre ugly. You only look good with a bunch of makeup on.â Colbie has some amazing songs that seem to help with depression and anxiety.â â Sara K.
20. âDays Like Thisâ by Van Morrison
âIt tells my brain that days like this happen and they will pass. Sometimes itâs a real struggle and other means are necessary to cope, but sometime this song can lift the darkening veil over my mind.â â Shane E.
21. âWhyâ by Rascal Flatts
âIt hits home for me because I struggle with depression/anxiety and have attempted suicide before. This song just makes me feel better and important. The words honestly speak for themselves. This song has kept me safe and from hurting myself.â â Stefanie L.
22. âOh My Soulâ by Casting Crowns
âWhen my depression or anxiety gets really bad I used to ride it out alone and in the dark. I know thatâs not healthy, but I didnât want to burden my family. I got to the point where I couldnât function and I wanted nothing more then to be done with everything â with the anxiety and the pain, but especially with life. This song helped me realize one more day was all I needed over and over no matter how many times it was needed. I just needed to get through this one day at a time and that I was not alone.â â Morissa S.
23. âLet Goâ by Frou Frou
âI first heard this song while watching one of my favorite movies, âGarden State,â which also helped me through my anxiety and depression at the time. Some of the lyrics include, âThereâs beauty in the breakdown,â and that really resonated with me and helped me to start looking for the potential for growth in my depression and anxiety. The song is so calming and just amazing for a million reasons.â â Rhyan P.
24. âBeautiful Thingâ by Grace Vanderwaal
âItâs a song she wrote for her sister and how she is her other half and wouldnât be here without her. It has helped me realize I have so many people that feel that way about me, or I feel about them.â â Braydee H.
25. âThe Lonelyâ by Christina Perri
âThis has been my go-to song for years, and especially this past year. I find myself laying in bed, crying and contemplating whether to continue to fight or not. Iâll listen to this song on repeat and just get out of that dark emotional state. This song speaks to depression perfectly, at least how I see it and live it every single day.â â Sara E.
26. âAnemoneâ by Joywave
âI was struggling for a long time and this song specifically helped my to claw myself back from a difficult place in my mind. The tune is very calming, which is the first thing I latched onto. The more I listened to it, the more I realized the lyrics were resonating with me as well. They can seem a little convoluted, but it felt to me as though each line was expressing a different emotion. It cycles from a suffocating, inescapable anxiety into a warm and comforting embrace, ending with the line, âIâve never felt alive in company,â which is relatable for me.â â Wendy M.
27. âAll That You Areâ by the Goo Goo Dolls
âItâs on the soundtrack for âTransformers Dark of the Moonâ and isnât very well known, but the lyrics resonate with me. I actually got a tattoo of some of the lyrics that reads, âIâm so wrong; I feel human and flawed. Iâll break down even though Iâm still strong.â It reminds me every day that even though there are times when I break, Iâm still strong. I also love their song âIrisâ and that helps me as well.â â Chelsea S.
28. âGratefulâ by Rita Ora
âThe song really puts into perspective how much Iâve been through to get to where I am currently. It reminds me to be grateful for all the bad as well as the good. And thatâs something I need a constant reminder of â that I wouldnât be the person I am today without my anxiety and depression.â â Taylor S.
29. âReflectionâ by Tool
â[It] has always helped me. The lyrics actually reflect my experience coming out of depressive episodes; it is at first a song about despair, but it becomes a spiritual awakening. I could only hope everyone comes out strong and awakened like that.â â Jayson H.
30. âUs Against the Worldâ by Coldplay
âI feel as though the song takes me away from my situation and just gives me a break from all the negative thoughts and stress and just gives me a little bit of a breather. No matter what time it was, when I needed a break, I hit play and it just takes me to what feels like another world.â â Millie M.
What would you add?
Images from Linkin Park Facebook and Kesha Facebook