The Mighty Logo

How Taylor Swift's Music Helps Me Through Ups and Downs With Chronic Illness

The most helpful emails in health
Browse our free newsletters

I have a really big confession everyone.

I am a huge Taylor Swift fan.

It doesn’t matter if I’m riding around town in my car, or simply winding down after a long day, you can almost always be sure that Taylor Swift and her music are close by my side. Whether I’m  singing along to the lyrics of “You Belong With Me,” or triumphantly reciting the lyrics to “Mean,” Taylor and her wide arrange of lyrics and emotions they cover often do a pretty great job of capturing the ups and downs that come from living with chronic conditions.

On days when my blood sugars fluctuate and I feel yucky, I’ll simply plug in my headphones and start my own Taylor Swift shuffle. I’ll then tag along as I am “welcomed” to New York or taken back to when I was “Fifteen.”

Taylor’s songs and her lyrics not only provide a valuable escape and help me when I’m feeling down, they help me to know the emotions I’m feeling haven’t just been experienced by me, and that it is OK to feel the way I am feeling.

While I can’t say I can relate to Ms. Swift in the relationship arena, I can say that thanks to Ms. Swift’s masterful lyrics and storytelling, I’ve become more comfortable in my own skin and telling my own story.

So for that, Taylor, thank you.

You have truly “Enchanted” me and the millions of other faithful fans you have across the globe.

The Mighty is asking the following: Share a powerful moment you or a loved one has had with a public figure. Or, write a letter to a public figure who you feel has helped you or a loved one through his or her work. If you’d like to participate, please send a blog post to community@themighty.com. Please include a photo for the piece, a photo of yourself and 1-2 sentence bio. Check out our Submit a Story page for more about our submission guidelines.

Image via Wikimedia Commons/minds-eye

Originally published: April 14, 2016
Want more of The Mighty?
You can find even more stories on our Home page. There, you’ll also find thoughts and questions by our community.
Take Me Home