Do you use music as an emotional crutch?

[Ink]

It is, unfourtunately in some ways, quite effective. How can you tell when music becomes a crutch in an unhealthy way?

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

Generally speaking, psychology defines maladaptive behavior as those thoughts or activities which interfere with common day-to-day life.
When you lose self-control and can not help but revert to these behaviors in order to cope with certain situations, especially challenges.
(I'm paraphrasing)

Do I use music as an emotional crutch?
Not necessarily.
I use it to cause an effect within me that my environment is unable to produce.

 

[Ink]

Generally speaking, psychology defines maladaptive behavior as those thoughts or activities which interfere with common day-to-day life.
When you lose self-control and can not help but revert to these behaviors in order to cope with certain situations, especially challenges.
(I'm paraphrasing)

In a sense what it describes is precisely this:

I use it to cause an effect within me that my environment is unable to produce.

Whether it's unhealthy or not is quite subjective then I suppose.

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

I foresaw this reaction.
But let me be more clear.
It does not interfere with my day-to-day life.
I don't spend hours stimulating my brain, i just use it once in a while.
Like poetry or theater, these artificially pure qualities can not be obtained in real life.
And i am aware of this fact.
I don't employ these forms of art as an escapist means to shut the world out.
I just acknowledge their sophistication and effectiveness.

 

[Ink]

I foresaw this reaction.
But let me be more clear.
It does not interfere with my day-to-day life.
I don't spend hours stimulating my brain, i just use it once in a while.
Like poetry or theater, these artificially pure qualities can not be obtained in real life.
And i am aware of this fact.
I don't employ these forms of art as an escapist means to shut the world out.
I just acknowledge their sophistication and effectiveness.

Well, everyone has "down" periods in their life, or at least has had them, is music an unhelathy crutch then? I suppose it is, but if you use a crutch with no means of changing the outside world it is especially unhealthy. Perhaps the former is not unhealthy then but just necessary in a sense.

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

Well, everyone has "down" periods in their life, or at least has had them, is music an unhealthy crutch then?1 I suppose it is, but if you use a crutch with no means of changing the outside world it is especially unhealthy.2 Perhaps the former is not unhealthy then but just necessary in a sense.

1 and 2
No, let me make this even more clear.
What i can do is change myself, is change my perception and my feelings towards the world.
I can not change the world.
This method allows me to re-conciliate with the world around me.
It achieves that end.
Therefore it is not a crutch, but an effective coping mechanism.

 

[Ink]

1 and 2
No, let me make this even more clear.
What i can do is change myself, is change my perception and my feelings towards the world.
I can not change the world.
This method allows me to re-conciliate with the world around me.
It achieves that end.
Therefore it is not a crutch, but an effective coping mechanism.

Could you give some examples of what kind of music you listen to? I would imagine the kind of music has a big impact of what emotional effects it has. Perhaps you have an opinion of what is a "healthy" genre to listen to?

As an example, I am into the band 65daysofstatic: 65daysofstatic atm, would you say this could emotionally affect you in a significantly different way than me?

Edit: The cover of the album is kind of ironic considering the topic I guess. So I suppose this is not your type of music?

 

[Ex-User (9062)]

Well, in music, i strife for harmony and simplicity.
I can not say what is healthy or not,
but i have some criteria in the back of my head,
which are largely based on experimental music-animal observations.
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Music/Mice_and_Music_Experiment_Mo.html
(You can object to these findings, given that they are not accepted in mainstream academia)

By this standard, i don't allow dissonances or distortion or excessive artificial complexity.
(Although i might enjoy these forms of expression outside of the coping mechanism framework.)

One example i can find a youtube example for:
(I also have a large collection of ethnological recordings,
especially from Persia, Turkey, Pakistan, India and Africa)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN2YkPUaYGQ

addendum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srmDa09CQ70

 

[Upekkha]

Do I use music as an emotional crutch?
Not necessarily.
I use it to cause an effect within me that my environment is unable to produce.

Absolutely true to the Nth degree.

 

[Upekkha]

Do I use music as an emotional crutch?
Not necessarily.
I use it to cause an effect within me that my environment is unable to produce.

Absolutely true to the Nth degree.

Aside from my family, music is the single most important thing to me. It plays a major role in my life.

 

[EyeSeeCold]

Aren't you basically asking if someone is currently going through tough times in their life? Music couldn't be a crutch otherwise, or maybe I don't understand the OP, it wasn't very detailed.

I listen to a lot of music and love exploring different genres and finding good tracks but I don't listen to music all the time as much as I used to.

 

[Brontosaurie]

the emotional crutch is the only thing that matters

and yes

 

[Ink]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcJ-o_fh1B4

Using this to block out some sound to get some peace unhealthy or not?