Don’t try to deny it – you’ve had a little concert shower or been caught playing your ‘nostalgic playlist’ at a red light. Whether you’re alone or with friends, listening to music and singing always feels so incredibly therapeutic. Windows down, radio blaring—it’s like a slice of heaven.
But what if this amazing feeling was actually backed up by research? Turns out it is. Our nervous systems and brains crave nostalgia and seek connection every second.
Sometimes he finds it in music – that old Jordan Belfort song or Britney Spears track might be “scary” to kids now, but it can actually act as a form of therapy for you. So the next time you’re feeling strong or want to connect with yourself after a long day at work, treat yourself to some tunes that come back to you.
A therapist has revealed that listening to old music you used to love has many healing neurological benefits.
“Listen to the music you used to listen to…as a teenager,” suggested therapist Nikki Roy, “like punk rock, Pitbull, whatever. Listen to that because it actually helps us. It helps us get out of our heads and connect with ourselves. It makes us feel alive again.”
“There’s something called neural nostalgia,” Roy explained, “where researchers are actually finding that the music we listened to as teenagers connects to our brains differently than anything we’ll ever hear as adults.”
This nostalgia, which is always present in our old playlists and CDs, is also present in other forms of media we indulged in as children, from TV shows to old movies and even old objects that we often used in happy moments of our lives.
Studies show that this neural nostalgia—whether it’s from music or other avenues—has many benefits, including reducing stress and anxiety, warding off ever-present feelings of loneliness, and even sparking a new sense of purpose and confidence.
Remember, though, that intentionally using something like music to stoke nostalgia has the potential to be powerful for good or bad. If you have a specific trauma from childhood or college, this old music may bring back memories that are not very pleasant.
Listening to old music can also help heal unresolved childhood trauma.
While they may not necessarily be “happy” memories, Roy argues that listening to this music can still be “healing” – if the right intentions are set.
“Maybe we can start doing some internal healing on children and wound repair if that feels safe,” she suggested. “Listen to the music that got you through that time period, watch the shows you loved, and bring those experiences back to you.”
You don’t have to avoid all the music it once evoked—instead, return to it as the adult you are today. “Calm down and establish the position you’ve been in,” Roy advised. “Show yourself as a teenager the way you wish you were an adult now.”
“We can never go back and change what happened to us, but we can go back and heal those parts of us,” she added.
Singing and listening to music can be incredibly beneficial for your mental health – both for regulating your nervous system and your emotions.
Research shows that the act of listening to music can reduce harm during some of life’s most difficult times. Not only does it help reduce stress, but it acts as a buffer against many negative emotions, struggles and fights.
In addition to reducing stress, listening to music and specific frequencies can help support physical health, such as lowering blood pressure, and mental health, such as depression and anxiety. Studies also show that music can help ‘slow aging’ in the brain, particularly by helping cognitive skills, sleep quality and overall mental state.
So, find what’s right for you. Whether it’s Britney or some brown noise, there’s no judgment here. Music is a tool for pleasure, of course, but it also actively helps you, so don’t underestimate the power of this perfect playlist.
Zayda Slabbekoorns is a news and entertainment writer at YourTango, focusing on health and wellness, social policy and human interest stories.
