Mental Health Themes in Music for National Recovery Month: Baby Britain
- Kim Johnson, LMHC, MT-BC
- Sep 8
- 3 min read
Welcome to the next entry of Mental Health Themes in Music! In honor of National Recovery Month, with the goal of increasing awareness around mental health and addiction recovery, we’re looking at the alternative/indie rock song “Baby Britain” by Elliott Smith, released in 1998 on the album, XO. While much of Smith's discography includes themes around drug use and addiction, this track is specific to observing struggles with alcohol abuse. Let’s dive in deeper…
“Baby Britain feels the best
Floating over a sea of vodka
Separated from the rest
Fights problems with bigger problems”
These are the first few lines of the song and they certainly waste no time getting into a description of what the experience of addiction can feel like. Smith highlights a common function of substance use for many, which is to feel better. However, he also references some of the possible negative consequences of use – feelings of isolation and the use, eventually, adding complexity to the stressors that caused the desire for escape in the first place.
“Sees the ocean fall and rise
Counts the waves that somehow didn't hit her
Water pouring from her eyes
Alcoholic and very bitter”
Addiction is cyclical, similar to tides in the ocean, only the consequences can increase in severity the longer the cycle persists. It can take a long time to break it too, especially since relapse is part of the recovery process for many. And this can be a very painful process, especially due to the stigma and the widespread misconception that addiction is the result of a moral failing, which heaps a ton of shame on top of what is an already challenging illness.
“Felt a wave, a rush of blood
You won't be happy 'til the bottle's broken
You're out swimming in the flood
You kept back you, kept unspoken”
As Brené Brown has said, “you can’t selectively numb emotions.” If you numb painful emotions, which are often what substances are meant to eliminate with addiction, you end up numbing the pleasant ones too, including happiness. Additionally, when caught in this kind of cycle, the fixation with attaining more of and using the substance of choice, gets in the way of the person underneath the behaviors from being able to advocate for what they actually need.
“And I can't help until you start”
Finally, one of the most important things to know about substance use disorders is that the person needs to be ready to accept help in order to effectively receive help and support with recovery, which requires the difficult acknowledgment that the use is negatively impacting their life. Furthermore, this often triggers a grieving process on top of taking away the default coping strategy.
Ok, so you might be wondering, “How can I be more supportive to those in recovery?” Great question! Feel free to start with the following links to learn more about substance use disorders, appropriate language to use when talking about addiction and/or recovery, and ways to support someone in recovery.
Kim Johnson, LMHC, MT-BC, is a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) and board certified music therapist (MT-BC) who graduated with her master’s from Lesley University in 2017. She has experience with adults and adolescents in group private practice and community mental health settings. The levels of care she has worked in are outpatient, with both individual and group therapy and in partial hospital programs for mental health and substance use disorders. Additionally, she has had intensive training in dialectical behavioral therapy and cognitive processing therapy for PTSD.
Thank you for your interest in our Monday Mental Health Moment. Join our mailing list for a weekly newsletter on various mental health topics, and information about upcoming groups or workshops. We promise no spam!
Comments