During a conversation with the Hollywood Reporter podcast Awards Chatterthe Grammy-winning singer revealed what it was like to experience post-traumatic stress disorder, grief, depression and anxiety while making the back-to-back albums.
Sweetener was released in August 2018, marking Ariana’s first music release following the 2017 bombing at her Manchester stop Dangerous Women Tour killing 22 people and injuring hundreds.
Less than a month after the album’s release, the Bad ex-boyfriend of movie star Mac Miller died of an accidental drug overdose.
Than, Thanks, next was born in about two weeks and she released the album in February 2019 because she felt it was what she “had to do” at the time.
“I was doing so much therapy and dealing with PTSD and all different kinds of grief and depression and anxiety. And of course I was treating it very seriously, but music as part of that remedy definitely helped save my life,” she said on the podcast.
“These were dark times, and the music brought so much levity and so did the experience. But it poured out with urgency, and it was made with urgency, and it was a way to survive,” Ariana Grande concluded.
What is PTSD?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that develops after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, such as accidents, violence, natural disasters or war.
Although stress reactions are common after trauma, PTSD occurs when symptoms persist for months and interfere with daily functioning.
Why Does PTSD Happen?
PTSD occurs when the brain’s stress response system remains consistently overactive after experiencing trauma.
Changes in areas such as the amygdala, hippocampus and prefrontal cortex influence how a person processes fear, memory and emotional regulation.
Treatment:
Treatment typically includes psychotherapy, especially cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and trauma-focused therapies, along with medications such as antidepressants.
