WARNING: Seriously, if you truly get bothered by songs that run through your head over and over again, you probably don’t want to read the …
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Hipstermama
9:12 am on
March 16th, 2009Thanks for this…whenever I start getting anxious, I can identify it by the song that gets stuck in my head. AND now I have a term for it!
Your warning only intrigued me to read the blog, and now I have those songs stuck in my head. gaah!
Happens to us and probably most people from time to time. Sorry about that–but we warned you 
Daniel Reiser
10:13 am on
March 18th, 2009You named the condition, but did not describe the reasons. It has to do with dopamine. Read Oliver Sacks’ book “Musicophilia” for some fascination stories on the relationship between dopamine, music, and memory.
Rob
1:08 pm on
March 18th, 2009Daniel,
Thanks for the book recommendation. I have a dx of schizoaffective disorder. I hear music in my head from the moment I wake up till I fall asleep. For me, antipsychotics regulate the frequency and volume. The more my antipsychotic is increased, the less I hear music, so I’m looking forward to reading the relationships between dopamine, music, and memory.
Helen
1:58 pm on
March 18th, 2009Thanks for explaining that.Now I can banish the thoughts of my ex by thinking of him as a worm, which he was.Now please explain why every so often out of the blue I hear someone call my name. There is no one else nearby and sometimes it will wake me from sleep.Always it startles me.I’m a well balanced person no real hang ups am I nuts as well ?This has been happening to me all my life.
in my part of the world, the layman’s term for this is LSS or LAST SONG SYNDROME.
Uncle Bob
4:42 pm on
March 18th, 2009What I do is think of a classic tune, usually the Blue Danube Waltz, and then gradually force myself to slow it down, slower and slower…… That often works, but not always. On high stress days nothing helps but the end of the day.
Judy
6:13 pm on
March 18th, 2009Bach works for me. Whenever I get an ear worm, I listen to “Sheep May Safely Graze” or “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring”.
Of course, I then get *that* stuck in my mind, but it sure beats “One Toke Over the Line”! Bach doesn’t make me want to bang my head against the wall.
Southie
11:13 pm on
March 18th, 2009And all this time I thought this was a part of the TLE (Temporal Lobe Epilepsy)? Well, well, well…
Next Question: Will there be “Channel Availability”? As if we can switch channels like we can on a radio?
Libby Garner
7:09 am on
March 19th, 2009Years ago a friend of mine told me that to get rid of a repeating song, I should sing the old hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God,” v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y. It seems to work, and has a special humor for me, having grown up a minister’s daughter. These days, my husband and I sing songs to each other that have that special Music City ‘Hook.’ For example, “Achey-Brakey Heart” always does the trick for me. (Now I’m going to suffer all day.)
Thanks to everyone that made comments. Now for another worm…abcdefg, hijklmnop, qrstuv, wxy and z…..
NancyT
7:04 pm on
March 20th, 2009How about THAT?!
I made up my “worm” tune myself. Really stupid little thing! But, it’s so simple and repetitive, I can’t seem to even substitute anything for it.
With the exception of this very moment as I’m writing this, I can’t think of how it goes!
LOL! Oh, brother!
NancyT
7:06 pm on
March 20th, 2009ACK!!! “Small World” has taken its place!
Good griefffffff……
pink_mercury
5:14 pm on
March 22nd, 2009I actually have ocd and all of that time I thought this was related to ocd but the good news that I’m not american and I don’t know any of the songs you wrote above except macarina so……… that didn’t hurt me at all
Kate
8:48 pm on
March 25th, 2009In my case, frequency of “earworms” relates to how much music I am exposed to – I get “earworms” at least a couple of times a week, but back when I was a performing musician, I had some piece or other running through my head nearly all the time. A trick for dealing with it – if you don’t like what’s running through your head, just consciously think of another piece or song that you like. Then you’ll get what you like running through your head and as soon as you stop thinking about it, you won’t even notice it’s there.
Devohn
6:42 pm on
April 3rd, 2009This effect “earworms”, is part of the crazies that songwriters, musicians, writers, and artists get in the normal process of creativity.
I write songs and play guitar. Sometimes it’s a melody, a rythm, a vision, or a verbal “earworm” that gets me going on a new song. I can just lookup and think “Stormy Skies” which can be a good thing or thought. However, if I don’t write it down and get a melody to it in a timely manner, the stuff drives me crazy. I am also, sadly to say, a procrastinator and don’t do the simple steps that I have desribed above and therefore half crazy all of the time…
half crazy all the time…
half crazy all the time…
Bipolar II
Hannah
3:34 pm on
April 6th, 2009Actually, earworms is not a scientist’s label – merely a translation from the German ‘Ohrwurm’, as it is called.
Nonetheless, I find it an apt description and I had always been a tiny bit annoyed that the English language offered no easy way to relay my irritation. I usually resorted to a rather long-winded explanation which promptly left me stuck with yet another round of Kylie Minogue’s ‘Can’t get you out of my head.’
Thinking about it, I personally am also very fond of LSS – neat, short, and it doesn’t make me cringe the way the literal translation does. Thanks Jace.
Donna
5:37 pm on
October 23rd, 2009Haven’t heard that when a 3 or 4 day(s) long earworm finally switchesa to something else I cannot remember the previous one for some time. Worst one lately is a Swiffer commercial as the old mop drives by the house and sings “Love Stinks” to the Peter Frampton chorus of “Love Hurts”. Crap! 1 hate that stupid mop! My shrink’s advice. More you try to turn it off, the worse it gets. If it is really bugging me I get going on some meaningful activities to re-focus my thinking.
John
12:26 pm on
May 19th, 2010Omg i thought i was nuts!! As far back as i can remember i get songs in my head. A friend told me that its an ocd thing. So here i am looking it up. If domone says something thats in a song i sing it in my head over and over and over till i hear something else. I also wake up everyday with a different song. Could be anything. Today its cher. One morning it was the lavern and shirly song! Wtf?? When i tell u its any song. It is. And not that i just heard it. Its alll day from song to song and usually cant remember it after its gone and onto the next one! Its all day and i hate it. Will i ever stop! I went on vaca this month and on the beach i had a line of a song over and over. Then realized it was the same song last year on the beach in my head. Cant remember it now of course! ” do u belive in life after love after love after love”. Arrrrggg helllllp!!!!
No, you are not nuts. This is very common. Although hearing Cher could be pretty darn uncomfortable. You might want to take a class in meditation. That way you can practice emptying your mind (although you might end us with ummmmmm, hmmmmmm, auuuuuuu). The more you stress over those earworms, the worse they can be. Relax and breathe…
Mags
5:41 pm on
June 23rd, 2010I do get lines of songs stuck in my head but also now find my brain keeps adding a rhythm to everything I do if I’m not thinking of anything in particular. It’s very annoying and it’s almost a relief to get stuck on a song again
Sing away and remember the more you can’t stand something the more it will annoy you.
Stephanie
11:08 am on
August 22nd, 2011This morning, I decided to research this subject, after having two specific commercial ‘jingles’ stuck in my head for over 48 hours now. It happens to me a lot, and truly FEELS like a psychiatric disturbance at this point! The song even continued to play over and over in my head the minute i woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom… it won’t go away!”Earworms” huh. I like putting names to things but this is an odd one. I hope to find more info on the entire subject. More specifically, what connection there is between anxiety, ocd, and this little brain itch.Thanks as well for the link to Musicophilia.♫♫♪ Cheers! ♫♫♪
Some people don’t want to write on ideas like yours. Thank you for taking a subject of today and making it understandable for me to learn more about that I can use in everyday life.
Danny
7:57 pm on
September 17th, 2011I have been listening to this music in my head for a year now.
It started when I relapsed with alcohol after almost 4 years of absence.
When I sobered up and attempted to sleep I started hearing music.
Whatever I would listen to would stay in my head overnight. I thought I got nuts. It got a little less loud but it still plays in my head overnight and whenever I start thinking about anything. It might be the shock of me experiencing emotional stress over my relapse.
Is there any hope for me and your post helped because now I know it is not anything physical but everything to do with your mind.
Would you please give me a few tips.
Thank you so much.
Well, like everything else–the more you try to get rid of something the more it comes back. Try to accept your particular song and it should go away. Good luck and take care!
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