Coleman Hell wrote the song “Manic” to shed light on the struggle of dealing with bipolar disorder. Although he was diagnosed years ago, he neglected his mental health. The lyrics represent Coleman’s personal confession of dealing with manic depressive symptoms. He not only wanted to express the feelings and thoughts he experiences daily, but hoped to write a song that showed the realness of this mental illness.

In an interview where he discussed the song, Coleman states, “I hadn’t come across a lot of songs that described the experience in any visceral sort of way,” he adds, “I thought that [the song] might be something of use to someone. I know there’s a lot of songs that are maybe more hopeful, but this is a real depiction of how it feels.” Part of the first verse explains his personal experience with bipolar disorder:

“Oh no, here we go again
The bad thoughts are creeping in
The bad thoughts are creeping in
When I feel crazy, I hide it, then fall apart in private
Where my mirror’s the only one who sees my tears
There’s a method to my sadness, it’s a chemical imbalance”

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Feature: Toa Heftiba at Unsplash, Creative Commons