I might not have realized it if it wasn't for the fact that it's on the trailer for It's Kind of a Funny Story, but I think this song is about bi-polar disorder. Definitely not drugs or promiscuity, but I can see how the lyrics apply to that. The part that stood out to me the most was the line "pin a smile on my face" which is just so perfect when you think about the pills doctors and psychiatrists prescribe for things like bi-polar disorder and ADHD.
The reason I love this song is because when I was a kid I had anxiety and eventually depression, but I wasn't diagnosed for years. So when I would have an anxiety attack my parents would think I was just being dramatic or trying to get my way ("oh you think it's all for fun") and yell at me to stop it when I obviously didn't know how to ("oh you think I'm in control") or even laugh at me and get out the camera. Even when I finally figured out what was happening to me, I didn't like the choices ("cures") offered to me as ways of dealing with it. I was told that all I could do was take a variety of pills to manipulate my emotions and make me feel like a different person ("pin a smile on my face...build a fortress round my heart"). I'm sure medication might work for some people, but it wasn't right for me. Even after I was diagnosed, my family still didn't take me seriously. So the best thing about this song is the indignant tone it's sung in. It sums up my entire childhood and all of its frustrations.
And even if I've completely misinterpreted this song, I still love it. And if I haven't misinterpreted it, then it's good to know I'm not the only one who has felt that way.
I think it's describing the frustration that no one understands.. and people think she's in control of how she feels.. like with depression or bipolar disorder. But you can't really just "be happy".
I think it's describing the frustration that no one understands.. and people think she's in control of how she feels.. like with depression or bipolar disorder. But you can't really just "be happy".
I might not have realized it if it wasn't for the fact that it's on the trailer for It's Kind of a Funny Story, but I think this song is about bi-polar disorder. Definitely not drugs or promiscuity, but I can see how the lyrics apply to that. The part that stood out to me the most was the line "pin a smile on my face" which is just so perfect when you think about the pills doctors and psychiatrists prescribe for things like bi-polar disorder and ADHD.
The reason I love this song is because when I was a kid I had anxiety and eventually depression, but I wasn't diagnosed for years. So when I would have an anxiety attack my parents would think I was just being dramatic or trying to get my way ("oh you think it's all for fun") and yell at me to stop it when I obviously didn't know how to ("oh you think I'm in control") or even laugh at me and get out the camera. Even when I finally figured out what was happening to me, I didn't like the choices ("cures") offered to me as ways of dealing with it. I was told that all I could do was take a variety of pills to manipulate my emotions and make me feel like a different person ("pin a smile on my face...build a fortress round my heart"). I'm sure medication might work for some people, but it wasn't right for me. Even after I was diagnosed, my family still didn't take me seriously. So the best thing about this song is the indignant tone it's sung in. It sums up my entire childhood and all of its frustrations.
And even if I've completely misinterpreted this song, I still love it. And if I haven't misinterpreted it, then it's good to know I'm not the only one who has felt that way.
I think it's describing the frustration that no one understands.. and people think she's in control of how she feels.. like with depression or bipolar disorder. But you can't really just "be happy".
I think it's describing the frustration that no one understands.. and people think she's in control of how she feels.. like with depression or bipolar disorder. But you can't really just "be happy".