Common Side Effects Include (song)

We all know (hopefully) that humor is an antidote to the seriousness of life. Sometimes we forget it can also be a shock absorber for the occasionally rocky road of romance.

• Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke. (Lynda Barry)

Perhaps you’ve experienced the hormone cocktail we call “falling in love.” The feeling is akin to many chemically induced states. Endorphins get released. There’s a definite high. It’s scientifically measurable. As a psychiatrist friend of mine observed, “You feel good all the time: happy, energetic, confident, like you can do anything. It’s the best drug in the world.”

When he said that, I thought Sure, it’s a great drug, but they never tell you about the side effects!

Ha! We songwriters fall to our knees in gratitude for ideas like that. My co-writer (Richard Helm) and I quickly wrote a new song about some of the stages of relationships – kissing, making love, marriage, and sometimes even divorce – with each stage being like the need for a more powerful drug. At each level we listed all the side effects, just like the pharmaceutical commercials on TV. We called it Common Side Effects Include. (There’s a link below to hear the song.)

(It’s very popular with people who have found relationships to be a growth opportunity. Including therapists.)

* This song went on to win the award – out of 140,000 songs entered – for “Best Humor Song” in the Just Plain Folks Music Awards. The JPF Music Awards are like the Grammys for people you never heard of. Meaning, independent musicians like myself.

People get a kick out of the song because, like a lot of humor, it sets off their truth meter. There are side effects to love! Plus, they see themselves in these love progressions, and wonder if they’ve always jumped in for the right reasons. More importantly, it reminds us that real love is a deeper, more profound experience than the “hormone cocktail,” and healthy relationships aren’t afraid to dive those depths.

Real love makes plenty of room for humor, too. Being able to laugh at ourselves and the issues that come up in relationships is not only a survival tool, it’s essential.

• That the birds of worry and care fly over your head, this you cannot change. But that they build nests in your hair, this you can prevent. – Chinese proverb

Humor is an attitude, like gratitude or compassion. It can be developed. It just takes a little practice and willingness to let go of our seriousness at times when a healthy dose humor might turn everything around.

If your staff trainings, annual convention, and/or fundraiser could benefit from some uplifting humor with relevant messages in the form of a Comedy Keynote Concert, please get in touch. We’ll have some fun exploring how I can best be of service.

And if you’d like to hear Common Side Effects Include, just click this link. It’s the second song on the page.

ADVISORY: This song contains anti-depressive lyrics.

http://gregtamblyn.com/listen.html

As always, your thoughts are welcome in the comment box below, and thanks for reading.

© 2011 Greg Tamblyn