Sara Bareilles On: The Feelings You Fear Might Destroy You, What Antidepressants Actually Did to Her Creativity, and Why There's Nothing to Fix

About this episode

<p dir="ltr">Plus: her complicated relationship with antidepressants, weathering fertility struggles, and aging in public.</p> <p dir="ltr"><a href="https://sarabmusic.com/">Sara Bareilles</a> joins Dan to discuss her new album Good Grief, a record she made after losing three close friends — Chad Joseph, Gavin Creel, and poet Andrea Gibson. The conversation covers grief as a transformative force, medication and mental health, fertility struggles and miscarriage, the creative process as spiritual transmission, aging without intervention, and patriotism as grief. </p> <p dir="ltr">In this episode we talk about:</p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">Grief is a shortcut to the truth — it strips away distraction and forces presence</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">"Name it to tame it" — putting feelings into words reduces their power</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">Sara's fear that medication would suppress her artistry turned out to be the opposite: Lexapro felt like "a return to herself"</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">The creative process as clearing a channel rather than owning the output — music arrives, it isn't manufactured</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">"Nothing to fix" — acceptance as a countercultural act in an era of optimization</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">Acceptance isn't resignation — you can surrender to what is and still take compassionate action</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">Grief of country: loving America and mourning what it's becoming aren't mutually exclusive</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation">Social media distorts your experience of reality — have your experience of the world in the world</li> </ul> <p dir="ltr">Sara Bareilles is a two-time Grammy winner and Tony-nominated composer whose music and lyrics powered the Broadway hit Waitress — a role she later performed herself, both on Broadway and in London's West End. On screen, she earned an Emmy nomination for Girls5eva and for her performance as Mary Magdalene in NBC's Jesus Christ Superstar Live! She has sold over three million albums and 3.5 billion streams worldwide.</p> <p dir="ltr">Related Episodes:</p> <ul> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation"><a href= "https://danharris.substack.com/p/sara-bareilles-anxiety-anger-and-567?r=4o5o&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web"> Sara Bareilles: Anxiety, Anger and Art</a> (2021)</li> <li dir="ltr" role="presentation"><a href= "https://danharris.substack.com/p/how-to-find-joy-in-an-anxious-world?r=4o5o&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web"> How To Find Joy In an Anxious World</a> (Sara Bareilles and Dacher Keltner, 2025)</li> </ul> <p>Get the 10% with Dan Harris app <a href= "https://app.danharris.com/membership">here</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Sign up for Dan's free newsletter <a href= "http://www.danharris.com/">here</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Follow Dan on social: <a href= "https://bit.ly/3tGigG5">Instagram</a>, <a href= "https://bit.ly/3FOA84J">TikTok</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Subscribe to our <a href= "https://bit.ly/3FybRzD">YouTube Channel</a></p> <p dir="ltr">Additional Resources: </p> <p dir="ltr">Check out Sara Bareilles' <a href= "https://sarabmusic.com/">website</a>, including links to her new album <a href="https://sarabareilles.lnk.to/GoodGrief">Good Grief</a>, and more info about the <a href= "https://sarabmusic.com/pages/goodgriefdoc">Good Grief documentary</a>. </p> <p dir="ltr">This episode is sponsored by:<br /> BiOptimizers: Head to <a href= "http://bioptimizers.com/happier">bioptimizers.com/happier</a> and use code HAPPIER for 15% off your order.</p> <p dir="ltr">Cash App: Download Cash App Today: <a href= "https://click.cash.app/ui6m/oh9jnxlq">click.cash.app/ui6m/oh9jnxlq</a> #CashAppPod.</p> <p dir="ltr">Cash App is a financial services platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash App's bank partner(s). Prepaid debit cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC. Cash App Visa® Debit Flex Cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, and The Bancorp Bank, N.A., pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. See terms and conditions for the Sutton prepaid card, Sutton debit flex card, and Bancorp debit flex card. Savings provided by Cash App, a Block, Inc. brand. Visit <a href= "http://cash.app/legal/podcast">cash.app/legal/podcast</a> for full disclosures.</p> <p dir="ltr">To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit <a href= "https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris">https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris</a></p>