Pursuit of Happiness: Chris Patrick on the Power of Journaling, Therapy and More

Hailing from East Orange, N.J., Chris Patrick is in the middle of a serious level up. Over the last couple of years, he’s used projects like his 2022 effort, X-Files and this past April’s The Calmto propel himself to status as an East Coast artist to watch. Beneath the pristine technique and all-around thoughtful songwriting, though, is a youngin trying to sort through life like the rest of us. Chopping it up with Okayplayer for Pursuit of Happiness, he speaks on how he addresses his own mental health.

Chris Patrick: As of recently, I’ve grown a little tired of social media and rediscovered my love for reading. Whenever Elon Musk’s “X” app proves to be too much, I quickly leave the app. Through reading, I’m able to be at peace and learn more. My favorite book that I read as of recently was The Alchemist. The biggest thing that helped me get over a breakup was meditation and reflection. I’m a super self-aware person with everything that I do. When things such as a romance come to an end, I really just reflect on the experience and try to learn as much as I can from it. I’m also a workaholic. I’ll work through a breakup like a madman. I’m more of a solution-oriented individual. By trying to find realistic solutions to life’s most difficult tasks that I’ve been handed, I’ve found that my state of mind and overall mood is better.

I am in a really good space right now. I struggled with depression for quite a long time. I feel like I really shook it off of me in 2022. Since then, I’ve made sure to keep up good habits and remove myself from things that would trigger me to fall back into that space. Granted, life still comes with lows. However, I’ve become more equipped to combat those ill feelings on the days that I don’t feel as hot. For others dealing with their feelings, I find journaling is the most helpful. To be honest, my form of journaling exists through the creation of songs. By just putting words to my feelings, I’m able to better articulate the root causes of a problem. That in itself is its own catharsis. I usually feel the weight of a problem leave me after a song is created about it. To others going through mental health struggles, don’t be afraid to try therapy. I’ve gone to therapy twice in my life. I want to go back again. In my two experiences, I feel I learned several techniques to help mitigate the feelings of dread that can creep up on the dark days.