Book review: Scream Therapy by Jason Schreurs

I never had enough patience to learn an instrument – I couldn’t concentrate enough on the guitar, learned only one song when I tried the keyboard, and gently killed everyone with my gift of repetition. And with the ukulele I only learned one song that gave people goosebumps (can you guess which two songs I learned from my cheesy description?). Despite my difficulties playing, music has always been a friend, a kind of therapy for me. The genres may be different today than they were thirty years ago, but the kinship remains the same. From the Spice Girls, who were my best friends in musical form, to today, where angry punk women make me feel less alone. There’s nothing like the feeling of being at a live concert, surrounded by people who love a band as much as you do. Whatever I’m going through, at least for a few hours I can escape to another world and release all the pent up emotions by moving or screaming along to the music.

So it was no surprise that when I heard about Jason Schreurs’ book Scream Therapy, which discusses punk music as therapy, I was immediately intrigued. As a fan of punk music and someone who has experienced mental health issues myself, I immediately connected with the concept of the book.

Jason writes as both a punk musician and a punk music lover. In the book he describes gigs he played as part of “Punk Jams,” an improvisational style punk band. He writes about how when he came off stage he couldn’t remember what he had been screaming about, almost as if he was channeling something from within himself. There are also sections about what it was like to attend punk concerts as an audience member.

Jason’s mental health diagnosis is bipolar disorder, which he talks about openly and personally. He doesn’t sugarcoat reality, but tells it like it really was: the severe mood swings and an extreme social media addiction that led to his phone being taken away for a while.

While the book is primarily about how punk music saved his life, he also writes about medication and therapy. Rather than suggesting punk is the only solution, he is realistic about the reality of many people with similar mental health issues. Although the book focuses on his personal story, it also includes insights from other people in the punk scene and even therapists who have also found punk helpful – I particularly enjoyed reading about “Air Guitar Therapy”!

Overall, Scream Therapy was a fantastic read – very relatable and also inspiring. In addition to being an author, Jason also works as a crisis line operator for Kids Help Phone, a health coach for Self-Management BC, and a bipolar support group leader for the Mood Disorders Association of BC.

“Scream Therapy” is out now and you can buy it here.

“Scream Therapy” is out now and you can buy it here

Review by Hayley Foster da Silva

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