Song Meaning
The lyrics paint a picture of a relationship marked by a strange intimacy and a shared struggle with despair. The opening lines establish a routine: oral sex offered before a partner heads to therapy, suggesting a coping mechanism or a way to maintain connection amidst mental health challenges. This act, juxtaposed with sharing a bed "like true parents," hints at a domesticity that feels both comforting and perhaps a little performative, a facade of normalcy.
The central tension emerges in the chorus, which grapples with the profound experience of suicidal ideation followed by a spontaneous return to wanting to live. The repeated phrase "It has happened before" underscores the cyclical nature of this struggle, implying a history of these dark episodes and recoveries. This is further amplified by the unsettling lines "She was just 17 / You don't know what I mean / So call the police," which introduce a disturbing narrative element, possibly related to past trauma or a concerning situation that the narrator feels compelled to report.
The most striking lyrical device is the narrator's desire to "die / Before I die the sad kind." This phrase is a stark articulation of wanting to control one's end, to avoid a prolonged, painful decline, and perhaps to escape the very cycle of despair described in the chorus. The repetition of "head" in the opening lines, playing on both the sexual act and the act of leaving, creates a subtle, almost clinical tone that contrasts sharply with the raw emotional content of the chorus and the narrator's personal plea.
Ultimately, these lyrics resonate because they capture the disorienting reality of navigating severe mental health struggles within a relationship. The writing doesn't offer easy answers but instead presents a raw, fragmented portrait of coping, past trauma, and the desperate hope that emerges from the brink. The specific, almost mundane details of "giving head" before therapy ground the profound existential dread in a tangible, if unconventional, form of care.