Touring and Mental Health: The Music Industry Manual

Really pleased this book exists. Bought for a touring family member as recognise how much their world can impact.

A must for anyone who works/wants to support someone who works in the music industry.

A phenomenal read for anyone involved in the music industry or creative arts. A deep dive into some of the challenges that are faced with life in music and on the road, exploring ways to manage, adapt to mental health experiences with a real focus on it being ok to ask for support and help. And where to get it.As the son of a musician and mental health professional I can say through experience that Tamsin’s book would likely have saved many lives, finances and relationships were it released years ago. It certainly will in the future.A must read for anyone involved in music.

I can tell you I am going to read this book again right after i've passed it to all of my band members first. My personal verdict is ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ or 10/10. Completely essential!

This is a great book for families of musicians and crew that go on tour. Extremely relatable and practical. A must have for anyone whose family member / friend's career is just taking off to help you be on the front foot and understand the unique challenges that come with the industry and life on the road.

A phenomenal book - this incredible resource contains everything you’d want to and need to know as someone working in the music industry. Even if you don’t, this book is an encyclopaedia to support you with your overall health, be it mental, physical, emotional, psychological, relational, sexual - all of it! Highly recommend!

this is a great book if you tour yourself, or youre involved in live music. had a few penny-drop moments reading it

A fascinating compendium of wisdom, this book should be in every dressing room, on every tour bus, and read by everyone who runs away with the circus! I had no idea it would cover so many important topics - it has chapters on physical health as well as mental health, and you can just dip in and out to read the ones that apply, or consume the whole thing like I did. Fab.

This book is such a great resource for anyone in the music industry.Just also purchased for a friend having a rough time, just back home from touring for 2 years.

This book is a gold mine of resources for touring musicians, their families and friends, artist management, and health professionals who care for performing artists. Tamsin Embleton has brought together a multi-disciplinary team of experts to address a huge gap in available resources for the music industry. As the medical director of the Musicians’ Clinics of Canada, I have cared for thousands of musicians for almost 40 years bearing witness to the enormous toll on health and well-being from the toxic stress of touring in the music industry. Part I introduces the reader gently to cover the necessary background information about mental health in the touring music industry. Part II dives into the intricacies of professional and personal relationships while on tour exploring conflicts and resolution of difficulties encountered. Part III formally reviews general anxiety, performance anxiety, depression, and crisis management. Part IV explores the darker side of performance stress, trauma, addictions, and the road to recovery and resilience. Part V covers topics on general health from vocal, hearing, and sexual health as well as nutrition and sleep. Part VI gives the reader an excellent overview of self care strategies, preparation for, and recovery from performance stress. This includes movement and breath work, meditation, and peak performance. The contributions from these experts will increase awareness of essential and potentially life saving information for touring performing artists presented in a professionally written and accessible format. I highly recommend this book to my patients and their fellow musicians as well as my colleagues in the Performing Arts Medicine Association. BRAVO to Tamsin and her brilliant team!

Touring and Mental Health, a music industry manual, is an invaluable resource for identifying the mental health pitfalls for the life of a touring and professional musician. Edited by seasoned psychotherapist Tamin Embelton, this thoughtful volume is a critical must-read for any music executive, manager, booking agent, or band leader. Chapters, interweaving musicians’ first-person narratives, psychological research, and treatment approaches include topics such as performance anxiety, band dynamics, healthy touring, and addiction.As a psychotherapist who has worked with artists and bands for over thirty years, I will consult and share this manual with artist/musician patients. As mental health concerns have intensified since the pandemic, this volume offers a keen understanding of the unique demands of artists and musicians in this changing cultural landscape.Heather Ferguson, LCSW, is a psychoanalyst and faculty and supervisor at the Institute for the Psychoanalytic Study of Subjectivity, the National Institute for the Psychotherapies, and the Manhattan Institute Trauma Studies Program.

As a psychologist working with musicians' mental health for many years, I applaud Tamsin Embleton for creating this informative, inclusive, and deeply heartfelt manual. She did extensive interviews with popular musicians and tour professionals and brought together an impressive list of contributors to share their experience, strength, and hope about the ups and downs of the touring life. This resource promises to inspire positive change in the industry and help lessen stigma surrounding many of the common mental health struggles too often experienced by touring musicians and crew.

Love everything about this book! Was put together well and you can tell was really thought out and well planned. It has helped me a lot in the short time I had it. It fills in the blanks that my therapist might not fully understand. I highly recommend this for anyone in the music or live events industry. I hope it helps more people like it has helped me!