Psyche

Psychologists explain why the death of celebs affects us so much

By Wieke Veenboer | #!31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:004431#31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:00-4Europe/Amsterdam3131Europe/Amsterdam202331 31pm31pm-31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:004Europe/Amsterdam3131Europe/Amsterdam2023312023Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +01003043010pmTuesday=9#!31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:00Europe/Amsterdam10#10-31-2023#!31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:004431#/31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:00-4Europe/Amsterdam3131Europe/Amsterdam202331#!31Tue, 31 Oct 2023 16:30:44 +0100+01:00Europe/Amsterdam10#

I am still in quite a gloomy mood due to the passing of Is there anyone who isn’t madly in love with Matthew Perry or at least hasn’t been? The funniest of the six Friends, with the best jokes and the absolute best intonation.. I must honestly admit that I generally handle the death of people quite poorly, but that aside. In the case of a Matthew Perry, but also in the case of, for example, a Robin Williams and a Chester Bennington, which left me completely in tears, I do not know those people at all. So how is it that you can be so affected? According to psychologists, that is not so strange at all.

According to psychotherapist Tom Kersting we may not know these celebrities personally, but it can be that their work has had a huge impact on your life and that there are many memories (both positive and negative) inextricably linked to that person.

When a singer passes away like Amy Winehouseor Michael Jackson, that news can bring you back to moments in your life when their music was very important. Those can be beautiful memories, but certainly also memories that can be very triggering, and that can really unsettle you.

In the case of last weekend, when the news broke that Matthew Perry had passed away, it makes sense that this affects many people: Friends was on TV for ten seasons, but was of course also made available on streaming services afterwards. So the chance is very high that if you were a Friends fan, you watched this series during perhaps your first break-up, your first time living away from home, on hungover days with people who were very important to you back then, or maybe it was a regular thing with your ex. All those feelings come back up according to psychologists when something so tragic happens.

Fortunately, Kersting also has tips: first, try to focus on the positivity that this celebrity has brought into your life. And second: your feelings are okay. So just because you find it strange to explain why this affects you so much, does not mean that your feelings are not valid, because they are. Mourning for a celebrity you did not know personally is still a personal mourning process and that is how you should view it. So definitely take the time to be sad, but also to recall the beautiful moments.