Alanis Morissette thinks writing songs can't heal heartbreak.

The 38-year-old singer discovered a more mature outlook on songwriting with her seventh album Havoc and Bright Lights after she realized her angst-ridden songs couldn't mend her broken heart and music is just a form of art: "I used to think that writing a song about something would heal it. After singing 'You Oughta Know' 450,000 times, I was still pretty hung up. I realized that art is just a beautiful form of expression."

The singer - who has 20-month-old son Ever with husband Mario "Souleye" Treadway - shot to fame in 1995 with her iconic angry anthems on Jagged Little Pill album, but despite now pioneering a more uplifting musical style, she still loves listening to depressing music. "One of my favourite songs at the moment is Gotye's 'Somebody That I Used To Know,' that idea of someone with whom you were so intimate now being a stranger is painful and gorgeous," she said.

The star also recently admitted she wishes she had reached out for help when she came down with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder because of her debut LP. "Everything was about, 'I can do it myself.' It completely dismissed the idea of connecting with each other. I wish I'd asked for more support."