THE anxiety of trying to get tickets, the blank stare at the Ticketek screen as the blue line reloads over and over again, and reading the words 'allocation exhausted' - it's a feeling many Swifties know All Too Well.
As Taylor Swift prepared to perform in front of 320,000 fans across four days in Sydney from Friday, there were thousands whose Wildest Dreams will not come true.
Hunter Medical Research Institute director, CEO and self-proclaimed Swiftie Professor Frances Kay-Lambkin says many people who missed out on snagging concert tickets will experience a phenomenon labelled as FOMO or fear of missing out, this weekend.
"It's quite a new term but it has been exacerbated by our connection to social media and sits underneath compulsion to keep connected with things like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, because we fear that if we don't we're going to miss out on something really important," she said.
She said FOMO coupled with fandom makes people feel personally connected to Taylor Swift and everything that she's doing like seeing her with partner Travis Kelce in town.
"I think part of the phenomenon particularly with Taylor Swift or with fans of fiction or superstars, our brains are wired so we get a lot of pleasure from indulging in the things that we love," she said.
"The intensity of those feelings are really reinforcing, and when we feel like we are connected to something, we really want more."
She said the rollercoaster of ticket hunting had triggered anxiety among fans and now that the weekend is here, it could raise some negative and sad feelings for some.
"A lot of people have invested time, energy, attention and emotion in getting tickets or in being part of this group so the FOMO can make us feel quite sad, worried, grumpy, sulky - and all those are normal feelings," she said.
"I'd expect that over the weekend as everything goes up and down and as we see friends on social media having an experience of a lifetime, those feelings will rise as well."
Professor Kay-Lambkin said it was important to validate those feelings and try find other ways to incorporate Taylor over the weekend.
"We don't have to miss out entirely, there's some other things we can do to feel like we're not missing out quite so much even if we're not having that perfect experience," she said.
For example, she will be dressing up with her two teenage daughters, making friendship bracelets and having Taylor Swift albums on repeat.
"When the Eras Tour will be on streaming platforms we'll also have girlfriends over, do a sleepover and have a Taylor Swift night," she said.
"Over the weekend it's really important if we're feeling low and anxious just to plan some nice things for us to do. It might be connecting with other people or monitoring it on social media so you can almost feel like you're there."
She said it was also important to take breaks and put the phone down if feelings of anxiety or worry rose to the surface.
"At the bottom of FOMO is that fear of social exclusion - we will always be worried that we're not going to be included. If we start to feel anxiety around that and worries and negative feelings around it, take a break," she said.
For those 'Lucky Ones' heading to the concert from Newcastle, here's everything you need to know about transport.
