Music Therapy

Posted by: Ammarah Khan

Music is a part of our everyday lives; from working out, doing work, or even eating! This blog post will allow you to understand the importance of music.

"Music is the language of the spirit. It opens the secret of life bringing peace, abolishing strife.”– Kahlil Gibran (Seale, 2009).

Music therapy is the ability to listen to, sing, or perform music as a means to promote relaxation and homeostasis. Various sounds, as a sensory stimulus, can provoke stimulus generalization which is a type of conditioned response. The auditory stimulation called music can strongly influence our physical and emotional states. Music has many styles and in all its styles it is a positive influence on relaxation.

There are two approaches to music therapy, the first being making music through singing or playing an instrument for a therapeutic effect. This form defines music therapy as the systematic application of music by the music therapist. The second approach seeks to achieve relaxation by listening to music. This form defines music therapy as the ability to experience an altered state go physical arousal and mood through processing the musical notes.

Background

In 1926, music was recognized by the established medical community as a form of therapy for the treatment of several clinical disorders. But, in the United States, it wasn’t until 1946 when it was formally acknowledged. It was first used for war veterans in order to boost morale and improve patients' mental state by decreasing symptoms associated with depression. While Norman Cousins created humor therapy, he created a book called “Anatomy of an Illness” which he dedicated a chapter on the healing properties of music. This idea works by enhancing the relaxation response from music. Today, music of all styles is used in many different clinical and professional settings as a therapeutic tool. Music is a means to promote tranquility and it has characteristics of a coping technique as well, the main one being to increase conscious awareness of the inner self.  

Proper Use of Relaxation Technique

The best way to use music therapy is to find ways to apply music in the form of listening to it, playing an instrument, or writing songs, etc; anyway that allows the body to relax the mind and reduce stress. There are numerous tools that music therapists use.

1. A musical instrument such as a harp, guitar, or violin.

2. Using a speaker to play music to bring a sense of livelihood.

3. Drumming is an excellent tool to improve bodily functions and brings people together with it's positive social connotation

4. Using visual imagery to accompany music to keep the person engaged.

5. Exchanging information through music

(Chowdhury, 2020)

A cool way to enhance your auditory stimulation!

Create a playlist of all your favorite types of music like rock, pop, rap, etc!

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References

Chowdhury, M. (2020, January 9). 15 Music Therapy Activities and Tools. https://positivepsychology.com/

Seale, Q. (2009). Music Quotes. https://www.keepinspiring.me/

Seaward, B. L. (2018). Managing stress: Principles and strategies for health and welt-being. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.