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WELCOME TO OUR PADLET ON MUSIC AND TRAUMA HEALING

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WELCOME TO OUR PADLET ON MUSIC AND TRAUMA HEALING

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For the creative aspect of our Padlet, we have created a narrative. The story follows a university student through the first few years of school, and the ways in which music can be used as a tool for healing. If you would like to listen to this narrative, please follow/play each of the audio clips with a white background. The other colours are different topics within that narrative, that give further information. Enjoy!

~ Anjali, Dwiti, Eve, Nour

*Please note that the following topics may be triggering for some audiences*

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In many trauma recovery facilities and mental health facilities music is used as a component to calm and progressively treat the mind. In the article “Healing Through Music” entails great evidence connecting music healing mental health and trauma as music can bring up emotions that individuals have trouble expressing. Certified music therapists are experts in knowing what the right type of music is for different people and different experiences. Picking the right music is the key to bringing an individual the sense of peace, by safely expressing anger or frustration, making them active again, and gives them a sense of company combatting the feeling of loneliness.

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Ways Music Reduces Anxiety and Invoke a Sense of Calmness

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Ways Music Reduces Anxiety and Invoke a Sense of Calmness

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1. Lyric Analysis: ability to identify lyrics that relate with an individual's experiences

2. Improvisation Music Playing: through playing instruments to note the escalations and de-escalation indicating the high and low levels of emotion that can further be discussed.

3.  Active Music Listening: music can alter our mood, so playing music that aligns with the current mood and slowly shifting it to another can improve our mood and put us in a good mood reducing anxiety and impulsivity levels.

4. Songwriting: Often after listening to the music written individuals are proud of their accomplishment and are able to express their emotions in a positive and gratifying way.

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Click to listen to my story and how music played a major part in my healing.

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The key to music therapy is engagement and not just simply listening to music, although that does activate parts of the brain related to reward, pleasure, and emotional processing. Music therapy showcased progress in 4 sessions of songwriting compared to cognitive behavioral therapy using 9 gaming sessions to reach the same results. Through engagement it can shift to focus on something, allow them to translate their emotions through music, and decrease the symptoms of PTSD; hence, encouraging them to engage socially again. Music is proven to decrease experiences of depression and anxiety giving people a better overall quality of life and allowing them to learn how to process and take control of their emotions relating to the traumatic experience.

Many programs involving music are developed to help those experiencing PTSD overcome their fears and to be able to express their emotions. One example is a program developed for veterans that helped them express what they're feeling through using their passion to play the guitar. “Guitars for Vets” helped thousands of vets push through their PTSD and this is one of a million other programs.

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Type of Music Therapy: A Trauma-focused Music and Imagery (TMI) session includes:

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Type of Music Therapy: A Trauma-focused Music and Imagery (TMI) session includes:

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Phase 1. Stabilization phase (sessions 1-5)

Focuses on the musical parameters  (i.e., a stable, slow tempo, only gradual changes in volume, rhythm, sound, register and harmony) as the aim to have a patient relate the music to a neutralized place and thoughts, where they can disconnect from pain and negative emotions.

It is also common to teach the patient breathing techniques that match the music which reminds them to stay calm.

Phase 2. Emotional containment (sessions 6-8)

Different songs will invoke different emotions showing the patient how to deal with, express, and get through the strenuous emotions.

Phase 3. Trauma exposure and grieving (sessions 9-14)

The presences of the therapist helps the individual recognize when the music is triggering traumatic images that the patient is unsure how to deal with yet. Turning down or changing the music helps get them back into reality, slowly teaching them how to deal with such moments.

Phase 4. Reorientation (sessions 14-16)

Slowly encouraging patients to get back to regular activities within their community and engage with others as they see fit as the music begins to remind them of their goals and dreams in life, shifting their focus to a safe place.

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Here is how my story continues on how I dealt with trauma in an abusive relationship

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Here is how my story continues on how I dealt with trauma in an abusive relationship

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Start from 0:50 and listen until 2:00

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How does this piece help me manage my emotions?

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How does this piece help me manage my emotions?

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What happens in a musical interventions session?

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What happens in a musical interventions session?

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There are 4 types of musical therapy interventions which include;
1) Performing/ Playing - Singing and/or playing an instrument
2) Composing - An opportunity to write a song with a group or individually
3) Improvising - Creating music in the moment of the session
4) Receiving/ Listening - A music and relaxation experience when exposed to different types of music

- The music therapist will start off the session with different ways of opening like going around the circle of members and asking them how they are feeling
- The music therapist may choose one of the intervention methods to focus on in the session or they can also choose to cover all four types of interventions
- Finally, the closing session will entail members to summarize final thoughts and feelings for the day

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What are musical interventions in psychotherapy?

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What are musical interventions in psychotherapy?

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-  "Music succeeds where words sometimes fail because our lives are live by more than just our rational brains. True healing must be a holistic process that reunites and integrates all parts of our total experience" - (Macintosh, 2003)
- Musical Interventions in Psychotherapy is an effective method and is suggested by professionals because music allows an individual to recognize their mental and psychological state
- These interventions help with increases in self-expression and self-esteem and improves communication
- The responses to changes in the sound wave frequency, amplitude, and timbre is possible through a limited number of mechanisms including; (Macintosh, 2003)
1) Sounds or music may stimulate involuntary centers in the central nervous system, causing physiological reactions that later are involved in conscious thought
2) Music may be transmitted first to higher levels of the brain, where sound becomes involved with emotion and abstract through before affecting physiology
3) Both the first and second mechanisms work in concert

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Listen to my story of facing an addiction

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Listen to my story of facing an addiction

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Nolan Neal was a contestant on America's Got Talent 2020, and told the story of his father's death, and his own spiral into addiction. After which, he created music to help in his healing. You may watch the video if you would like- using the following link. https://youtu.be/9WU7d85w2BM?t=59

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(Optional) Listen to my new favourite song!

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(Optional) Listen to my new favourite song!

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Video starts at 0:53, watch until 1:41

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Below are some of the ways in which music therapy can help with an addiction, who knew so many people were using music just like me?

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Below are some of the ways in which music therapy can help with an addiction, who knew so many people were using music just like me?

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Benefits of music therapy in addiction recovery 1.JPG

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Benefits of music therapy in addiction recovery 2.JPG

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Official Music Therapy Compared to Personal Music Healing

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Official Music Therapy Compared to Personal Music Healing

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Although music alone has the ability to be very therapeutic, there are also professional options for music therapy, where someone is trained specifically to help one heal using music. "Music therapy can be applied to the treatment of substance use disorders to ease stress, help people relax, increase focus on recovery, and help individuals who are having difficulty adjusting to the demands of recovery from substance use disorders" (American Addictions Centers).

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Here are some of the practical uses and studies of music therapy in treating addictions.

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Here are some of the practical uses and studies of music therapy in treating addictions.

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Universality: A Reason for Group Music Therapy

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Universality: A Reason for Group Music Therapy

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I had avoided group sessions in fear that others did not have the same experiences, or that I would be shunned or outcast from the group. However, this is actually a strength of a group approach. Taken from a study done on women in group settings of music therapy, Gardstrom et al, explains that, "perhaps the best way to describe a sense of universality in this clinical setting is, "I am not alone in my addiction. We're all in the same boat." The recognition of universality is critical for personal healing in times of emotional hardships characteristic of recovery from addictions. Universality helps to minimize feelings of isolation stemming from the women's perceptions that they are unique in their disease and that no one can understand, relate to, or help them" (2016).

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"Acknowledging and telling the [traumatic] story counteracts the isolation, silence, fear, shame or "unspeakable" horror. It allows the frozen sadness to melt. [...] Various forms of expression can be used: art, music, dance, drama, writing, prayer, meditation, cultural rituals, and cleansing ceremonies" (p. 53-54).

Sometimes, telling a story out loud, or face-to-face can be daunting. There are other ways that one can speak. Through dance, the body can speak. Through music, the lyrics can speak. Music became a way for me to say what I couldn't otherwise say.

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It’s me checking in! Listen to my experience learning about community music therapy groups here

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It’s me checking in! Listen to my experience learning about community music therapy groups here

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Music-Making Effects in Healing after Trauma

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Music-Making Effects in Healing after Trauma

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One of the first questions that I had while researching for my project was: how does making music affect the mind and body? And how specifically are these effects conducive for the healing process?

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There are a variety of benefits that come out of the music-making process that can be utilized to facilitate the healing process after trauma. Application of Merriam’s Tripartite Model to community-music making shows us that the variability in the sound, concept and behaviour and context of the music-making process is something that allows the process of music-making to work for all individuals who will experience and react to trauma in many ways.

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Listen to this excerpt for an example of the type of music created within the Zar ritual.

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Music 335 Major Project - Zar Audio Example 

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3:45 - 5 min
Watch this excerpt of the video for a visualization of the Zar ritual.

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Through the lens of the African diaspora, spirits cause illness and disrupt the alignment of the body, mind and soul. However, these states of imbalance are temporary as these illnesses manifest from outside the person. The illnesses do not define the person and it is believed that rituals and the help of the community will be able to cure the person to make them healthy again. The Zar ritual emphasizes the involvement of community within the process of healing, and so taking a deeper into this example gives insight into the role that the community plays music-making and healing after trauma.

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Read about the similarities and differences about music-making in community groups in a different culture. Music-making in communities can look very different when examining the case study in Ontario and the Zar ritual, however the main effects of music will remain the same. Music and music-making benefits anyone involved through self-expression, facilitating interaction, building self-awareness and receive and transmit knowledge and emotions from those around us. All these processes can be utilized to facilitate healing after trauma, and a deeper investigation into case studies across various cultures shows the universal effects music-making can have.

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This is my own experience in a community music therapy group. Thank you for listening to my story! 

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This is my own experience in a community music therapy group. Thank you for listening to my story! 