Music therapy is often thought of as taking place at a facility—in a patient’s room at a hospital, in a common room at a day facility, in an office, in a school, etc. The session is client-focused and centers around the client’s or clients’ needs. What may be less known is that music therapy often occurs in clients’ homes. When working with young children in particular, sessions are often family-focused, or centered around family collaboration and participation. This approach began in the 1980s by American researchers and was soon adopted by early childhood intervention (ECI) practitioners in Australia. The Australian Early Child Intervention Association’s Code of Ethics instructs ECI practitioners…
Do you have a favorite song or playlist you like to listen to when you are feeling stressed? Or ever found yourself completely mellowed out by a new song you hear on the radio? This may be because music can be a great way to relax and let go of stressors during the day. But how simple can a song be in order to have an effect on anxiety? In “Steady Beat and State Anxiety” Anita L. Gadberry looks into the effect of music on state anxiety (or anxiety that occurs in the present moment and is not related to a diagnosis). Gadberry looked at the effect of a simple…
Continue readingCancer affects many people and their families. Almost everyone knows, or has someone in their family, who has battled cancer. Ever wonder if music therapy can help ease oncology treatment? Previous studies indicated that music therapy (specifically live, patient preferred listening) may improve quality of life, decrease anxiety, and decrease blood pressure. Therapists involved in the studies also noticed that active participation (singing along or requesting/choosing songs) further decreased stress in oncology patients. Some music therapy studies focused on guided imagery and music to decrease anxiety and nausea in cancer patients. However, despite this research no one has addressed how long the effects of music therapy last or how music…
Continue readingWhat about gifted students with a disability? As a Music Therapist and a Music Educator, I find myself drawn to articles written by music educators concerning students with disabilities in their classroom. Although music therapy is a related service under IDEA, many school districts do not employ music therapists to work with their special needs students. Often music educators are left to grapple with the how to teach these students with varying levels of training and experience. Recently, Joseph Michael Abramo shared his research on “Gifted Students with Disabilities: ‘Twice Exceptionality’ in the Music Classroom” in the June 2015 edition of the Music Educator’s Journal published by the National Association…
Continue readingAutism Spectrum Disorder: Movement disorders go hand in hand with speech disorders Have you ever been able to tell something was wrong with someone just by watching his or her gait? Your gait is your stride, how long a step you take, plus whether you go from heel to toe and whether your toes stay straight or tend to go in or out. You also look at the tempo or speed at which they walk, and the rhythm created in their step. These characteristics are just what a group of researchers studied with two groups of older adolescents and young adults. One group, classified as “typically developing” and the other…
Continue readingEffects of music therapy with patients on a post-surgical oncology unit Cancer affects many people and their families. Almost every =one knows, or has someone in their family, who has battled cancer. Ever wonder if music therapy can help ease oncology treatment? Previous studies indicated that music therapy (specifically live, patient preferred listening) may improve quality of life, decrease anxiety, and decrease blood pressure. Therapists involved in the studies also noticed that active participation (singing along or requesting/choosing songs) further decreased stress in oncology patients. Some music therapy studies focused on guided imagery and music to decrease anxiety and nausea in cancer patients. However, despite this research no one has…
Continue readingStaff Perceptions and Benefits of Music Therapy Ever wondered what staff think about music therapy and other alternative therapies? Kennedy, Reed, Wamboldt chose to look into this in the article “Staff Perceptions of Complementary and Alternative Therapy Integration into a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Program.” With all the changes in healthcare and worries of healthcare costs, many professionals are looking to provide excellent care to their patients in the most cost efficient manner. Alternative therapies such as music therapy, art therapy, poetry therapy, dance/movement therapy, psychodrama, etc. can create healing environments, emotional recovery, and foster positive working conditions for staff. In this study, the authors focused on children/adolescents receiving psychiatric…
Continue readingMusic Therapy and Trauma While no one wants to recognize that any could hurt a child, there are many children who need help because of trauma they have experiences. Childhood trauma can interrupt typical development and can create post-traumatic stress responses including aggression, impulse control, anxiety, increased hyperawareness, social withdrawal etc. Trauma can happen over a period of time or once, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can be a result of trauma and it is often treated with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) which can decrease symptoms of PTSD through understanding the behaviors and learning what to do when PTSD behaviors occur. Talk therapies are often the “go-to” for children/adolescents who…
Continue readingFunctional and Dysfunctional Brain Circuits Underlying Emotional Processing of Music in Autism Spectrum Disorders Study by Andrea Caria, Paola Venuti, and Simona de Falco Despite a wide range of abilities and disabilities among people on the Autism Spectrum, a few core features of the disability are dramatic impairments of interpersonal behavior, communication, and empathy. Behavioral studies on ASD have documented difficulties in the recognition of facial expressions of emotions and emotional prosody. More recently, neuroimaging studies have enabled researchers to explore what is happening in the brain, as well as the physical structure of the brain itself. However, most neuroimaging studies have observed atypical brain responses in individuals with…
Continue readingBy: Stephanie H. Morris, MM, MT-BC, NMT This article comes from the second journal produced by the American Music Therapy Association. Music Therapy Perspectives is the “clinical” journal for the practicing music therapist. According to their website, this journal is “Designed to appeal to a wide readership, both inside and outside the profession of music therapy” (www.musictherapy.org). Dr. Thompson has many years of experience with young children diagnosed with autism. Her focus of this article is to highlight the concept of “family-centered practice” which has proved to be very effective, especially in early intervention situations when a child has been diagnosed with special needs. The therapist helps the family with…
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