Don’t forget to use this powerful tool during the holidays
Could you actually forget to play music during the Christmas holidays? It’s unlikely I think but you might logically think that it’s only for celebration purposes. In reality, Christmas can be a time for a full range of emotions from jubilation to devastation and everything in between.
If you’re a trained musician you know that Christmas music has been written in both major and minor keys and has also been written in fast tempos and slow tempos. So whether you want “Joy to the World” or “We Three Kings.” “Carol of the Bells” or “Silent Night,” there is truly holiday music to match every mood.
We associate holiday music with parties, good times and festivities but what if you’ve had a major loss at holiday time. In addition to the death of a beloved family member or friend, the loss of a treasured pet can be devastating. In the last 100 years, the Earth has seen hurricanes, earthquakes and tsunamis in the month of December where people lost everything they owned including family and friends. But even if you haven’t lost anyone or anything, loneliness can also be a problem.
So how can music possibly make a dent in these uncomfortable feelings? Here’s what music therapists and music medicine practitioners say:
- Music therapy can address limitations of traditional bereavement support by facilitating non-verbal emotional expression.
- Active participation in music therapy promotes community connection and enhances coping resources.
These are both general statements, but we know that when grief or sadness is heavy, many people cannot find words to express what they’re feeling.
Music can elicit tears even if you’ve never heard the piece before. I remember vividly when I heard the soundtrack to “Schindler’s List.” I had not seen the movie although I did know what it was about. I burst into tears almost immediately just hearing this music.
There is so much music that has this power and can seriously help people feel their feelings and begin the grieving process.
In addition, when people are grieving, many tend to isolate and not want to go out. Participating in a bereavement group that is led by a therapist or other music professional can be extremely helpful.
Another Christmas song that can bring mournful feelings to the surface is the beautiful “In the Bleak Midwinter,” with lyrics by Christina Rossetti and music by Gustav Holst.
Of course I hope that you are having a very joyful Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa season. But if you have sadness, grief or loneliness, please remember to let music help you through it.
We sell music that has been shown to reduce anxiety and increase calm
You’re having surgery, or a painful, scary, medical/dental procedure! What should you use if you’ve heard about how music can improve your experience and even your results? The clinical research grows by the day and the result are clear. Using music chosen by the patient makes a huge difference.
Music medicine is often defined as listening to music during medical procedures for a relaxing effect. The advantage over music therapy is that it doesn’t require a trained music therapist so it’s less expensive. It can also be used in more diverse situations where a music therapist wouldn’t be allowed, such as surgery.
Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN was my first hospital to use the headphones in their post-cardiac unit and they reported great results! Nurses reported that the patients loved the music and their vital signs stabilized faster and they required less anxiety and pain medication.
The next big hospital that tried my headphones was Cleveland Clinic Florida, on recommendation from the main Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland. I was even invited down to give a Grand Rounds presentation to surgeons and anesthesiologists.
In about 2013 I became acquainter with Dr. Michael Peck, anesthesiologist at Johns Hopkins in Maryland. Dr. Peck was a strong advocate from the beginning and gave me so many wonderful ideas as well as purchasing a “Cloud Kit” product for their surgery department.
When I gave birth three times, I knew that I wanted music to be a part of that experience and that I did NOT want any more medication that I absolutely needed. For that reason, my husband and I took the LaMaze childbirth classes and the last time, the Bradley childbirth classes. I also knew that having soothing and calming music would make it a better experience for everyone and my doctor and nurses were fine with that.
Jump to 2005, I attended a conference in Cancun, Mexico created for professional speakers. It was called “Cancun University” and offered 4 learning tracks to improve our businesses. One of the tracks was called “Product Innovation” and the other was called “Internet Marketing.” The very first day of the product innovation class I had the idea to create preloaded headphones for surgery patients. And within months I had filed for the provisional patent and had created a website with a monthly ezine as well as a blog. For a long time I blogged every single day!
Our protocol involves giving the patient their preloaded headphones or MP3 player, in the genre of their choice, as soon as they enter the pre-op area. As they are getting their gown on and perhaps an IV, they are listening to our Surgical Serenity music and their vital signs are calming and moving toward homeostasis.
I just returned last evening from the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and WOW, what an amazing experience of a lifetime that was!
Music like this is totally engrossing and a joy to listen to.
All of this changed when I was hired by the University of Louisville School of Medicine to do research into Music Medicine and the healing power of music. Within months I began getting invitations to speak to local medical and lay organizations and almost from the beginning, I LOVED it! (Yes, at first I was nervous because I thought I had to memorize a speech, but later I found out that I could speak from an outline and that literally changed everything!) I guess I’m a storyteller and when I think back to my earliest memories and experiences with music–from my father singing to me as a baby, being in the church nursery and singing songs, to hearing a piano for the first time and finally beginning lessons at age 8–the stories begin to flow!
NOW, in the era of podcasts I have been getting invitations from all kinds of interesting people to talk about how music helps in surgery and in other areas of the hospital. When I am interviewed by a podcaster I realize that I really don’t even need any notes because all of this information is stored in my brain. There is almost nothing I’d rather do than talk about the healing power of music and I’ve now done it around the world, including western Europe, South Korea, Hawaii, and Canada!
Most of the podcasters either send me a list of questions that they want me to answer or they ask me to send them a list of questions that I think would be interesting to their audience. I love their questions and eagerly answer them and then expand on them. All but one of these podcasts has been video and audio but one of them was audio only. I prefer having video too because I believe I get lots of information from people when I’m watching them talk, like body language and facial expressions. Maybe that’s because I am also now a psychotherapist and I do this every day.
I’m not sure that the average person who is waiting for surgery knows that there are medical apps that can reduce anxiety and pain perception. My Surgical Serenity Solutions app has been in both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store for awhile now and it is free to download, listen to the samples, and then choose your preferred playlist for $9.99, a one-time payment.