To the selfless and generous people that give us hope in humanity, particularly to Claire
“Music can lift us
out of depression or move us to tears - it is a remedy, a tonic, orange juice
for the ear. But for many of my neurological patients, music is even more - it
can provide access, even when no medication can, to movement, to speech, to
life. For them, music is not a luxury, but a necessity.”
― Oliver Sacks
― Oliver Sacks
Suffering from any
kind of mental trauma or illness is an often distressing and daunting
experience. Conditions such as depression, anxiety, Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder and OCD can sometimes be lifelong that they require time and patience
to overcome, as sufferers will face many ups and downs, as the temptation to
relapse into old habits can present themselves at any time.
Conditions
involving severe mental health issues and
depression can be complex to treat and every patient will have
different needs and goals to meet. A GP or doctor will often be the first
point-of-call once the decision to address a specific type of mental illness
has been made, but the options available to anyone wanting to recover from
anxiety or depression are multifarious. Alongside conventional talking
therapies and drug treatments, there are other ways and means of helping people
overcome debilitating and chronic mental issues which can feel overwhelming.
One of these is Music Therapy.
Music
Therapy
It is not all about
trips to see doctors and psychiatrists, hospitals and sharing your deepest thoughts and feelings during
group sessions, while recovering these days. Creative therapies are proving
themselves to be an equally effective form of treatment. The advice given in the
DrugAbuse website is that the choice of treatment is important to the recovery process of an individual,
whatever the type of mental illness they suffer from is. Choosing the right
program should depend entirely on the person’s needs. Music therapy creates sensorimotor responses
from the body. This means that both the patient’s sensory and motor
capabilities are active at the same time, making it possible to tailor the
treatment for each human being based on the depression and anxiety stages the patient is going trough.
Techniques such as this can also be useful
for treating people who suffer from addictions, just as they can be used to
treat people with other mental conditions. The most extreme end of the spectrum
will see a client who will be anxious, easily upset and maybe prone to violent
outbursts. Playing a series of compositions at a slow tempo with mellow
characteristics, such as soft vibrations, will alter the state of the patient’s
autonomic nervous system.
The ANS is a form of control system the body uses to heighten
certain feelings (such as anger) as it affects a person’s heart
rate, and controlling these nervous feelings; by creating a safe and secure
environment the patient relaxes, like when breathing in a paper bag during a panic attack.
Using music therapy, it is possible to teach
people to control anxiety. The treatment is broad and
does not just involve listening exercises, but also practical sessions where
the patient will be involved in playing instruments, combining music with
writing and physical exercise.
“There is certainly
a universal and unconscious propensity to impose a rhythm even when one hears a
series of identical sounds at constant intervals... We tend to hear the sound
of a digital clock, for example, as "tick-tock, tick-tock" - even
though it is actually "tick tick, tick tick.”
Consider the above
quote too. There is something to be said for the calming, distracting, repetitive
action of intoning the same note over and over again, continually repeating the
same sounds and phrases, or for instance, if you were playing an instrument
such as the guitar, learning to play a riff, or pick – starting off slowly and
first, then learning to play it faster over time. The continued action of
fingers on string, coupled with the brain’s keen-ness for repetition can be
very calming and distracting.
Background
Research
Over the past
decade there has been several attempts to understand why music therapy provides
such effective results. A 2003 report, looks into the effect that
drumming groups can have on an addict’s recovery process.
The report found that
drumming, as an activity, was a successful form of therapy due to the
repetition involved. Concluding, drumming puts the mind into a state of
relaxation, enhancing synchronization between the brain and body, putting the
patient into a meditative-like state, as they concentrate solely on the task. Focusing attention on sensorimotor treatment,
it's also important to provide an overall balance, taking into
consideration all aspects, mentally and physically, of the patients’ well-being, while providing this kind of treatment. Enhancing the understanding of the cognitive and emotional process, is key for the patient's mental healing.
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