WW Resource: The sound of music

 

I don't know about you, but music absolutely rules my life. It starts and ends my day, I use it to relax me after a tense work day and pump me up and motivate me through an intense work out. Music is my mental peace-maker- what I didn't realize until now is that listening to music has been linked to reducing anxiety, depression, restoring focus and memory, and even increase brain function(s). Holy cheesesticks right! 

Now before I start rambling (because we all know my rants can easily rival a ridiculously long session of monopoly- and we all know how long that can be), let me give you a little bit of history on the subject of music as therapy. First, Music therapy actually began in the 20th century with community musicians visiting veterans' hospitals around the country, to play for those severely traumatized and by war. In many of these cases, the military personnel that were visited had, what was known back then as "Battle Fatigue" (Um...What the fig is Battle Fatigue?), now know as PTSD (Ohhh...Now we're talking!). There were so many positive responses from the treatments, especially in sessions that were used to reduce restlessness due to anxiety, that many hospitals decided to hire the musicians full-time to play for their patients.

Recent studies suggest: music may be used to influence physical, emotional, cognitive and social well-being and improve quality of life for healthy people, as well as those who are disabled or ill. How's that for alternative medicine! I know that for me, just having music playing throughout my day helps to comfort me during my profusely Eor episodes that I sometimes experience, and has the power to completely change my entire mood depending on what's playing and for how long.  Recently, I've been playing my iPod at night for my husband who often (and by often I really mean every friggin' night) experiences restlessness and nightmares, and I've noticed that it has significantly improved his sleeping habits and ability to sleep throughout the night, as well as promote a reduced rate of anxiety the next day. I had no idea that music was linked to non-traditional treatment of anxiety, but I'm incredibly happy to have found so many studies that support the overwhelming evidence of music treating anxiety. 

If you have a chance to try it out for yourself or your wounded warrior, I'd love to hear how it turns out for you. Send me an email or leave me a comment!

Happy music-love, peace, and  all things delightful to all!

*Ayana language 101- Eor; a state of blah. use to describe a feeling of uber emotional hell. please refer to Winnie the Pooh for reference*