Music Therapy and the medical community

When people think of music therapy, I think they think of people just singing at a sick patient. They never think about the science of music and how much it affects our lives. There's a reason why our brains react so well to music; it makes people happy and distracts people from what they're feeling. That is why when some people are upset, they put on some happy music to distract them. What most people don't know is that it can help when it comes to your health. I've previously explained how music can distract and help reduce pain and how music can affect brain disorders. There are so many positive effects of music therapy, and relatively no adverse effects other than the treatment not working. With everything occurring in our country at this moment, expanding music therapy across the medical community could benefit so many people. Everyone could benefit from music therapy because most people are away from their family and friends due to social distancing. Many people are sad and angry because of the racial issues that have occurred and that are still occurring to this day. And some people are just scared and stressed out because we are in a pandemic that seems not to be ending. All those people and more could benefit from music therapy. They need something to distract them from all these issues we are facing. There is a limited amount of resources available for patients suffering from mental illnesses or people who have other diseases that are not as severe as those suffering from the coronavirus. Those people need attention as well, and by using music therapy, the medical community can give them that attention and help them as well. There would not be a lot needed, just a few instruments. Music therapists could potentially help so many people who are suffering silently because of the impact of this pandemic.

You could argue that patients don't need music therapy. They could listen to music themselves. The George Center Foundation for music and healthcare says, "Listening to music is fantastic, and there's no doubt that just that activity in itself can facilitate therapeutic goals like relaxation. But a music therapist has the skills and training to turn simply listening to music passively into an active experience." There is a reason why music therapists get degrees. According to the American Music Therapy Association music therapists, "must have a bachelor's degree or higher in music therapy from one of AMTA's 72 approved colleges and universities, including 1200 hours of clinical training." Music therapists are trained to know how to use music to help their patients, mentally, physically, and emotionally. Listening to music on your own is for your entertainment or pleasure. Music therapy is therapy. You can't be your therapist and expect results. You can't "assess emotional well-being, physical health, social functioning, communication abilities, and cognitive skills through musical responses," without participating in music therapy.

#musictherapy #medicalcommunity