The Science Of Music Therapy Is Making A Difference

We rarely think about the music floating through the radio when we're driving home from work. It is almost background noise to dull the frustrations of gridlock traffic. It drifts through our docile supermarket isles, and it blares though the speakers beside the public pool. More often than not, we are not paying attention to the music around us. For some, music can be white noise. For others, it can be the difference between getting better, or staying sick. Science has proven that music has a massive impact on our mind and body. Thousands of scientists have been pushing the boundaries of music and science to develop techniques and treatments that use music as their drug to help patients with mental disorders like schizophrenia, depression, and dementia. I know that it is something that we harp on a good deal (no pun intended), but music is massively powerful! Much like you need to watch how much hydrogenated palm oils and trans fats you consume, keeping an eye on your ears and being mindful of what kind of music you are listening to on a regular basis can have an impact on your mind, and body. It is easy to grab a burger and a shake on the go from your local fast food restruant as suppose to making a home cooked meal when you get home. It is also easy just to turn on your radio to the top 40 pop hits station that loop the same pre-canned pop music over and over again for months on end. This is not to say that all pop music is awful. Just don't let others decide what music you're consuming. Take the extra time to do some looking around. Go see some local music. Talk to your musician friend, and see what they recommend. Go see the symphony play! Music has an impact on your brain. Make sure you load your i-pod up with the good stuff. Helen Odell-Miller has devoted the last 20 years of her life to music therapy. She has done many great things for the science of music, and is showing no signs of stopping. Have a read! On a weekday, it’s normally an early start; responding to urgent emails before heading to my office at the music therapy research centre in Cambridge where I hold several roles as lecturer, researcher, supervisor, and passionate advocate for music therapy. I practised as a full-time music therapist for 20 years, mainly in the field of adult mental health as part of a large NHS mental health trust. It was during this period that I began to combine my clinical role with supporting the development of the profession. Along with another colleague, we developed a new MA course at Anglia Ruskin. This course became the first masters course in music therapy in the UK. I continued to work as a music therapist and today, we have our own new state of the art music therapy centre at Anglia Ruskin, where we not only [...]

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