Saturday 31 January 2015

Quotes about Music Therapy

Dear all,
I've been looking up some quotes about music therapy, here's part one of it! Please stay tuned to check out part 2 later on!

Quotes about Music Therapy

  • Dr. Oliver Sacks ("Awakenings"):    
  • Dr. Sacks reports that patients with neurological disorders who cannot talk or move are often able to sing, and sometimes even dance, to music. Its advocates say music therapy also can help ease the trauma of grieving, lessen depression and provide an outlet for people who are otherwise withdrawn.
    - ST. Louis Post Dispatch.
  • Dr. Clive Robbins (Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Clinic):
    • "Almost all children respond to music. Music is an open-sesame, and if you can use it carefully and appropriately, you can reach into that child's potential for development." Nordoff-Robbins uses music therapy to help 100 handicapped children learn and to relate and communicate with others.
  • Barbara Crowe (past president of the National Association for Music Therapy):
    • "(Music therapy) can make the difference between withdrawal and awareness, between isolation and interaction, between chronic pain and comfort -- between demoralization and dignity."
  • Oliver Sacks, M.D.:
    • "I regard music therapy as a tool of great power in many neurological disorders -- Parkinson's and Alzheimer's -- because of its unique capacity to organize or reorganize cerebral function when it has been damaged."

Best regards,
Hanna

Alive Inside- Movie about Music Therapy and Nursing Home

Dear all,
 
how's your week been? :)

Alive Inside


 
    This movie, newly released in 2014, was a movie about music, dementia, music therapy . I had a little 'private showing' day with my music therapy classmates watching it together! It was a very touching and inspiring film to watch, for anyone. “Alive Inside” is a film created by Michael Rossato-Bennett. Dan Cohen visits elderlies with dementia and Alzheimer’s who live in nursing homes. In giving the patients headphones and iPods with personal playlists, they film the positive responses. The patients showed physical enjoyment and bursting tears when they heard the songs retrieved from the past.
 
 We have to bear in mind that it is not the clinical use of music therapy to facilitate expressive and receptive communication, increase alertness, decrease behavioral and psychological symptoms related to Dementia, increase engagement, increase mobility and physical functioning and validate life experiences. It also raised a lot of issues in the public health system in the government. I hope that in the future, there will be more opprtunities to advance public awareness of the benefits of music therapy and increase ACCESS to quality music therapy services in a rapidly changing world.
 
 
 
Statement by AMTA assocation:
 
What are your thoughts?
 
Best regards,
Hanna

Monday 26 January 2015

Nursing home experience :)

Dear all,

 


I just wanted to share one of my experiences at a nursing home. At this nursing home, they call the elderlies that stay there as "residents", nursing home as a "Home" - care centre. At this nursing home, a lot of residents lived with dementia and other diagnoses that has affected their quality of life. A lot of them were limited in their physical abilities, not being able to speak or walk. They spent their day walking around the nursing home, and being fed and taken care of.

As I begun playing with some light music on the piano, I started playing some waltz and dance music that sounded familiar to them.  Tears came out when some people found connection when they.
Some said "Keep going, I like it, Keep going!", and some said "This is my favorite day with so much lovely music!". Some said "Are you coming back? I want you to come back, please!". Some mentioned "You and your music is just so beautiful, I want to hear it all the time!"  Some residents recalled their memories of singing songs of their memories - like "Waltzing Matilda" reminded them of their times they were dancing in the social hall regularly. They danced along, even if they couldn't get up, their toes tapped along the music in their wheelchairs.

Remember someone saying that when you enter the nursing home, you are entering into someone's life, with limited life choices and activities. Their beds in the shared rooms, with some chairs/tables are their homes. What's in the facility is what they do for their rest of their life.

Music binds. Music connects.
Music retrieves and Music revives :)

Some songs I played:
Waltzing Matilda
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SANzC9-a5yo

I can't help falling in love with you - Elvis Presley (CLASSIC!!)







Music therapy can be used to improve the overall physical and mental wellbeing of dementia patients, including the following:
  • memory recall;
  • positive changes in moods and emotional states;
  • a sense of control over life;
  • non-pharmacological management of pain and discomfort;
  • stimulation that promotes interest even when other approaches are ineffective;
  • structure that promotes rhythmic and continuous movement or vocal fluency as an adjunct to physical rehabilitation; and
  • opportunities to interact socially with others.
More:
http://www.todaysgeriatricmedicine.com/news/story1.shtml
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/1026153.stm
Video in action
http://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2013-04-24/music-therapy-helping-dementia-patients/


What are your experiences wiorking with people with demenetia or elderlies?
What are your thoughts?

Best regards,
Hanna
0432497187
hannatsoi213@hotmail.com

Tuesday 20 January 2015

Music Makes a lot of sense - FB page :)

Dear friends,

How's your week been? :) Have you been making music?



My friend and I set up this facebook page last year, with different contributors,
collecting and sharing resources that relates to music, please have a look!
https://www.facebook.com/musicmakesalotofsense

You might be surprised to see people making music with animals,
babies tapping into music and dancing , scientific research showing benefits of music,
or just some humorous videos of people making music that makes us laugh out to tears!

Do you have anything about music that you would like to share as well?

Best regards,
Hanna

Monday 19 January 2015

Starting out 2015 soon!

Dear All,

How are you all, hope 2015 has been great for you so far! :)
I've been having a restful christmas and new year,
and have been thinking a lot about work and this year!



I'm excited to announce that I am going to start a few jobs in 2015! It's exciting as it's all new to me and I've spent some time preparing for it!

Let me tell you what I've been offered to work at :
1. A private mental health hospital
I'll be running mainly group sessions with music, with a great environment with great staff and resources! It will be an amazing experience to work with the young adult mental health team to offer relaxation and music making experiences to help with young adults struggling with anixety, depression, aggression and other related problems!

2. Music Therapist at a Nursing home
I'll be running music therapy sessions in groups and individually with residents living with mid/high dementia. I'm hoping my music therapy programmes will be able to assist the residents with their needs and to improve their quality of life!

3. Childhood - Music time
I'll be working with a company called "Bop n Babies", which is owned and run by music therapists. We will be excited to go to different childhood centres to run music circles with them! Lots of nursery rhymes, lullabies and enjoyment for the little ones to listen to music! It will be a lovely experience to learn, with great supervision and professional development opportunities in here :)

4. :) TBC
Some volunteer work and possible work!

At the meantime, I'll keep myself with private teaching some students for flute, piano and piano accompaniment.

I'm thankful for this and I'll be happy sharing with you about my experiences (and of course, YOUR sharings tooo!) very soon!

Best regards,
Hanna

Sunday 18 January 2015

What is a "typical" music therapy session like?

 Dear all,

I guess some might be wondering, so what does music therapy look like? What do we do? Here's a blog that might be helpful to answer some of your questions :)

What is a typical music therapy session like?

 
 
See the title? That’s a question that can’t really be answered. There is no such thing as a “typical” music therapy session. A music therapy session will look vastly different depending on who we work with and where we work with them.That said, there are certain components that are inherent to a music therapy session. Although these components will loo different depending on client age, clinical population, and setting, as a general rule, you can spot them in almost any music therapy session.

Opening

There is often some formal way a music therapist will open the session. Examples include:
  • Singing a “hello song” when working with children
  • Starting a group session by going around the circle and inviting everyone to answer a question about how they are doing in that moment (sometimes called a round or a check-in).
  • Beginning with a review of what occurred in the previous session
The opening helps transition our clients to the music therapy “space” and helps set the tone for the session. If appropriate, the therapist may use the same opening week after week (e.g. sing the same “Hello Song”). This provides familiarity for the client and, after time, can “prime” them so they know that music therapy starts when that song is sung.

Interventions

The bulk of the session will consist of the music therapy interventions. These are experiences the music therapist facilitates that are meant to target the client’s non-musical goals and objectives. Generally speaking, there are four types of music-based interventions:
  1. Performing/Playing. This can include singing or instrument playing.
  2. Composing. This includes any group or individual songwriting process and can be as simple or complex as needed.
  3. Improvising. Improvisation means creating music on the spot or in the moment.
  4. Receiving/Listening. This can include a music and relaxation-type of experience, a lyric analysis intervention, and a “moving to music” type of experience (as in gait training).
A “typical” music therapy session may incorporate multiple interventions or just one long, in-depth one. The key is that each intervention is designed to target a specific therapeutic goal and objective.

Closing

The closing is like the opening…a major transition point the gets the client ready to leave the music therapy space and “re-join” the outside world. Similar to the opening, this can include a “good-bye song”, a closing check-in or round, or a summary of what happened during the session.

Transitions

Although the closing and opening are the main transition points, other transitions that happen during a session are key to it’s success. A transition generally occurs in between interventions (or components within an intervention) and are meant to help the client move seamlessly through various points in the session.
A transition can be as simple as a sentence or two. It can include “cleaning up” from the previous intervention (e.g. putting away instruments). Sometimes we transition through a song.

Environment

This may seem like an odd component to add, but the environment or setting the therapist creates in the room can help or hinder the therapeutic process. In some ways, it’s like the silent fourth player in the therapeutic process (the three key players being the therapist, the client, and the music).
Environmental factors that are important to consider include:
  • Lighting
  • Outside noise/sounds
  • Set-up of the chairs (I’m partial to a circle)
  • Instrument/Prop storage (needs to be accessible to the therapist and not distracting to the client)
  • Smells in the room
  • Visual distractions (such as pictures and posters on the wall)
  • Tactile distractions (are the instruments within reach?)

Adapted from Kimberly's blog
http://www.musictherapymaven.com/what-is-a-typical-music-therapy-session-like/

Hope this will give you some insight to understand music therapy more :)

 
Best regards,
Hanna

So what is music therapy?

So what is MUSIC THERAPY?



 American Music Therapy Association (AMTA)  is:
“Music Therapy is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music therapy program.
Music Therapy is an established health profession in which music is used within a therapeutic relationship to address physicalemotionalcognitive, and social needs of individuals.  After assessing the strengths and needs of each client, the qualified music therapist provides the indicated treatment including creating, singing, moving to, and/or listening to music.  Through musical involvement in the therapeutic context, clients’ abilities are strengthened and transferred to other areas of their lives. Music therapy also provides avenues for communication that can be helpful to those who find it difficult to express themselves in words.  Research in music therapy supports its effectiveness in many areas such as: overall physical rehabilitation and facilitating movement, increasing people’s motivation to become engaged in their treatment, providing emotional support for clients and their families, and providing an outlet for expression of feelings.”


Music therapy . . .
Is systematic and purpose-driven – the music therapist carefully designs musical experiences to address the client’s therapeutic goals and objectives.  These goals are based on assessment criteria and may be:
  • Physical  (such as promoting exercise or improving motor skills)
  • Cognitive  (such as evoking memories or learning new information)
  • Communication  (such as expressing oneself through music or enhancing speech)
  • Social  (such as reducing isolation or improving social skills)
  • Emotional  (such as expressing emotion or reducing stress)
  • Spiritual  (such as life review or connection with Higher Power)
Is a process – therapy occurs over a progression of time. It is a gradual, sequential and evolutionary process toward therapeutic change.  While single music experiences (such as attending a sing along or musical performance) may have a beneficial or therapeutic effect, music therapy occurs as a process over time leading to a desired outcome.
Is administered by a trained music therapist – see below for more information on music therapy training
Includes a variety of musical experiences: receptive, re-creational, improvisational and composition
Is knowledge-based, drawing on traditional clinical practice and ongoing research.
Promotes health, wellness and wholeness



What goals does it address for music therapy?

Depending on the client’s goals and objectives, music therapy may target any of the following therapeutic areas.  This is not an exhaustive list, just some examples:
Physiological:  heart rate, blood pressure, gastric motility, hormone levels, immune response
Psychophysiological: pain, arousal, relaxation, fatigue, energy levels
Sensorimotor:  gross and fine motor coordination
Cognition:  attention, memory, learning
Behavioral patterns 
Emotional:  range of emotion, affect, congruence, anxiety, depression, motivation
Interpersonal: sensitivity to others, interactional skills, relationship patterns and styles
Creativity:  originality, inventiveness
Why is music so effective?  According to anthropologist Alan Merriam (1964), no other known cultural activity reaches into, shapes, and controls so much of human behavior as does music. (Therapeutic Uses of Music with Older Adults)

http://upbeatmusictherapist.com/what-is-music-therapy/


Hope this helps!
Best regards,
Hanna

Work places and opportunities for Music therapy

Hello,

How is everyone?

As it is close to graduation,I would like to tell you more about employment opportnities and workplaces in music therapy at current (in western countries)



1. Hospitals
Childrens hospitals
Psychiatric units
Brain injury and rehabilitation units
Emergency departments

At hospitals,we work by referrals or at the ward,mainly with different clinical goals that assists the patients medical recovery.

Goals include:stress and pain relief,providing an avenue for emotional expression,to provide social support

2. music therapy centres
Music therapy centres has a wealth of music therapists and facilities and equipment to provide professional clinical music therapy services. After initial assessments and reports,registered music therapists provided structured and designated music therapy sessions for clients to achieve the desired goal. It can be ranged from individual to small group sessions.

In sydney,the only nordoff robbins music therapy centre is located at penrith.

3. Special education schools
At special education schools,we assist students in achieving social,cognitive,physical,psychological and well being goals.

4. Disability and rehabilitation centres
Different disability and rehabilitation centres provides different levels of care for the residents. Music therapy programmes that are offered in the centres facilitates physical,cognitive,social,psychological and well being goals.

5. Nursing homes and palliative care services
Music therapists provides support at nursing homes especially those with dementia,alzehimers's disease.

6. Schools
Sometimes we organise some school programmes catered for schools with students with particular needs,such as learning or emotional difficulties. It is usually held before or after school,or it incorporates with the school program.

7. Local communities
Yes, we can provide services at local communities!

Community music therapy programmes offer services such as community music therapy choirs,community drumming groups and community music groups for the local community to join!

8.Non government organisations
Volunteer organisations
Refugee and migrant services

non government organisations provide music therapy services within a special program.

9. Allied health centres
With Speech therapists, Occupational therapists,Physiotherapists,counsellors and other health professionals

10. Others...

As you can see,we really work wherever you can think of and wherever is needed!
Need us?
please contact us if needed!

Best wishes,
Hanna

Nordoff Robbins music therapy.

Dear all,

How are you going?

I want to share with you about music therapy training. I'm trained by the specialisation of Nordoff Robbins music therapy - Music transforming lives! I believe in Nordoff Robbins because of the power of music to transform lives, and the belief of everyone's got their potential to be maximised!
    
I get really teary each time I watch this video as well... :)
 
 
Paul Nordoff and special educator Clive Robbins who first developed the creative music therapy approach. This approach focuses on awakening an inborn musicality in every client in order to develop his or her full potential as a human being. In creative music therapy we use improvised live music to build a relationship between therapist and clients where clients interact and communicate directly through music. It is an interactive and participatory form of therapy where the music acts as the agent for change and healing.
 
 
 
Best regards,
Hanna

My Contacts!

 
Here is my contacts which you may save it if you wish :)
 
Looking forward to meeting you all!
 
Best regards,
Hanna

Wednesday 14 January 2015

Time management and scheduling, and some good readings :)

Hey all,

how are you?
 I've found some great blogs and resources online, which I would like to share them wtih you :



Time management and scheduling
http://musictherapyroundtable.com/2011/09/episode-20-scheduling-time-management.html
This is a very good music therapy resource about time managing and time scheduling!


Another good read on setting music therapy goals and objectives:
https://voices.no/index.php/voices/article/view/362/285


best regards,
Hanna

Sunday 11 January 2015

Art therapy class for mental health inpatients
 

 
Let me share some thoughts of my observations of participating in an art therapy inpatient session.
 
Patients were asked to draw in a circle shared with other patients, with freedom of anything they think of to draw. With a freedom on a blank sheet of big paper stretched along the big table, a lot of them found it hard to make a start. However, after a while, most of them start drawing silently in their own styles. Some tend to fill up all the space with a lot of different strokes, some tend to draw individual shapes and icons on the paper. Some used lines and strokes, some used shapes and patterns. Some used only B & W, some tried to use the same type of pen, some filled it with different colours.
 
Afterwards, they were asked to let go of their drawing and swap their drawing with another patient. Interestingly, they're willing to give up their own drawings, and started to draw on others. Some tried to fill others' blank spaces in between, while some extended some ideas the previous patient had. When the previous patient saw what the patient was drawing on , they complimented that it made it prettier, and appreciated it a lot!
 
One patient found that she tend to be obsessed with drawing a specifc pattern, and couldn't get it out of mind. She kept drawing it, and said her mind was blown by it and had to leave.
 
It was a good thing to recognise what your mind gets stuck with.
Have you recognised your inner pattern? What do you tend to draw?