Monday 2 February 2015

Proud to be an RMT! :)

Dear friends,
 
I am really excited about this amazing news!
 
 Good things come to those who wait...
 A moment been longing for - becoming a registered music therapist.
This is totally UNREAL!! :) :) :) (you could totally feel my excitement here!)
That means I am official to be able to organise, run and work,
and acknowledged by the Australian Music Therapy association   (http://www.austmta.org.au/)
This is definitely a milestone and I'm ready to face the challenges ahead!
 
A great friend of mine shared this newly released song :
"I am alive" by JJ Lin, ft Jason Mraz- It came in the right time !
 and yes , I am alive, I am ready! Never too late!
 
The lyric writes,
"When I fear the sky might fall
And no one will hear my call
I take a breath and see I’ve all the strength I need
---- I’m ready to catch The falling sky"
 
Best regards,
Hanna
 

My music therapy story :)

Dear all,

 How's your week been? Can't believe two months of 2015 has flown by so quickly!
It's been quite a long two months to start, with some holidays, and some small dramas happening, but mostly, good to start sessions and some things about work!

Music therapy is my dream from my teenage - it all started when I sat down after school, randomly came across a video documentary about music therapy. I vaguely remembered how clients in the hospital were wakened while the music therapist used different musical elements to interact with them, according to their responses. I was really moved by the scene when they have changed dramatically! I felt like I really knew what I wanted to do for life - to use music to improve other people's lives! I always loved to serve people, and I always loved to serve with my skills, and here it comes, the perfect match - music / health professions (Music therapy is an allied health professional that works with other therapists)!

(adapted from google)


Since then, I kept on pursuing my dream. I read lots of books, attended a lot of workshops about music therapy, went to some masterclasses, AMTA conferences, did some volunteering with people in different backgrounds/ needs, did some 'intern' about music therapy, and did a research project about music therapy! I also started guitar from scratch to do Music therapy (which I'm still working on it all the time!) After my Bachelor , and then my masters, I realised I've experienced more and more of the effect of music on our minds and bodies. I realised that it is my passion! I hope that the whole community would have a wider access to music therapy, and the public health service will be improved with improved allied health services.  I also found that I've changed a lot by learning lots in music therapy, with my clients, my supervisors. I've seen lives changing, I've seen myself changing, inside out!

And here I go, it's been a good 7 years altogether til where I am now, an RMT (registered music therapist)!

Do you have dreams? If you ever had dreams, don't think they're too far, they need to be chased, and it'll come closer to you! :)
Just dream big, work small, never give up, try it!
What's your story? Whatever your dream is, I'm keen to hear about it too! :)

Best regards,
Hanna

Childhood music group training day!


 Dear all,

How has music changed your day today? :)
 
 
I had an amazing day on the weekends on a training day with this energized team, Boppin' Babies! Our coordinator, with a few new and old Team leaders met up to look forward to 2015 to have a great kickstart for term 1! As you can see the pics adapted from the Boppin' Babies website, Boppin’ Babies is an early learning music program conducted with a music therapy focus. Having fun through musical play and taking joy in child’s musical expression is central to the program. Look at their smiles while playing the instruments!
 
It was really encouraging to see staff all over from melbourne, canberra, brisbane and sydney to gather around and talk about how music could engage the children. We use music to encourage and support:
• sensory integration
• self-regulation
• social skill development
• creativity and emotional expression
• speech and language skills
• gross and fine motor coordination, and confidence to move
• cognitive concepts and learning
• musical development
After a long day along with some nice outdoor picnic, after training wine and chats, I was really motivated to learn a lot of songs and to keep on my professional development after the training day, with songs looping on my head! (You know, children's songs are usually within an octave, usually in AB form, and easy to catch melodies that will keep ringing, ringing, ringing...)
 
You can watch the following video to have a snippet of it:
 
 
We always welcome new Boppers (That's how we call the chilren) and parents to join us!
For more information, to join a Bop group, or for enquiries,
please visit Boppin' Babies: http://www.boppinbabies.com.au/
 
 
 
Best regards,
Hanna