Sponsor Info

I got in contact with my sponsor, Lauren, through email this week. We caught up and I asked a few questions that some people and myself were having about the field.

Definition.

Lauren gave me her view of what music therapy actually is - an evidence-based clinical use of musical interventions to improve clients' quality of life. It allows people to have a voice when they're struggling and gives them a place to share their emotions through music. It is used in many medical and educational settings to assist these individuals. Music therapy works alongside other therapies such as speech, occupational, and physical to help better the patients condition. It is not claiming to "heal" anyone in a medical sense. However, there are many studies that prove how it helps.

Gabby Giffords (pictured to the left) suffered a severe brain injury during an assassination attempt. Music therapy was used in her recovery process, along with many other medical interventions, which eventually led to her overcoming her aphasia - a medical diagnosis that causes brain damage to the language pathways in the brain's left hemisphere. She was able to re-train her brain to use a less-traveled pathway leading to the same destination.

What music therapy is not:

- Somebody singing to a sick patient or loved one

- A piano player in the lobby of a hospital

- A music teacher working with special needs students

- A clinical psychologist playing music for their client

In order to become and practice music therapy, you need to complete a four-year undergraduate program and complete a 1000 hour internship. You then have to become board-certified through taking a test.

Typical Day.

The typical day really depends on where the therapist works and what population they work with. Some different places you'll find them are in hospitals, schools, geriatric facilities, and psychiatric facilities. For Lauren, since she is a therapist and educator, this allows her to use both degrees on a daily basis. Many of her students struggle with behavioral, emotional, physical, and other disabilities. In one of her education settings, she works with medically fragile children who cannot go out to school, therefore she goes to where they live in order to give them their music class. Many of these students do not respond the same way we all would, so she uses music therapy strategies when working with them.

Some of these children cannot talk, walk, sometimes can't see and, in many cases, are on ventilators and oxygen 24/7 because they can't even breathe on their own. By using various types of instruments, Lauren is able to try and stimulate them in an attempt to alert them to their surroundings. She plays these instruments at different volumes, and also engages their tactile senses by taking their hands so they can feel them. Since some cannot see well, she uses many techniques to encourage them to see the instruments as much as they can. Whether it's a black background, or even overhead/flashlights pointed at the instruments, it gives them a better opportunity to engage all their senses in this therapy experience. By utilizing these techniques, she can immerse them in learning about music, and also work towards her music therapy goals with them.

Although this is a lot of information, there is a main takeaway. For music therapy to actually be considered therapy, there needs to be a goal and a clear way to achieve said goal. It seldom works alone and is not a cure for any medical, psychiatric, or educational issues.