The Music Miracle: Instant or Process

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Every moment in a Music Therapy session is a miracle, why because you see life jerk dead cases, you see impossible cases bring hope.

Tinuola a FIRST class graduate of a prestigious university in Nigeria had a fatal accident on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, this accident was meant to end her life but somehow she survived as some good Samaritans came to her rescue right in time.

She was rushed to a nearby hospital, because of the state of the hospital she was unattended to for some few minutes even though it was glaring that it was an emergency case. This complicated issues as she bled a lot and was in pain.

Alas! She was attended to and a lot of checks, tests, drips and treatment was administered. After the doctor carried out the test, he discovered that she might not be able to walk with her legs again because it had been badly damaged by the accident which meant she had to be on a wheel chair for as long as…

Tinuola wept bitterly knowing this was the time she had to be there for her parents who were doing averagely well, she knew there were lots of responsibilities on her and she there wasn’t enough fund to even take care of her bills. Thinking of this day in day out was both depressing for herself and her family.

She got lots of job offers but she couldn’t walk and work because of the condition she was in. This day a music therapist who earlier volunteered to work at the hospital took note of her and patiently listened to her story, this welled up empathy in him and thought to himself, I need to work on this.

Work started and then this Music Therapist played calming music that would make her mind wander away from the pain, he would also put the stereo on while he was away just to help her express emotions through music. She expressed her fears in tears, the pain of never having to fulfill her dreams and the feeling of what her condition might be causing the family and as days rolled by, she find herself jerking away from all of the fears.

The Music Therapist taught to himself, this might be a good time to work on your mobility, so everyday he made use of his violin to play marching rhythms and on other occasions, he used his guitar in playing marching rhythms, encouraging her with support from the Physiotherapist to move step by step.

This happened for about a month or thereabout and everyday her legs were gradually strengthened, she could stand 2 minutes and could move a short while.

In a month’s time, she found herself moving so well and of course was later discharged.

I shared this story to let you know that the miracle in Music Therapy does happen in an instant and also happens in a process, it is most times a process, a Music Therapist sees the need to first begin working on the mind of the patient, ripping him or her of the fears and the walls that have been put up due to the accident or an ailment. The Miracle of seeing a patient jerk away from their fears might be so instant, in say maybe 4 or 5 hours thereabout or may even be more.

Let me make it more practical, flash your mind back to probably a time you were so down emotionally and a lot of things made you so fearful about life, putting on this music just all of a sudden brought you succor, making hope come alive in your heart. Can I get a witness on this? That moment when music jerked you off your fears, made you see better and hope again was a miracle produced by music.

However, many a times it is a long process (Had an experience like this in the hospital that I might probably share one of these days). Most times the miracle is in following through step by step.

A number of persons say to me, so patients just get healed like that with one strum on the guitar and I’m like No most times it is a process, sometimes tiring for the Music Therapist and might require them being there every time but always fulfilling at every stance of a miracle.

I hope you got something from this post. Below is a link to a video that helps you understand this better, kindly watch to the end.

Let me know what you think about this post and I love reading from you

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwfswoGxlNQ&t=600s

The Choral of Death

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Death has always been proud for it seems like no one is capable of overcoming it. Many are scared of it.

Mrs Chinwe, an important personality in the Federal Ministry of Works who just rose to the position of the Minister of Works in Nigeria had just returned from an official trip in the United States.

Having figured that it was already late in the night when they arrived, she decided she was just going to rest in her home. She told her Personal Assistant to let her entourage know that she was headed to the house.

The information got to everyone of them and excitement filled the air as many had not seen their family members in 2 months due to series of meetings, trainings and dinners.

As Madam Chinwe headed home, she was having a chit-chat with her Personal Assistant. As she discussed  her vision for the Ministry of Works, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her chest region and before Jack, she collapsed.

For some seconds, everyone was confused. They did not know what to do. Someone among them then screamed “HOSPITAL!!!”.

As they journeyed to the Hospital, everyone had different thoughts going on in their heads. While some thought it was because of the stress, others thought she had offended someone in the government who had sworn to deal with her.

In the midst of all that, they were interrupted by the security man at Alpha Clinic – “Why una plenty laidis?  Who una dey find for this kind time of the night?” which simply meant “Why are you guys plenty like this and who are you looking for at this time of the night?” (for my non-Nigerian followers).

Immediately someone responded from the car saying it’s the Minister of Works, they were eagerly allowed to go through.

When they got into the clinic, a series of test was conducted and it was discovered that she had cancer of the colon which had eaten deep into her body.

The Doctor further mentioned that there was little to which chemotherapy could do as she had about 2 months to live.It was a devastating moment. At least for people amongst them who truly cared about her.

Mrs Chinwe’s family was later contacted and informed. It was a painful, sober and tearful moment for them.

For the first few weeks, it was a pool of tears and pain in the hospital until this very day the Music Therapist, Fiona Akinwunmi walked into the hospital after returning from her leave of absence.  She was moved with so much empathy and then decided to begin taking sessions with Mrs Chinwe and her entire family.

She engaged them actively in music as they sang many songs laced with hope.

Day after day, the family got better and Mrs Chinwe’s death got nearer. On the final week before her death, they sang the song “When Peace like a river attendeth thy way, when sorrow like sea billows roar, whatever my lot thou art taught me to say It is well with my soul”.

As they sang this song, there was still pain.

However, with much hope they began talking about their favourite memories. There was this glow on Mrs Chinwe’s face as they sang and listened to music.

There was peace all over her.

The Music Therapist had helped the family deal with the painful thought of Death by echoing songs of hope over and over again while helping them bond. She had also helped Mrs Chinwe approach death with tranquility.

The Choral of death was sang and it healed their hearts, bringing peace as they approached the death occurrence.

While writing this story, it occurred more to me that a lot of patients with terminal illness will have probably been able to come to terms with their present state with tranquility if music therapy was introduced. I understand that Death is terrible and no one wants to watch their loved ones pass on especially when pain torments them.

Here is what I discovered; Music becomes therapeutic for dying patients and families of dying patients as they approach their last days. It also helps them relive memories that have be long forgotten and if recorded can bring the family succor when the person passes on.

Music Therapy might sometimes not improve a dying patient’s prognosis but it could distract them from the pain, the boredom, fear, frustration, anxiety they feel thereby helping them relax.

You will agree with me that the news of death coming soon for a patient is enough to cause an increase in blood pressure and heart rate, this is where Music Therapy comes in, it lowers blood pressure and heart rate. Patients become less agitated when Music Therapy is administered.

All of these is not to insinuate that Music Therapy does not help terminally ill or dying patients recuperate but to let you know that it can also be administered in a way that it makes them meet death with peace.

Whether Live or recorded music or engaging a patient with song writing, improvisations on a musical instrument, singing, lyrics analysis, guided imagery and so on, Music Therapy works perfectly for dying patients.

I would have loved to keep typing on the benefits of Music to dying patients but I’d not want to make this lengthy, so here is a video and an article below this post that can give a practical side or feel to this subject.

Let me know what you think about this post. I love reading from you.

SOURCES: https://health.usnews.com/wellness/mind/articles/2017-01-25/how-music-therapy-helps-terminally-ill-patients

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEP0Wms_5Dg

What then is Music Therapy about?

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Having delved into the root of Music Therapy, it is okay for us to see what Music Therapy exactly is. Is it just singing? Does it just have to do with just playing a musical instrument to a patient? Is it just about the therapist doing or about both patient and therapist doing?

Brace Up! This is going to be an amazing ride, Music Therapy is one that has been defined by many but there is a unifying similarity in all of the definitions.

The American Music Therapy Association defines Music Therapy as an established health profession in which music is used within a therapeutic relationship to address physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs of individuals.

Merriam Webster dictionary defines it as therapy based on engagement in musical activities : the therapeutic use of music (as to reduce anxiety, improve cognitive functioning, promote physical rehabilitation, or enhance interpersonal communication) that typically involves listening to music, singing, playing musical instruments, or composing music.

Simply put, Music therapy is medicine in music; it is music in the healing process of a patient.

Music Therapy does not just happen, Music Therapists makes them happen. Who are Music Therapist? Music therapists are the amazing humans who use music to help individuals of all ages who are experiencing emotional or mental problems, or who have learning or physical disabilities or physical illnesses.

More definitions might just bore you but here is it in all of these definitions, Music is the connecting factor between the Patient, the Music Therapist and possibly the family of the Patient.

You might have been asking yourself, how does a Music Therapy session work? Do they just sing or play instruments as an individual or group? The simple answer to this is that Music Therapy sessions are dynamic, it is tailored to the need of an individual or group so it tells you that a Music Therapist doesn’t work by assumption or generalize even when persons having the exact same ailment come to the clinic for a session 2 days apart. There is a lot of observation that goes on before a music therapy session happens.

However even though the sessions are dynamic, you can expect certain expressions like song writing, improvisation through singing or playing of musical instruments, listening to music, discussion on lyrics and so on. All these is aimed at one thing WELLNESS. Music Therapy helps social skills, motor skills, cognitive skills, speech and lots more.

Beneath this post is the link to a video of one way Music Therapy sessions can be conducted, kindly let me know what you think about it.

Kindly leave your comment below on what you think about this post. I love reading from you.

Thank You

SOURCES: https://www.musictherapy.org/about/musictherapy/ https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/music%20therapy

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIsiC0Cf95I

Music Therapy and Medicine: A Dynamic Partnership

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Today I do a review of a TEDTalk by Dr Deforia Lane that I love so much and don’t think I’ll ever stop loving. Dr Deforia shares on Music Therapy and Medicine being a dynamic Partnership. This Ted Talk was done in 2016.

Honestly, this might not be your kind of perfect review but be sure to gain something, you’d see the synergy that can occur with Music Therapy and Medicine. This review is also meant to be long but I’d pick one or two things to expand on here so it doesn’t get excessively long, I might put up the rest sometimes in the nearest future.

Before I jump right into this let me give you a background knowledge of who Dr Deforia is, she is a Resident Director of Music Therapy at the University Hospitals of Cleveland Ireland Cancer Center and holds a Ph.D. in Music Education from Case Western Reserve University. She has designed and implemented music therapy programs for diverse populations. More importantly is that she is a cancer survivor which I believe must have inspired her to be passionate about the field of Music Therapy. She is the first music therapist to receive a grant to study music’s therapeutic effects on cancer patients.

Music Therapy and Medicine are two separate fields yet have this dynamic partnership that can improve wellness in our society, in this Review I’m not in any way about to bug you with lots of theory.

Music is in itself a connecting factor, it could by connection make a heart pump with blood again and just like the the red and yellow wire coming together to give light, it could light up a place or heart. The synergy of Music Therapy and Medicine makes it even more beautiful.

Dr Deforia tells of the story of a 20 year old lady who was pregnant and was brain-dead, I mean inactive in this case, she was taken to the Intensive Care Unit with the baby in her, if you are a Nigerian you’d understand that one of the most scary statements to hear is that a loved one’s case has deteriorated to the point of being taken to the Intensive Care Unit, you’d understand how expensive it is to have a person here.

Back to my story, Dr Deforia developed cold feet when called upon to administer Music Therapy to the child in this young lady’s womb because they figured out that since this lady was close to death’s door, there was no way she could push forth her child and of course they didn’t want to lose the baby also. Deforia looked at the protruded belly and began singing “He’s got the whole world in His hands” and this baby began to dance under her fingers, so much courage was infused by this happening. She moved to a fast-paced song and the baby danced faster under hands and His heart went up immediately.

Understand that this child was about to die because his mum could not stimulate his coming to the world because she was brain dead and as a matter of fact was on life support. The Doctors and Nurses knew there was a high possibility of losing this child if something wasn’t done. At this point, the drips, tests and injection couldn’t work not because it was or is useless but because it wasn’t in their place to do so.

It is safe to say that human’s heart beat responds quickly to Music Therapy than any other form of therapy. It is also safe to conclude in the words of Dr Deforia that life on the inside responds to music on the outside. Music Therapy acts as stimulant in dead cases.

I strongly believe that for a synergy or a dynamic partnership to happen between this fields in this part of Africa, it must come with appreciating each field’s wiring and knowing where and when to come in to improve human wellness.

I have always been of the opinion that there is so much we can do when we collaborate. So kindly think of this post as a collaboration. In this, we understand that one doesn’t dull the other’s shine or makes the other feel less important. Both fields are equally important, playing its role in the wellness of patients.

I also believe that Music Therapy and Medicine’s partnership will be a major stress reliever in this part of Africa. I mean Doctors and Nurses in this part of Africa are amazing honestly, how they do everything despite the weather sometimes, the many demands on them and lots more.

I’d put the link to the TED Talk at the end of this post so you can see the video yourself, have a practical feel or side to Music Therapy and also let me know what you think.

SOURCES: https://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/DeforiaLane.html https://www.verywellfamily.com/reasons-for-therapeutic-termination-2371295

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGnWyS2Y4r8

The African ROOT

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I am sure in the last one week we have had questions of whether this kind of therapy has any root in Africa as a whole. Whether or not there is a traceable history of Music Therapy in Africa is what is about to be unveiled here.

Goodnews! Music Therapy in Africa is traceable, its as old as tradition itself, it may not have been documented or even given a definite name as we have it now but it has long been existent.

Just a background knowledge of Africa for my non-African followers, Africa is the second largest continent in the world with about 1.2 billion people of the world’s population as of 2016. Africa has a very rich and beautiful cultural heritage, among the many continents in Africa are Nigeria, Egypt, Republic of Benin, Rwanda, Republic of Congo, Kenya and so on.

I’m sure by now you already have a little background knowledge of the continent Africa. There has been a question if Music Therapy has ever existed in Africa. Learning about this, I was thrilled at such rich`history Africa has and in this post I will be sharing a few.

In Africa, music is seen in every stage of life, from birth to death. Every transition or call it change in status calls for the use of music, from birth to adulthood to marriage to death.

The inception of Music Therapy in Africa has been since Ancient times, although there were few written records, most of the information have been by oral transmission which is passed down from one generation to another.

In Ancient Egypt, ancient man used singing and dancing as a part of his rituals to throw out the evil spirits, which were waiting to attack him with several diseases. Abidos Temple was the biggest center of medicine in Ancient Egypt and the priests treated diseases with chant. It was discovered that there was a saint called Abu Terbo who treated epilepsy using pipes chant. Egyptian priests and physicians alluded music as medicine for the soul, chant therapies were also included as part of the medical practice. Below this post is a link to a video of Ancient Egypt healing Music, listen and let me know your thoughts about it.

In some other parts of Africa also, Music Therapy was also instrumental in TRADITIONAL HEALING. For example in Nigeria, it was embedded in culture and was mostly performed by native doctors. For Non-Africans, NATIVE DOCTORS are not the same as HOSPITAL DOCTORS, they are doctors who use traditional prescriptions and carry out rituals also. These Native Doctors had specialty in healing with the use of ritual music.

Traditional healing had a lot to do with SPECIFICS, that is there had to be a SPECIFIC song to be sung, a SPECIFIC time of the day or night and a SPECIFIC traditional instrument had to be used for this purpose, it was not just done without restraints.

Professor Mereni, the foremost forerunner of Music Therapy in Nigeria conducted a research in the town Irigwe in Plateau state of Nigeria. He discovered that the traditional medicine man called Nevo prescribed the “Sa rije” ritual, this is a ritual characterized by music and dance and is used as treatment for women suffering from a syndrome known as “Ci rima”.

A patient with “Ci rima” syndrome had the following symptoms; prolonged abnormal pains, vomiting, persistent diarrhea, hallucination, fever and prolonged loss of appetite. While this happens, the “Nevo” prescribed the music ritual ceremony known as “Sa rije”. It was then used in the treatment of the woman suffering from Ci rima syndrome. It is said that certain patterns of music were used as the Nevo observed the patient and gave traditional treatment.

This sums up the fact that Music Therapy has been long existent and also it wasn’t just administered anyhow, they had to follow traditions and cultures.

Despite the viability of Music Therapy since Ancient times, it is one that is still not recognized in many parts of the continent Africa today.

Let me know what you think about this post also in the comment section below. I love reading from you!

Thank you for reading through. Lots of Love!

SOURCES: https://voices.no/community/index.html?q=country-of-the-month%252F2012-music-therapy-nigeria

http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.508.4197&rep=rep1&type=pdf https://voices.no/community/index.html?q=country-of-the-month%252F2005-music-therapy-egypt

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2FW2EairNU

The Root

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History is needed to understand the field of MUSIC THERAPY. Just like every other thing in life did not just happen but was instigated by some persons, events, situations and so on so also is MUSIC THERAPY.

The History of Music and its affiliation to humanity goes way back to the beginning of time; the more the world becomes civilized, the more it affects people and their use of Music.

The early Native Americans, this was Ancient Civilization, they used music in communicating with their gods and nature, they also used this as a healing tool and a way to have camaraderie within their communities.

They were in the habit of coming together as a tribe to chant, dance and pray for their loved ones who were sick. How sweet you might say!

Still in Ancient civilization, there was Mania and Catharsis, they were popular terms in the ancient Greece. Mania had to do with mental illness while Catharsis had to do with the purging of soul through music.

Music in Ancient Greece was mainly used for purgative effect and to transit into the dreamland in such a way that they could or would return with pleasant dreams (I think this happens to me too). The flute was a major musical instrument used for this purpose.

The Pythagoreans employed a daily routine of music therapy. They enjoyed music before retiring to bed after a long day and it helped them to calm down, it also gave them a good night’s sleep with pleasant dreams. At the dawn of a new day, they performed special compositions on the lyre, which helped them to jiggle the daydreams from the night before and prepare for the intense rhythms of the day. The Pythagoreans probably had knowledge of the relationship between musical rhythm and temperament, and applied musical prescriptions based on their circumstance.

In addition to therapeutic songs from Ancient Greece were Curative songs called Epodes. This was more like a magical spells and it was said to have been instrumental in healing heartbreaks. So you know that songs for heartbreaks didn’t just start today.

At this point Music Therapy had not been defined yet as a professional practice until the end of World War 11.

This is why the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) gives credit to Ancient Civilization for the start of Music Therapy, in their words, “The idea of music as a healing influence which could affect health and behavior is as least as old as the writings of Aristotle and Plato”

At the end of World War 11, Music Therapy became a recognized treatment in the United States, between I read a very interesting story on this and I hope to share both the write up I have done on it and the video I was privileged to see.

Back to my story or history as the case may be, Nurses and Doctors recognized how music helped patients who had severe physical and emotional trauma due to the war.

Because of this, they thought to consider the start of an Institute of Education where people who were passionate about the field of Music Therapy could professionally practice music in a medical society.

This became the official start of Music Therapy!

Okay! Let me know what you think about this post as I am looking forward to your questions, contributions and critique. I love reading from you.

Thank You!

SOURCES: http://www.greece-is.com/music-therapy-in-ancient-greece/

https://petersonfamilyfoundation.org/music-therapy/science-music-therapy/

MY PROJECT JOURNEY 2

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Research on music therapy shows that listening to music engages sub-cortical and cortical areas of the brain. Music has been shown to stimulate the brains’ primary engine of human capacity, exercises attention, evokes emotional response and stimulates the central nervous system. It also appears to activate the human mirror-neuron system, supporting the coupling between perceptual events (visual or auditory) and motor actions (leg, arm/hand, or vocal or articulatory actions). At one time, theories of human brain development argued that there was little or no growth of brain cells after age 30 but recent studies of music and the brain have shown this view to be erroneous. The brain is a plastic organ and music has the power to shape the brain’s development into later life. The implication of these findings is huge. Providing opportunities for people to experience music in many settings can have a profound impact on their healthy development.

Music has long been recognized as a powerful force in rehabilitative treatment, used clinically to address impairments in motor function, language, cognition, sensory processing, and emotional disturbances that can result from brain injury. It has been used successfully to induce cognitive repair in patients with stroke, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, or traumatic brain injury. Indeed, music has the potential to “fix” the brain, by providing an alternative entry point into a “broken” brain system to remediate impaired neural processes or neural connections.

Back to my story, I went on to administer music therapy to this young girl. I switched on the music on my phone and she began loosening up, then I picked up my guitar and started singing. Before I could say jack, her eyes were dried and she reached for a pen and began writing. For autistic children, writing is usually a challenge so you can imagine how much my heart leaped with joy when she began writing herself.

We can imagine that her mum tried using nonmusical tones to communicate with her but it turned sour but at the sound of music she not only did what she wanted her to do but she did more by writing. This amplifies research findings that Music is read differently in the brain than nonmusical tones.

Amina returned home happy and I returned curious about this aspect of Therapy and eager to raise an awareness of it’s potency.
Stay glued to my blog as I enlighten you every week on Music Therapy.

MY PROJECT JOURNEY 1

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I started my project early enough and I had to visit the hospital which was situated in Lagos a number of times for approval, that meant I had to travel from time to time since my school was in Ile-Ife Osun State. Traveling didn’t feel like a burden to me because I was eager to see the wonders of music.
I visited the hospital about two times before my project work with them was approved and they asked that I be posted to the children section of the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital which is situated in Oshodi, Lagos State.
I was slated to work with children ages 4-10 years but during the course of the project I worked on teenagers too.
One experience that stood out for me was an autistic child who I would love to give the fictional name, Amina. Amina is a child of 10 years who has lived with autism since she was a year old. Week-in, week-out, she came with her mum to the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Annex at Oshodi to see the doctor, get medications , attend educational therapy and what have you.
So this day, she came in sobbing and I had so much empathy on her that I would have shed a tear. Her mum said to me, “She likes covering her face whenever she steps into a room filled with people but I discouraged her from doing this which leads her to always cry”. This scenario is common with children with this disorder because of their poor social skills
I’m sure you might be curious as to what happened next, how I was able to manage an autistic child who was sobbing, knowing the struggles of children who live with this ailment…


Watch out for my next blog post.

Have a great week ahead!

WHY MUSIC THERAPY?

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I ask myself this question every time, today again I’m still asking myself same question only that I’m taken down memory lane this time around.

In 2013 while seated in a class, we had just resumed into the university and the fire to have an amazing CGPA was burning in us, well maybe not everyone but I was burning with that fire to do better than I have done all my life.

We had this course MUS 101 this very day and it had to do with the introduction to Music, I was so eager to learn because I knew no Jack in music except singing. While my lecturer was lecturing on the different kinds of music, she got to the therapeutic side of music and mentioned that this kind of music can affect the mood of a person, it can make you sober, hyper and can even make a person decide to commit murder.

In my mind I’m like are you for real? Then the interest started, I felt I had found something different that I could do with music other than organise concerts, sing in a choir, go for shows, release an album and what have you but sorry to disappoint you it only took a little while, the fire died😣.


Fast forward to my 300 level 2nd semester I began thinking frantically about what my project topic will be, I wasn’t jelled by the usual and I wanted something that I’d enjoy doing and wouldn’t feel like a burden to me.
This day I was in my aunt’s place and for no reason I passed by on a scene they were seeing on African Magic and this guy was just talking about the potency of music in the healing of Psychiatric Patients. Boom! That was it, I found it and went ahead to write my options to the department and fortunately for me I got it.


I was going to be working on the Effect of Music Therapy on Psychiatric Patients using Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Yaba as case study.
My story is getting too long, maybe I should leave your mind to wonder what happened next and how I was able to manage Psychiatric Patients…

Catch you in the next blog post…