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
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