Music Therapy

Music therapy, under the umbrella of psychotherapy, is an evidence-based clinical use of musical interventions to improve the quality of life of clients. Music expresses the emotions of a person. There are two types of emotions namely positive (happy) and negative (sad).  
The purpose of music therapy is to satisfy an individual’s emotional needs and also to find the real inner-self and self-potential.

There are two types of music therapy:

1. Receptive music therapy ( patient only listens to music)
2. Active music therapy (Patient participates in activities like singing or playing musical instruments)

Many activities are included in music therapy such as:
Listening to songs, drumming, vocals,guitar rhythm, and piano, listening to instrumental music.

Patient follows the activities as per instructions. Therapist helps patient to take musical therapy like Receptive music therapy to just listen to music by the musical instruments or device audio. In the other therapy like active music therapy, patient participates in activities like playing some musical instruments, singing some songs, writing songs and creating new songs with the therapist.

Binaural Beats for Depression
For reducing the symptoms of depression, listening to Binaural Beats with alpha, delta or theta music can offer the benefits like Deep relaxed state,improved mood and improved motivation.528 Hz frequency is the best mode of frequency to reduce the anxiety, depression and daily stress. 528 Hz frequency leads to positive transformation, mindfulness, helps to take deep sleep and increases the endurance power.

Mood enhancing chemical
As per scientific study, it is shown that by listening to sound of music there is release of mood enhancing chemicals in the brain.

More engagement in music increases
The power of concentration, attention, mood flexibility, awareness of responsibility, responsibility of organization, self-expression and communication, motivation and good leadership quality.

How musical therapy effect’s our brain?
Music directly affects the senses. Consequently, we get a multi-sensory experience (Visual, auditory and tactile).Music directly affects the person’s emotional, physical and cognition functions.

Neurotransmitter chemicals- Happy hormones:
Neurotransmitter chemical - dopamine levels are increased by listening to music. Dopamine also known as the motivation molecule of our brain enables us to feel the pleasures of life, to be happy and refreshed.The picture shows a graphical representation how music therapy affects various parts of the brain positively.

Music therapy has gained prominence in the recent years as a simple, inexpensive and handy way of dealing with psychological issues. More research is underway to reinforce the status of music therapy as an established mainstream aspect of psychotherapy.

Written by:

Bharat

Intern, Brain Behaviour Research Foundation of India