The Effects of Music in Therapy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Effects of Music in Therapy - Essay Example In addition, individuals who have difficulties speaking after stroke, music therapy can stimulate language canters within the brain; thus, promoting the ability to sing. Playing music develops coordination of both gross and fine motor within people with impaired motor or neurological trauma because of stroke or head injury. Music therapy brings relaxation and has positive effects that enhance communication and emotional comfort; moreover, it enables recall of life experiences and emotional experiences. Music accompanies many, significant life events and in most cases the musical memories get stored for long periods compared to those that are not accompanied by music. Therefore, if words are no longer recognizable, familiar music offers a sense of comfort and safety thus decreasing anxiety. While cognitive and language functions deteriorate with age, many musical abilities seem preserved for longer periods. Music is universal to all human cultures and the capability to comprehend musi c is innate similar to communication. Melody in vocal communication results from roots of oral language and is possible to trace it together with human development; thus, music and language seem to have special features that offer music a chance to shape and improve language processing (Moreno 334). Both music and speech represent complex uses of sound by people and scientists have found that language and music share common areas in brain. Moreover, time organizes music and language; thus, language and music together with synapses that support them increase with time. Therefore, music and language rely on exposure to expand and they are both specific to culture since how English speakers organize words and music differs from how Japanese speakers organize their music and words. Learning through music is useful in strengthening non-musical areas like communication and physical coordination, which are essential to the functioning of everyday lives (Moreno 334-340). Music therapists us e music to foster self-expression among patients with emotional disorders, as well; they use receptive music listening to aid in training and physical rehabilitation of people suffering from neuromuscular conditions (Aldridge 18). Thus, music therapists employ lyric discussion to demonstrate and emphasize language thoughts in children or adults with brain injuries. Music therapists use developing knowledge to determine effective strategies for using music in rehabilitation of individuals with neurologic dysfunction resulting from traumatic brain injury. In this setting, music therapy is coordinated in accordance with other therapies to aid patients attain their cognitive, sensory-motor, communication and social aspirations of rehabilitation. Research shows that pairing music and physical therapies can improve cognition, communication and ease discomfort (Aldridge 25). Music is a sensory medium able to arouse the nervous system and cueing altered states of awareness in individuals (M oreno 339). Music therapy is an effective treatment for someone with low awareness states, whose receptive and expressive communication skills have severely been compromised. Music therapists believe that the fundamentals of communication are similar to those involved in music. Patients who have low awareness sta