The Library Update - Week One
It is now the first week (+ one day) of my foray into my personal library. I have spent about an hour each day reading something in my music therapy library, and now it is time to start reflecting on that reading.
First, process reflection...
I set out to read a portion of a music therapy textbook for an hour every evening. Starting out, an hour was very easy to accomplish. As the week went on, though, other things started to intrude - work situations, medical issues, and disinterest in the subject matter started to interfere. CHALLENGE! I expanded my definition of "music therapy text" to include the songbooks that I also have been collecting for years and years and years. This appeared to be a solution for my unrest later in the week.
I read book chapters by Wigram, Baker, Plach, Campbell, Nygaard Pedersen, Hirsch, Jellison, and Bonde. I also found musical inspiration in some of my songbooks from the Wee Sing series.
The process is interesting. I take some time at the end of each reading/note-taking session to process what I have read in a manner that applies the information to my current employment situation.
Secondly, information reflection...
I am trying to read more about psychodynamic techniques with children and adolescents with psychiatric diagnoses. As a therapist who was "raised" in a primarily-behavioral music therapy program, I am often at a loss on how to speak in psycho-speak, so I don't. As the population of kids that arrive at my facility has significantly changed in the past 5 years, I am finding that I need more guidance. So, off to the textbooks!
One of the problems that I have with many of the texts that I have in my library is that the skills needed or desired for clients to engage in psychodynamic processing are very abstract. It is difficult to engage folks with intellectual disabilities in lyric analysis when comprehension is a difficult task to begin with. I'm thinking that writings in play therapy and trauma sensitive care with persons with ID/DD may be more relevant than the current resources available in music therapy. Interesting...
Now, I am not saying that I am completely abandoning my behaviorist/ humanist philosophy of music therapy, but I recognize that there are things that I could do for my clients that I need more training to actually accomplish.
Good news - after one week of reading, I got to get a "special dessert" as a reward! I bought a Chocolat Xtreme Blizzard last night to savor over several days!
(In the interest of full honesty, I did not read last evening - too much going on - but I fully intend to spend two hours reading today to catch up! Up next?? Who knows!)
First, process reflection...
I set out to read a portion of a music therapy textbook for an hour every evening. Starting out, an hour was very easy to accomplish. As the week went on, though, other things started to intrude - work situations, medical issues, and disinterest in the subject matter started to interfere. CHALLENGE! I expanded my definition of "music therapy text" to include the songbooks that I also have been collecting for years and years and years. This appeared to be a solution for my unrest later in the week.
I read book chapters by Wigram, Baker, Plach, Campbell, Nygaard Pedersen, Hirsch, Jellison, and Bonde. I also found musical inspiration in some of my songbooks from the Wee Sing series.
The process is interesting. I take some time at the end of each reading/note-taking session to process what I have read in a manner that applies the information to my current employment situation.
Secondly, information reflection...
I am trying to read more about psychodynamic techniques with children and adolescents with psychiatric diagnoses. As a therapist who was "raised" in a primarily-behavioral music therapy program, I am often at a loss on how to speak in psycho-speak, so I don't. As the population of kids that arrive at my facility has significantly changed in the past 5 years, I am finding that I need more guidance. So, off to the textbooks!
One of the problems that I have with many of the texts that I have in my library is that the skills needed or desired for clients to engage in psychodynamic processing are very abstract. It is difficult to engage folks with intellectual disabilities in lyric analysis when comprehension is a difficult task to begin with. I'm thinking that writings in play therapy and trauma sensitive care with persons with ID/DD may be more relevant than the current resources available in music therapy. Interesting...
Now, I am not saying that I am completely abandoning my behaviorist/ humanist philosophy of music therapy, but I recognize that there are things that I could do for my clients that I need more training to actually accomplish.
Good news - after one week of reading, I got to get a "special dessert" as a reward! I bought a Chocolat Xtreme Blizzard last night to savor over several days!
(In the interest of full honesty, I did not read last evening - too much going on - but I fully intend to spend two hours reading today to catch up! Up next?? Who knows!)
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