music, therapy, and me

After many, MANY years of being a music therapist, I FINALLY figured out what HAS to be part of every single Therapeutic Music Experience (AKA: intervention, activity, application, interaction - whatever you call what you do with clients within the structure of your music therapy sessions) - are you ready? The DESIRED OUTCOME! That's it. That is the essential element of every single TME - you have to know what the end goal is of this form of therapy before you can accurately provide experiences that assist the client in accomplishing that end goal. I am embarrassed how long it took me to put this together. In my opinion, every single music therapy student should know this from the very first time that they sit down to write a therapeutic music experience! I have found that many of us know this thing a bit, but most of us don't realize the importance of knowing what the end goal is when we start the process of therapeutic intervention. I often think about this from the perspecti...

Last week, I wrote a bit about my latest quest to organize myself and my ideas. This has come out of many years of using different systems and finding that I didn't keep going with any of them. I turned to what I do well - planning in my planners - and adapted that idea into a new system. It's been happening for two weeks now, so I'm feeling pretty good about this particular system. (If you are interested in reading the original post, click here .)  So, it has been another week of brainstorming and figuring things out on paper in my little book. I keep it in my backpack so I can transport it from work to home and back again due to the fact that ideas come to me at all times. I have found several song post-its that have made their ways into the TME book for storage until I transcribe them into my TME database. My ideas book has several thoughts about upcoming uses for my new technology. My calendar book is the most unused part of the book so far, but I anticipate it will be ...

Well, hello there. It is time to start reading my book again - Emotional Processes in Music Therapy , by John Pellitteri. I am in Chapter Four and have reached page 78. There are about 160 pages to go before I hit the references. Let's see if I can get to the end of this book by the end of the calendar year... Anyway, time to head back into the ideas... Emotional States - p. 78 - emotional states are "inferred constructs." I like this statement because it means that all states have to be interpreted - either by the person experiencing them or by others who are observing specific behaviors. There are five theories shared in the text - each of these is based on the research and information from specific researchers. Physiological-Behavioral - James-Lange Cognitive Appraisal Theory - Lazarus Cognitive View - Implicit Memory Model Physiological-Cognitive - Schachter & Singer Social-Cognitive - Sociology, Cultural Psychology In these different foundational emotional theori...

I have both a to-do list and a not-to-do list. The not-to-do list is one that I visit every so often - not as frequently as the to-do list, but I have recently found that I am needing to rethink what is on the not-to-do list. At the moment, there are items on the list that are no longer relevant or important to me, so it is time to revisit this not-to-do compilation. Now, because I try my best to be a positive type person, I will try to remember to write these things down in a way that allows me to frame these not-to-dos in ways that encourage me to do things a bit differently rather than assigning blame or shame on myself. The Not-To-Do List I will do my best to remember the following things... Rush - It is not necessary to rush through things or experiences or conversations. There is no place that I have to be that is more important than watching a sunrise or talking to someone who needs some connection. Worry - One of my favorite quotations (that I first heard in Van Wilder) is ...

My word for this year is "Deepen." I selected this word way back in December 2020, and it seems to encapsulate all of my intentions for the year of 2021 - it worked for me, and it still does. I am thinking I might want to keep the same word for 2022. For me, this word means to take what I know and learn more. It means to explore stronger relationships with my clients in and out of the music therapy session. It means to actively explore things that elude me and to seek out new opportunities. This past week, I have been taking some time to deepen my knowledge of Google Slides as a teaching mechanism. If you are new here, here is a bit of background for you. As a school-based music therapist in my particular job, I have done almost every role that others have done EXCEPT live telehealth situations. Many of my peers in our Monthly Music Therapy Meets have been doing sessions virtually with their clients. I have not had to do that, mainly because my facility does not have the tech...

My posts for the past two days have been nothing but complaining about all the stuff happening in my life, so I have been at a loss about what to write that isn't just me being in the throes of grief and constant stress. So, this is me trying to acknowledge what is going on in my life while still trying to present a firm and calm position. It is not going to be easy. The latest stressors that have appeared are broken toilets in my home and my sister's home being in the path of a wildfire. Ugh. We have had enough going on.  Anyway... Let's see if I can come up with something to write about that is not all about me. I'm tired of writing about these things, so it is time to take a step towards finding different content topics. Julie Palmieri over at Serenade Designs often offers suggestions for blog posts and different marketing ploys, and I enjoy reading those suggestions. I do not often write about her ideas or use them in my own posts, but they are out there for anyone ...

I am in a season of experimentation and change in how I do many things. Perhaps this is spurred on by the constant changes that are occurring in my life - personal as well as professional. Perhaps this is just me trying to gain control over SOMETHING! Who knows?? I am starting some new routines and thoughts as I am in this season of evolution as a person. One of those changes is to increase the purposeful use of materials that I already have available to me. This post, of course, is focused on my therapeutic music experience (TME) file and format. After all, it is Tuesday. I am sitting here, getting ready to start my first breathing treatment of the day after deciding to take the day away from work so I can use all the medications that science has given me to control my breathing, and I am thinking about some of the things that I have been working on recently. Does anyone know how I am organizing my thoughts?? Time to get my camera (and the nebulizer) so I can show you instead of tryin...

I am sitting here, waiting until it is time to leave my home for the hour-long drive to my place of full-time work. I am not sure how many clients will be present for the sessions that we have scheduled due to another COVID-19 outbreak and the rapid nature of kids who are getting sick. I know that my only individual session will not be happening, and it will be interesting to see who is missing from group sessions today. We had an all-staff meeting on Thursday or Friday - I can't remember right now which day it was - to talk about the fact that we are still at "business as usual" stage right now. My school district has decided that masks are optional. My facility has decided that masks are mandatory. We have to follow school district mandates rather than our facility mandates. I have not stopped wearing my mask because I do not want this virus at all. I asked for some information on when we were going to shift from in-person teaching to some other format. What are the cri...

It has been a week since I felt motivated at all to sit down and write. There has been lots happening in my life that have spiraled out of control lately, so it has been a difficult week on many levels. Please indulge me as I deviate from my planned post to a catch up type of post as I am trying really hard to figure some things out and move forward in a vastly changed and constantly changing world. This post contains some discussion about grief and loss, so if these topics are not something you feel equipped to go through right now, please do not hesitate to stop reading and leave this place at any time. I am finding that these topics are difficult for me to experience vicariously at the moment, but I am living some of this, so it is something that I need to write about. Last Sunday afternoon, my Aunt called me to tell me that my cousin had been found, deceased. My cousin had left her home where she lived with her parents, two weeks before and was not responding to phone calls, texts,...

When last I was reading the book, Emotional Processes in Music Therapy by John Pellitteri, I was starting into the second part of the book - "Foundations." I had explored a bit of emotion theory and some processes that have been mapped in the brain. As I continue to read, I am struck by the amount of research that has been accomplished into understanding emotions and our brains, and, again, by how much we still do not know. For example. Panksepps, in 2000, can identify specific brain areas and associated neurochemicals associated with certain emotions, but at the time of publication, had not mapped those pathways activated during the experiences of said emotions (p.72). What an interesting time we live in. Moving forward now... Some things that I want to remember from my reading today: p. 73 - "emotional elicitors are closely intertwined with the emotional states that they invoke." external or internal; sensory channels constantly accept information from inside and...

I have been offering free intern webinars for about nine years now (I think it's that long...it might only be seven years...hm), and I have never had times when there wasn't someone attending. This series of webinars, though, has been rotten for attendance. My policy is that I wait only 5 minutes. If no one shows up, then I close the webinar and go into my evening routine. This series, I have had two sessions with no show interns. It is very strange to me, but my policy stands. Five minutes. That is all that I am willing to sit and wait for a group of people who are expecting to access my knowledge, wisdom, and experience. That's it. Five minutes. This decision has made me feel a bit guilty lately, but I am working through those feelings. I offer these experiences for free. I give information and knowledge away, and it takes a chunk of time out of my evenings to do this service for interns. If they can't be bothered to show up, then I should (goblin!) not be feeling gui...

My missing client has been found alive. That's all that I am allowed to say about the circumstances, but at least this had a relatively good ending. I am not good in situations like this. I tend to feel way too much and so I try to disconnect myself from emotion when things are uncertain. I also tend to spend way too much time imagining worst case scenarios and getting myself ready for what could happen rather than doing much of anything else. The conclusion to this story is an answer to prayer. As I was driving into the sun yesterday afternoon, I prayed for a resolution to this situation because the not knowing what was happening was affecting all of us. We needed an answer, so I asked for an answer. We went to sleep not knowing what was going on but knowing that everyone who could was looking for this person. I awoke very early this morning and felt that we knew something. I didn't find out that this person had been found, alive and unharmed, until I got myself up and over to...

There are some strange things happening this time of year with my clients - things that I cannot reveal but that have never happened before and that are really concerning. Granted, these strange things are not happening to many of my students, but that does not relieve any of the worry, concern, and fear that any of us have for the ones that are in this spot. Since I can't write about specifics about any of my clients, I am thinking about what it means to be a therapist and to care for other people. One of my favorite visuals is called the SmartTherapist Manifesto. Unfortunately, the website that originated this wonderful visual has "retired" (in website speak), but the visual lives on in other posts - here is one where you can see the visual that I'm talking about on the right side of the page - Look for the SmartTherapist Manifesto . I love this visual (which is a variety of print on a paper in a variety of fonts and colors that includes the following statements) be...

Every year around this time, a song starts to circle around in my head. It is not really a song that I enjoy listening to very much, but it is there and it just keeps circling around and around. I haven't used it much in therapy sessions (especially not lately as it is an older type song - one from when I was young, so...you know), but it gets in my brain and just keeps going. The song? Back to School from Grease 2.   Now, perhaps you are one of the people in the world who have never heard this song before. That is perfectly fine, but let me tell you, it is one that really struck a chord with me (pun intended) and has special meaning this time of year because...(wait for it)...we are going back to school. Here is a link to this song via YouTube . Now it can be stuck in your head as well. I don't think I have ever officially written a therapeutic music experience (TME) for this song before, so let's go into TME development. First step, find the lyrics to look at. Second ste...

It is the first day of school, and I am feeling sucked in by my tradition of self-examination and goal setting. I am actively trying to avoid said tradition because I am finding that my goal writing skills are wonderful, but my goal achievement skills really vacuum! I seem to like writing goals but not doing the work to achieve those same goals. So, I am not going to make goals for this school year (at least, nothing formal...yet). I do not know if I can keep this going for the entire school year, but I am trying, so we will find out. I've been doing this in my personal life for several months now. I am feeling less self-imposed guilt over not doing the things that I have flagged as important. I am hoping to find a way into completing tasks that does not include writing goals. This goes against every single trained music therapy impulse in my body, but I am trying to be strong!! So, in the void created by not writing goals for this new school year, I am going to take stock of sever...