music, therapy, and me

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...

Yesterday, I sat down and wrote a long post about how I was feeling depressed and burned out completely with even the thought of having to work. I didn't publish it because there are times when my writing is just too raw for me to share. I left my home under a waning moon and drove to work. During my drive, I had a grief moment overtake me, so I was sobbing about the last Christmas and how my Dad cried when I gave him some computer speakers (because he knew he was dying and I think he realized he would never get to use those speakers), and it overwhelmed me. It still does as I am sitting here crying as well. I am not sleeping well and everything just seems to pile up until I can't move. Then I got to work. I slogged through my documentation for five groups and the individual session that I did on Tuesday, prepared myself for my two groups of leading and the three groups that my intern is currently taking over (but hasn't completely moved into leadership so I still have to a...

Yesterday, I was asked if I wanted a smart-type system for my music therapy room, and it plunged me into a long standing debate that I have with myself on a regular basis. Do I want a screen in my room? Do I want a room that is screen free? Now, this is the first time in about 15 years that I have been asked this question by my administrators, and the last year has shown that having a screen can be important when forced into quarantine situations, so I am actually contemplating it as something that will be good to have available...I think. I am torn and have always been torn on the use of technology in my music therapy clinic. Video games and apps are very reinforcing and easy to use in interaction with people who struggle with interaction with anything, but they are also somewhat consuming - in my experience, a device takes over attention and sometimes hinders opportunities for interaction with other humans. So, I have negotiated other things for my clinic area than smart boards. I go...

Yesterday was another strange day at my home. I was able to handle it with a minimum of emotional excess on my part, but there was some happening. I was able to relax after taking some steps. Let me explain. Yesterday morning, around 1:30am, I was awakened by repetitive, loud stomping on my ceiling. There were angry voices and sounds of crying for about an hour. The upstairs neighbors are unknown to me except that they advertise their podcast on their vehicle, and I was curious, so I have looked them up on the web. I know that they are fundamental Christians who have started a street ministry coalition in the greater Kansas City area. That's all that I know about them. During the early morning incident, the wife went out to their car, threw a bag into the back, went back inside, and then came back out, took the bag out of the car and went back in. She started yelling things like, "I am so tired of how..." and then cried loudly until silence took over. I was torn between w...

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and it is inauguration eve. These are two days that always inspire some reflection in me, and when they coincide, the reflections tend to be deeper than when they happen separately. This year, this reflection seems more important to me than any other time in my life so far. I try not to talk too much about politics on this blog because it is a topic that frustrates me deeply and that often has no influence on how I do the job that I want to do with my clients. I avoid arguments about politics because they are opinion-based rather than fact-based (often), and I believe that every person is entitled to have their own opinions about things (whether they are wrong === sarcasm!).  This year, however, the events that have happened in the political arena have spilled out of the container that I like to keep them in to permeate every part of our collectives lives. There is no hiding away from what has been happening to us all - the Black Lives Matter pr...

I did everything that I wanted to do last evening. I got home, spent some time organizing my space and evening, and I did all the things. I finished sing about april - (you could purchase it here , if you want...). I found out that our Monthly Music Therapy Meets have been approved for CMTEs - no revisions!! Boom! I was also asked to develop a course for a different online platform. Eeeee! I was out of my bed until 7:50 and then fell asleep pretty easily. That's where the good things kinda stopped. All night, I woke up and struggled with getting back to sleep. I don't know if I was dreaming or startling myself awake or responding to hot flashes, but I woke up about five times that I remember. After all that, I dozed until my light turned on at 4:19am. I dragged myself out of bed, did my hygiene, and am now staring at the computer with bleary eyes and some difficulty breathing. I should probably use my inhaler - be right back... I didn't have anything on my mind that I reme...

I spent some time fooling around with paper again yesterday. I've been making notepads and notepad covers and pretty note sets with my considerable stash of paper and beads and frou-frou. My stack of completed projects is growing, and I am ready to send some of it out into the music therapy universe! The last time I did this, I did get the name of a music therapist, and I sent the package off into the ether - I hope the person received the envelope full of goodies that I sent. It was fun to send something out into the world. I'm ready to do that again. So, here's the deal. I am interested only in nominations of other music therapists - no self-nominations, please - fellow MTs who could use a surprise from another MT. I'll add a note, something that I've made, and a couple of music therapy products specifically made for that therapist and their primary population. Here's what I need from you... the name of the music therapist that you are nominating. the...

My thinking has led me into a corner this week - a place where I can't really move forward, only a bit backward once I've fully explored this space. I think that this corner is an important one, so I've been content to just stay here and think and think and think. I realize that my title states "all" the different ways to define culture - that is my ultimate goal, but right now, I have started to define all the ways... My current corner is full of the different ways that we define culture and how many different types of cultural experiences we all have in our lives. When I start to think about the cultural experiences that make up the "me" that participates in this world, I find that I have lots of influences, expectations, biases, and exposures to different things that make up the culture of "me." This started me thinking about how far do we go when we consider "culture" when interacting with other people. First step in this ...

I need a picture to change my default. I have made a decision. This decision is not monumental, and I know people are out there who have been telling me this over and over again, but it took a post on social media and my subsequent response to finally encapsulate all things about this decision and make it easy to make in this moment, right here, right now. I've been on the fence about something for the past three days, but no more. On Saturday , I wrote about a giveaway that I want to do. You see, I like the idea of giving things away to deserving folks who may need a pick-me-up in the form of someone nominating them to get some goodies in the mail - for music therapists, by a music therapist. I've had two people respond, and both wanted to nominate themselves.  Not the point of the giveaway, folks. I want people to think of others rather than thinking of themselves. If you really want one of my products, then pay the money. Seriously. I price my things VERY fairly...