Music & Emotions: Can Music Really Make You a Happier Person?
How many times have you turned to music to uplift you even further in happy times, or sought the comfort of music when melancholy strikes?
Music affects us all. But only in recent times have scientists sought to explain and quantify the way music impacts us at an emotional level. Researching the links between melody and the mind indicates that listening to and playing music actually can alter how our brains, and therefore our bodies, function.
It seems that the healing power of music, over body and spirit, is only just starting to be understood, even though music therapy is not new. For many years therapists have been advocating the use of music - both listening and study - for the reduction of anxiety and stress, the relief of pain. And music has also been recommended as an aid for positive change in mood and emotional states.
Michael DeBakey, who in 1966 became the first surgeon to successfully implant an artificial heart, is on record saying: "Creating and performing music promotes self-expression and provides self-gratification while giving pleasure to others. In medicine, increasing published reports demonstrate that music has a healing effect on patients."
Doctors now believe using music therapy in hospitals and nursing homes not only makes people feel better, but also makes them heal faster. And across the nation, medical experts are beginning to apply the new revelations about music's impact on the brain to treating patients.
In one study, researcher Michael Thaut and his team detailed how victims of stroke, cerebral palsy and Parkinson's disease who worked to music took bigger, more balanced strides than those whose therapy had no accompaniment.
Other researchers have found the sound of drums may influence how bodies work. Quoted in a 2001 article in USA Today, Suzanne Hasner, chairwoman of the music therapy department at Berklee College of Music in Boston, says even those with dementia or head injuries retain musical ability.
The article reported results of an experiment in which researchers from the Mind-Body Wellness Center in Meadville, Pa., tracked 111 cancer patients who played drums for 30 minutes a day. They found strengthened immune systems and increased levels of cancer-fighting cells in many of the patients.
"Deep in our long-term memory is this rehearsed music," Hasner says. "It is processed in the emotional part of the brain, the amygdala. Here's where you remember the music played at your wedding, the music of your first love, that first dance. Such things can still be remembered even in people with progressive diseases. It can be a window, a way to reach them... "
The American Music Therapy Organization claims music therapy may allow for "emotional intimacy with families and caregivers, relaxation for the entire family, and meaningful time spent together in a positive, creative way".
Scientists have been making progress in its exploration into why music should have this effect. In 2001 Dr. Anne Blood and Robert Zatorre of McGill University in Montreal, used positron emission tomography, or PET scans, to find out if particular brain structures were stimulated by music.
In their study, Blood and Zatorre asked 10 musicians, five men and five women, to choose stirring music. The subjects were then given PET scans as they listened to four types of audio stimuli - the selected music, other music, general noise or silence. Each sequence was repeated three times in random order.
Blood said when the subjects heard the music that gave them "chills," the PET scans detected activity in the portions of the brain that are also stimulated by food and sex.
Just why humans developed such a biologically based appreciation of music is still not clear. The appreciation of food and the drive for sex evolved to help the survival of the species, but "music did not develop strictly for survival purposes," Blood told Associated Press at the time.
She also believes that because music activates the parts of the brain that make us happy, this suggests it can benefit our physical and mental well being.
This is good news for patients undergoing surgical operations who experience anxiety in anticipation of those procedures.
Polish researcher, Zbigniew Kucharski, at the Medical Academy of Warsaw, studied the effect of acoustic therapy for fear management in dental patients. During the period from October 2001 to May 2002, 38 dental patients aged between 16 and 60 years were observed. The patients received variations of acoustic therapy, a practice where music is received via headphones and also vibrators.
Dr Kucharski discovered the negative feelings decreased five-fold for patients who received 30 minutes of acoustic therapy both before and after their dental procedure. For the group that heard and felt music only prior to the operation, the fearful feelings reduced by a factor of 1.6 only.
For the last group (the control), which received acoustic therapy only during the operation, there was no change in the degree of fear felt.
A 1992 study identified music listening and relaxation instruction as an effective way to reduce pain and anxiety in women undergoing painful gynecological procedures. And other studies have proved music can reduce other 'negative' human emotions like fear, distress and depression.
Sheri Robb and a team of researchers published a report in the Journal of Music Therapy in 1992, outlining their findings that music assisted relaxation procedures (music listening, deep breathing and other exercises) effectively reduced anxiety in pediatric surgical patients on a burn unit.
"Music," says Esther Mok in the AORN Journal in February 2003, "is an easily administered, non-threatening, non-invasive, and inexpensive tool to calm preoperative anxiety."
So far, according to the same report, researchers cannot be certain why music has a calming affect on many medical patients. One school of thought believes music may reduce stress because it can help patients to relax and also lower blood pressure. Another researcher claims music allows the body's vibrations to synchronize with the rhythms of those around it. For instance, if an anxious patient with a racing heartbeat listens to slow music, his heart rate will slow down and synchronize with the music's rhythm.
Such results are still something of a mystery. The incredible ability that music has to affect and manipulate emotions and the brain is undeniable, and yet still largely inexplicable.
Aside from brain activity, the affect of music on hormone levels in the human body can also be quantified, and there is definite evidence that music can lower levels of cortisol in the body (associated with arousal and stress), and raise levels of melatonin (which can induce sleep). It can also precipitate the release of endorphins, the body's natural painkiller.
But how does music succeed in prompting emotions within us? And why are these emotions often so powerful? The simple answer is that no one knows... yet. So far we can quantify some of the emotional responses caused by music, but we cannot yet explain them. But that's OK. I don't have to understand electricity to benefit from light when I switch on a lamp when I come into a room, and I don't have to understand why music can make me feel better emotionally. It just does - our Creator made us that way.
Duane Shinn is the author of over 500 music books and products such as DVD's, CD's, musical games for kids, chord charts, musical software, and piano lesson instructional courses for adults. He holds an advanced degree from Southern Oregon University and was the founder of Piano University in Southern Oregon. Previous to that he worked as an assistant music therapist at DeWitt State Hospital in Auburn, California. He can be reached at http://www.pianolessonsbyvideo.com He is the author of the popular free 101-week e-mail newsletter titled "Amazing Secrets Of Exciting Piano Chords & Sizzling Chord Progressions" with over 55,000 current subscribers. Those interested may obtain a free subscription by going to http://www.playpiano.com/
Related Articles:
A Nutritionist's Plan to Beat Food Cravings, Fatigue, Mood Swings, Celiac Disease, Headaches, IBS, and Deal with Food Allergies
In The Food Intolerance Bible (Conari Press, April 2008), Antony J. Haynes, a top nutritionist, has devised a unique plan to help readers identify and avoid food intolerances and allergies, which affect nearly all Americans.
Social Phobia
Imagine going through your whole life in the constant fear of worrying about the others' opinion for you, saying only such things which might approve you in the peer group and scared to go out in the public to escape the scrutinizing eyes of the people.There are people who would rather prefer to stay at home for an endless time period than going out of their homes.
Social Anxiety: talk about ruminating on embarrassement
Social anxiety or social phobia emanates fear of rejection, of making a fool of oneself in front of everybody else and in general, a feeling of doom about one's social behaviors and how others would perceive the person.
Spring Cleaning For Your Mind And Emotions
Spring-cleaning your house is a yearly ritual, but what about clearing out the cobwebs from your mind? What could be a better way to start the spring season than the gift of a clear and rejuvenated mind, free from negative impressions about the past and anxiety about the future? You can learn tools to effectively sweep away stress in the Art of Living Course, a breath-based workshop offered by the non-profit Art of Living Foundation at San Francisco's Fort Mason Center from March 9-13, 2007.
Using Psychology of Color to Influence the Mood of a Room
The living room is the setting which will blend the people in your life into the occasions of your home. It is the hardest room to decorate because it has to be versatile, comfortable, and entertaining.
Social Anxiety Disorder And Starting A New Job ? Three Things You Can Do To Better Get Along With Your New Co Workers
Are you starting a new job and have an anxiety disorder If you have social anxiety, you may be concerned about fitting in with your new co workers
How To Release Emotions
When Oprah Winfrey was interviewed by the legendary US television reporter Barbara Walters she was asked "what's the reason you put yourself on the line week after week, year after year, on the cutting edge of human emotion?" Oprah replied "Teaching people to take responsibly. I believe the secret to life is to take responsibility, once people grasp that I believe everything in their life changes. Once people understand it and live it, they are at cause for their life rather than living in effect and in reaction."
Easy Emotional Intelligence Techniques Shared in New Book, 'Smart Emotions'
Byron Stock's new book, 'Smart Emotions for Busy Business People,' teaches five quick, simple techniques proven to increase resilience, personal productivity and Emotional Intelligence skills.
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof Play Is A Dramatic Expression Of Family Emotions
What happens on the 65th birthday of the patriarch of Pollitt family? Well, watch Cat On A Hot Tin Roof play and see for your self! You might get astonished or you may even nod in agreement when you watch the common, yet touchy issues of the Southern society being discussed on stage. You also simply cant ignore the cold attitude of the husband, Brick Pollitt and the wife, Maggie The Cat , who is desperately in need of affection.
Pontoon Boat Mood Lights
Many pontoons boats are equipped with mood lightning that can enhance your overall experience while riding on a pontoon boat. In some cases the mood lighting in concealed within the boat, in other cases not, but mood lighting can always add a special flair to nighttime pontoon boating.
Recognize Social Anxiety And Learn To Free Yourself From Its Grip
Most of us have fears of getting up and speaking in public. Many people don?t like to go to gatherings where they don?t know anyone. But while most of us soldier on, those with social anxiety disorder are often stopped cold in their tracks by the terror and worry such events instill in them.
Real And Permanent Cure For Social Phobia
Anita Bern is writing about her experiences with social phobia disorder at Social phobia anxiety blog.Im sure youve heard the news already: its all over the blogosphere since BCC first broke the news. Yeah, this is about that nasal spray you sniff and your social phobia is gone!
Traxon Mood Lights
Traxon's Mood Light? is a sophisticated line of color-changing, LED light panels and decorative accent objects Traxon Mood Lights are used to create a fun and modern atmosphere for a variety of spaces, including nightclubs, restaurants, bars, hotels and even private homes
Stress Relief and Natural Mood Enhancers
Stress relief can sometimes appear to be something of a holy grail - you seem to be continually bombarded by negative people, too much work, not enough play and a feeling that everything is getting on top of you
If you are looking for a way to relieve stress, take a close look at your diet and consider how it can elevate your mood and help to manage your stress
Social anxiety disorder and its symptoms
The concept of Social Anxiety Disorder may be fairly new category of anxiety disorders to many of you because it has not been the highlights of research by the league of medical professionals until recent times. In fact, social anxiety or phobia is common and affects at least one out of eight people at some stages in their lives and represents the third largest mental health problem in the world. Medications that are specific for treating social anxiety are accessible in over-the-counter pharmacies, hospitals and medical institutions in light of the development and improvements in clinical and medical research. Other general anti-anxiety drugs have also proven to work well for social anxiety as these drugs generally serve to relieve differe...