Listening to Remember
How music therapy is used in memory by Sydney Johnson
Why I Chose Music Therapy
I chose this topic because I am interested to learn more about music therapy and what a music therapist does. I am also curious about how it relates to memory. I am considering music therapy as a career. I love music and like the idea of helping others through it.
Music Therapy: What it is
Music therapy is the integration or use of music to assist patients reach a goal. Trained music therapists help the patient using methods proven to work.
What is Happening in the Brain
Music therapy can be used to improve several functions of the brain. It assists the hippocampus in cognitive skills, allowing maintained attention, a better learning environment, and higher chances in retaining information. For patients with alzheimer's disease, their hippocampus is failing or not working fully. Music therapy can help that.
Experiment
Schneider took a group of stroke patients with no musical experience and trained them for about 3 weeks, while giving them medical treatment. The other group only got traditional/regular medical treatment for three weeks. In the end the group that also had the music therapy had better speed, performance, and smoothness in movement than the other group. This is because the music therapy trained them to use certain motor movements in their brains.
FUN FACTS:
* Anyone of any age can benefit from music therapy!
* You don't need music therapy to benefit
*Even those already in good health/state can benefit!
*Musicians themselves too can benefit from music therapy