It is evident in biblical scriptures that the use of music as a healing medium dates back to ancient civilizations. In ancient Greece, music healers were revered “with close ties to priests …show more content…
Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder that limits the patient’s nonverbal and verbal communication skills, their ability to interact with others and form meaningful relationships with them, and the ability to comprehend facial expressions of others. The main reason as to why music is utilized to treat communication disorders is that its rhythm and tempo serve as “effective medium[s]f or engaging [autistic children] in non-verbal social exchange”. Selecting music that is meaningful for the child lays a foundation for encouraging deeper connections with the people around them. In this type of music therapy, children do not always passively listen to music. They are usually told to create music on their own using instruments like the piano and the drums. This is successful task that stimulates their musical creativity and often results in improved speech. Music therapy is applied in family settings as well as in one-on-one settings. Listening to slow classical music eventually “seems to awaken in children strong feelings for their parents”() and this leads them to act much more affectionate towards them. These are fantastic news for all the parents and caretakers who experience deep psychological pain because the disease of their children makes it extremely difficult to bond with them. In the documentary Alive Inside!, various therapists …show more content…
Music therapy does an unexpectedly great job at helping them deal with these feelings. The use of songs with lyrics about people, places, and experiences is crucial in music therapy for cancer patients because “human contact is one of the best methods for diminishing physical and emotional suffering” (Bailey 1). Through songs, they can communicate their problems, their past or present unsatisfied needs, their despair, and their fear of dying. There are three steps that music therapists usually follow treating cancer patients. First, the music therapist establishes a trusting relationship with them. This quickly reduces the feelings of loneliness and isolation. Next, by exposing them to music of different genres, the music therapist encourages the patient to express their repressed emotions. In the last stage, the music makes them experience a connectedness to themselves and to the world. This brings them to a state of acceptance and balance, allowing them to let go of emotional pain. In the first (contact) stage, the theme of the songs they listen to is “the world”. These are stories relating to people around the world. This allows them to focus on the conflicts and triumphs of others instead of their own. Then, in the second stage, known as the awareness stage, the themes are reminiscence, relationships, feelings, needs and