Talk:Music therapy

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment in Spring 2019, between 4 February 2019 and 3 May 2019. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Speakyyy.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 01:19, 18 January 2022 (UTC)

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment in Spring 2019, between 22 January 2019 and 3 May 2019. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Adamgilanii.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 01:19, 18 January 2022 (UTC)

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 21 January 2020 and 8 May 2020. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): JolynnY, Koverstreet3.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 01:19, 18 January 2022 (UTC)

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article is or was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment in Fall 2018. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): BriTheOne. Peer reviewers: BriTheOne.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 04:41, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

Per-country
These entries strike me as promotional, including links to various clinics as citations, etc... — Paleo Neonate  – 06:30, 16 July 2019 (UTC)

Dementia Sources Wrong
The sources for the dementia section are incorrect and do not reflect the written content. The first paragraph is a blog entry about a conference on music therapy that took place in 2017. Since the page only describes the several talks given by the presenters, this source is highly questionable. The second paragraph talks about "A meta-study of over 330 subjects," but the source for this paragraph is not a meta-study and it does not have 330 participants. The next two paragraphs start off with "In another study" and "Another meta-study" but then proceed to link the same source. Revision of this section is needed. 66.25.178.241 (talk) 13:10, 26 November 2020 (UTC)

adding extra detail on the work of the therapist
I will add more information regarding how the therapist works using the NHS website--Julius Royale (talk) 13:37, 1 April 2021 (UTC)

Tidying up the page
There are sections where a heading has been created but no information has been provided. Therefore, I intend to clear this up.--Julius Royale (talk) 13:16, 5 April 2021 (UTC)


 * Please do so. It's 2022 and there are still empty headings! 69.181.242.57 (talk) 18:52, 17 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I think I created some of those headings with the intention of filling those out. The reasoning behind creating them was because the headings in the section only told part of the story, giving an incomplete picture. However, the "picture" would be interpreted as complete by readers.  When I first read the Music Therapy page about 1 1/2 years ago I thought it was pretty awful and wanted to fix it by completely rewriting it.  I haven't had that kind of time...  Maybe I need to make time... Dogsgopher (talk) 18:24, 8 June 2022 (UTC)

Questions for the article
Heidiyoung257 (talk) 16:26, 16 October 2021 (UTC)Do you think there is anything psychological that happens in the brain or in someone's cells when they experience music therapy? Do you think that is relevant to note when looking at the Wikipedia page?


 * That's a question about Philosophy of mind, not Music Therapy. Rebtech (talk) 09:26, 27 October 2021 (UTC)

Treatment of Bereavement Section
The section on treatment of bereavement is improperly cited, and honestly looks like someone pasted their thesis into Wikipedia. I removed the "resume" and "advert" templates at the top, because I don't feel like they accurately describe the problem. I went through that section and added to the improper citations, and added the "More citations needed" tag to the top of that section. Sheehanpg93 (talk) 20:13, 8 June 2022 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: STS 1010
— Assignment last updated by Jessicacariello (talk) 14:56, 14 February 2023 (UTC)

Neonatal therapy- medical benefits
Hi, I reviewed the section on premature babies and in my opinion, the sources are not strong enough to support the claims. I tried to summarize what was there to the best of my ability. Here is what I mostly removed. Does anyone have any ideas on improving this?

Premature infants
Premature infants are those born at 37 weeks after conception or earlier. They are subject to numerous health risks, such as abnormal breathing patterns, decreased body fat and muscle tissue, as well as feeding issues. The coordination for sucking and breathing is often not fully developed, making feeding a challenge. The improved developmental activity and behavioral status of premature infants when they are discharged from the NICU, is directly related to the stimulation programs and interventions they benefited from during hospitalization, such as music therapy.

Music is typically conducted by a music therapist in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), with five main techniques designed to benefit premature infants:


 * 1) Live or recorded music: Live or recorded music has been effective in promoting respiratory regularity and oxygen saturation levels, as well as decreasing signs of neonatal distress. Since premature infants have sensitive and immature sensory modalities, music is often performed in a gentle and controlled environment, either in the form of audio recordings or live vocalization, although live singing has been proven to have a greater effect. Live music also reduces the physiological responses in parents. Studies have shown that by combining live music, such as harp music, with the kangaroo care, maternal anxiety is reduced. This allows for parents, especially mothers, to spend important time bonding with their premature infants. Female singing voices are also more effective at soothing premature infants. Despite being born premature, infants show a preference for the sound of a female singing voice, making it more beneficial than instrumental music.
 * 2) Promotion of healthy sucking reflex: By using a pacifier-activated lullaby device, music therapists can help promote stronger sucking reflexes, while also reducing pain perception for the infant. The Gato Box is a small rectangular instrument that stimulates a prenatal heartbeat sound in a soft and rhythmic manner that has also been effective in aiding sucking behaviors. The music therapist uses their fingers to tap on the drum, rather than using a mallet. The rhythm supports movement when feeding and promotes healthy sucking patterns. By improving sucking patterns, babies are able to coordinate the important dual mechanisms of breathing, sucking and swallowing needed to feed, thus promoting growth and weight gain. When this treatment proves effective, infants are able to leave the hospital earlier.
 * 3) Multimodal stimulation and music: By combining music, such as lullabies and multi-modal stimulation, premature infants were discharged from the NICU sooner than those infants who did not receive therapy. Multi-modal stimulation (MMS) includes the applications of auditory, tactile, vestibular, and visual stimulation that helps aid in premature infant development. The combination of music and MMS helps premature infants sleep and conserve vital energy required to gain weight more rapidly. Studies have shown that girls respond more positively than boys during multimodal stimulation. While the voice is a popular choice for parents looking to bond with their premature infants, other effective instruments include the Remo Ocean Disk and the Gato Box. Both are used to stimulate the sounds of the womb. The Remo Ocean Disk, a round musical instrument that mimics the fluid sounds of the womb, has been shown to benefit decreased heart rate after therapeutic uses, as well as promoting healthy sleep patterns, lower respiratory rates and improve sucking behavior.
 * 4) Infant stimulation: This type of intervention uses musical stimulation to compensate for the lack of normal environmental sensory stimulation found in the NICU. The sound environment the NICU provides can be disruptive, but music therapy can mask unwanted auditory stimuli and promote a calm environment that reduces the complications for high-risk or failure-to-thrive infants. Parent-infant bonding can also be affected by the noise of the NICU, which in turn can delay the interactions between parents and their premature infants. Music therapy creates a relaxing and peaceful environment for parents to speak and spend time with their babies while incubated.
 * 5) Parent-infant bonding: Therapists work with parents so they may perform infant-directed singing techniques, as well as home care. Singing lullabies therapeutically can promote relaxation and decrease heart rate in premature infants. By calming premature babies, it allows for them to preserve their energy, which creates a stable environment for growth. Lullabies, such as "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" or other culturally relevant lullabies, have been shown to greatly soothe babies. These techniques can also improve overall sleep quality, calorie intake and feeding behaviors, which aid in development of the baby while they are still in the NICU. Singing has also shown greater results in improving oxygen saturation levels for infants while incubated than has mothers' speech alone. This technique promoted high levels of oxygen for longer periods of time.

Infants in cardiac ICUs
In studies on music therapy with infants in the cardiac intensive care unit, music therapy has been used on infants in hopes of improving their lives during their time in the CICU. Many infants show a decrease in both their average heart and respiratory rates. The infants' average blood pressure typically decreases after the music therapy sessions, as well. Although there are individual differences between each of the infants, most infants show improvements after music therapy interventions.

JenOttawa (talk) 17:55, 18 September 2023 (UTC)

more article clearup
I performed more cleanup today. I removed how to diagnose bereavement as we have an article on it already. It appears someone shared their thesis as one of the only citations to discuss the practice of using music therapy to treat breavement. I am moving this to the talk page until stronger sources (ideally peer reviewed) can be found to share information on this condition. Removed content:

Diagnosing bereavement As of 2017, bereavement is listed as its own diagnosis in the DSM-IV TR, but proposed changes in the DSM-V may impact the way bereavement is diagnosed. The DSM-IV TR states the following about bereavement: This category can be used when the focus of clinical attention is a reaction to the death of a loved one. As part of their reaction to the loss, some grieving individuals present with symptoms characteristic of a Major Depressive Episode (e.g., feelings of sadness and associated symptoms such as insomnia, poor appetite, and weight loss). The bereaved individual typically regards the depressed mood as "normal," although the person may seek professional help for relief of associated symptoms such as insomnia or anorexia. The duration and expression of "normal" bereavement vary considerably among different cultural groups. The diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder is generally not given unless the symptoms are still present 2 months after the loss. However, the presence of certain symptoms that are not characteristic of a "normal" grief reaction may be helpful in differentiating bereavement from a Major Depressive Episode. These include 1) guilt about things other than actions taken or not taken by the survivor at the time of the death; 2) thoughts of death other than the survivor feeling that he or she would be better off dead or should have died with the deceased person; 3) morbid preoccupation with worthlessness; 4) marked psychomotor retardation; 5) prolonged and marked functional impairment; and 6) hallucinatory experiences other than thinking that he or she hears the voice of, or transiently sees the image of, the deceased person.[citation needed] In many countries, including the United States, music therapists do not diagnose, therefore diagnosing a bereavement-related disorder would not be within their scope of practice. Grief treatment It has become well known in the music therapy field that music can be an effective tool in the treatment of grief and bereavement but Francesca Albergato-Muterspaw looked at how music actually played a role in the healing from grief. In her study, three primary themes presented themselves from the interviews and observation of the participants. She found firstly that, music has a significant connection with emotion. Music can be used to express oneself, keep a client distracted when there is a need for distraction, and can help clients reflect on themselves and past experiences leading to changes in identity. Secondly, a sense of community, culture, and spirituality was found when music was used in treatment. Employing the ides of community, culture, and spirituality have shown to be vital in the process of dealing with grief so using music to elicit these concepts makes it a powerful tool indeed. Lastly, it was found that music was important to clients as a way to give tribute to the deceased. On top of these areas of note, it was also discussed that the participants had a better understanding of each other – more so than they had simply by talking with each other. It appears that music allows for context and meta messages to be more easily and successfully communicated between a group, an important point for therapists in any field, and also especially important when working with the bereaved. In 2008, Kathryn Lindenfelser and colleagues looked at the experiences parents of terminally ill children had with music therapy. They found that music therapy was effective in altering perceptions in the midst of adversity, was a strong component of remembrance, provided a multifaceted treatment, and as the other study also mentioned, increased communication and expression in both the adults and children (Lindenfelser Grocke & McFerran, 2008)[citation needed]. In a separate study that explored the effects of music therapy on pain in children and families, it was found that music therapy can be used to reduce physical pain and anxiety, enhance relaxation, and promote positive moods and compliance. There was also an inverse relationship found between music therapy and behavioral distress (Whitehead-Pleaux, Baryza & Sheridan, 2007)[citation needed]. Since bereavement is diagnosed when elements of depression are found, and since music therapy has shown to be effective in enhancing mood and lowering distress, one could conclude that elements of music therapy could also be effective in the treatment of depression and other adjustment disorders, though further research would need to be done to make that conclusion.

JenOttawa (talk) 15:17, 6 November 2023 (UTC)

Music Can heal!Report
Music therapy is an effective way of healing that has been practiced for many years. Research has confirmed that music can affect individuals’ physical, mental, and emotional health. Music has the power to impact the mood, reduce stress, and promote relaxation. Therefore, it can be used as a powerful tool to heal.

Music therapy has been used in hospitals for pre- and post-surgical procedures, chronic pain management, and mental health disorders. It has also been used to help individuals deal with stress and anxiety. Studies have shown that music therapy has many benefits, including reducing stress hormones, lowering blood pressure, and improving immune function.

Music therapy can help people who have experienced emotional trauma. Listening to music can help individuals process their emotions and find relief from traumatic experiences. Music therapy can also help with depression and anxiety disorders by promoting relaxation and improving mood.

Music therapy is also beneficial for individuals with autism spectrum disorders. Music can be used to teach social skills, encourage communication, and improve behavior. Music therapy has positive effects on individuals with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Music therapy can help individuals with these diseases reconnect with memories and their families.

In conclusion, music is a powerful tool that can be used to heal. Music therapy has many benefits, including reducing stress hormones, promoting relaxation, and improving mood. Music therapy is an effective way to help individuals who have experienced emotional trauma, depression, anxiety, autism spectrum disorders, and dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore, music therapy should be considered as a valid option for healing. 2001:8F8:1737:4564:A454:CD20:C66C:91E9 (talk) 14:17, 11 October 2023 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: Adult Development Fall 2023
— Assignment last updated by Maybrookek (talk) 20:48, 3 November 2023 (UTC)

"Request to separate: Sound Healing"
Hello, Sound Healing links to this page and I don't think it should. Sound healing is a pseudoscientific "alternative" medicine practice where people think that vibrations of musical instruments in the same room as them has actual healing effects. They often tap into commentary on quantum mechanics, and "string theory" by reference to "vibrations" then dive into video of sopranos singing to break a glass, and other quack primer techniques to suck their audience in and strip them of their money. It is not "music therapy" - and shouldn't be considered an "allied health profession" as it gives it credibility when it has none. 2001:8003:2956:4300:6DBA:1C58:11D4:D3D5 (talk) 05:25, 23 November 2023 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: Information Literacy and Scholarly Discourse
— Assignment last updated by Kmdavis7 (talk) 18:04, 8 April 2024 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 18 April 2024
REQUEST EDTS TO INCLUDE ORGANIZATIONS; REQUEST EDITS TO INCLUDE MENTION OF ISSUES IN MUSIC THERAPY. 71.172.87.224 (talk) 19:10, 18 April 2024 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. Cannolis (talk) 19:28, 18 April 2024 (UTC)