Music Therapy for Pain Management
The music selections suggested here are the result of more than fifteen years of using music therapy to help manage a painful disability. It has been encouraging to watch the increase in scientific studies using such techniques as P.E.T. scans to monitor pain centres in the brain validate the concept and provide information on rhythms and frequencies that work best.
But music will always be much more than a scientfic study. The emotional response to favored, remembered pieces is important too. So if you have access to a music therapist to guide you, you have an advantage.
If you don't have that advantage, our simple experimental approach will get you quite a ways:
• Pick a day when pain is a problem.
• Sit or lay, and try to really get lost in a selection by an artist.
• Stop the music and if you're suddenly aware of a lot of pain you'd forgotten, you've got a potential winner.
• Repeat the process four or five times on different selections. If it's a consistent result, that artist works for you.
Some other practical suggestions:
• Experiment with the presets or the graphic equalizer for your stereo system. You will probably find that the setting that gives the best vocal clarity for talk shows and news is not the best for music and pain management.
• Try your favorite artists first. There's probably a reason why they're your favorites.
• Try new artists by one or two songs from an online store to see if they work for you and if you like them. There are a lot of excellent performers out there. Why listen to someone you don't like just because they reduce pain?
• Playlists with various artists are good. Variety is a distraction, plus it stretches your investment. Experiment with including favorite artists that didn't pass the test. You may find you can include 30 - 40 % of such cuts in a playlist an still get significant pain reduction.
• All Music Guide's lists of similar artists are invaluable for finding new artists to try.
The artists listed here are ones that work for me (Judi) in pain reduction. I've tried to select albums that stand up to repeated, frequent play. That doesn't mean they will work for you, but it's a start. And perhaps the result will be a more comfortable day. At the very least, you will have had an enjoyable time experimenting with music.
