What is Music Therapy?
Music Therapy is an allied health profession that uses music to provide support based on an individual’s needs. Musical interventions are facilitated by a board-certified music therapist and address common goal areas including (but not limited to): stress management, self-expression, pain reduction, labor and delivery support, mood enhancement, legacy-building, bonding with your baby and relaxation.
What Can Music Therapy Do For You?
- Encourage bonding: the music therapist will help facilitate kangaroo care or lullaby songwriting to create and record original/rewritten lyrics and melody with the use of recording equipment and instruments.
- Reduce anxiety and pain: the music therapist will provide patient-preferred music at the bedside to lead individuals through guided relaxation.
- Promote infant development: the music therapist will help caregivers learn multimodal neurologic enhancement and other techniques to promote development and improve feeding outcomes.
- Support prenatal and postpartum mental health: the music therapist will provide instruments and facilitate opportunities to play and/or learn how to play the requested instrument.
- Affirm birth experiences: the music therapist can assist you in creating a labor and delivery playlist or provide live music during your preferred birth experience.
What Music Therapy Options Are Available?
Music Therapy interventions can include but are not limited to the following:
- Music during kangaroo care or while feeding infants
- Lyric analysis to reflect on experiences
- Lullaby songwriting and recording
- Multimodal neurologic enhancement for infants
- Playlists for sleep, energy or your birth experience
- Instrument play or learning a new instrument
- Guided relaxation
How Do I Contact A Music Therapist?
To explore how Music Therapy may be able to support you, you can either speak with a medical provider, such as your nurse, physician or social worker or you can reach out via email at [email protected] (please include your room number).