Reflections on creativity, health, and quality of life
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A Month of Women and Music: An Interview Series for March
March is Women’s History Month in the United States. As a way to commemorate, I’ll be sharing a series of special interviews done with some of my female musician friends. Each woman has a different relationship with music, and works with music differently. The inspiration to this series began with my wanting to do something…
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Music and Mindfulness
Mindfulness. It seems like almost everyday I read something new about the benefits of it. Research on mindfulness suggests that it could be effective for: depression, managing anxiety and stress, as well as with emotional regulation and relationships. It’s easy to see, then, why mindfulness is becoming incorporated into healthcare, education, and business. Making Mindfulness…
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In Tending To Others
In tending to the little piece of Mother Earth that is the front yard of my house, I reflected upon the current state of the world. In preparing to welcome winter and the return of light, I raked up the plethora of honey locust pods and cut back at the dead plant growth in order…
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Rethinking Yourself and Your Life as Music
You Are Music. Your Life is Music I am MUSIC? My LIFE is MUSIC? Have you ever thought about yourself as being a piece of music? What thoughts come to mind when you look at yourself from this perspective? It can be a strange thing if you haven’t considered it before. Even with my experiences…
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Making Music for Healing, Transformation, and Fun
A few months ago I had the pleasure of speaking with Cymone Deborah Bedford at Athgoa about my work as a music therapist and psychotherapist who uses music to enhance the quality of life for people of all ages, and from a variety of backgrounds. Below is a link to our recorded interview where I…
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Healing When a Complicated Family Relationship Ends
The word “family” carries unique connotations for each of us. Ideally, families are a source of acceptance, unconditional love, and support. While the greater culture typically portrays and promotes this idealized, archetypal view of family, the reality is that families are made up of individual human beings who may or may not be able to…
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Being Music: Insights from a Buffalo Drum
An Invitation to Experience Being Music A few nights ago I was at an event in which we were invited to go on an inward journey with the assistance of a buffalo drum. As I listened to the drumming, I found myself becoming one with it- absorbed and enveloped in the sound waves in a…
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Gifts Gained Through Loss
Today is the 14th anniversary of the death of my mother from breast cancer. Naturally my thoughts start to turn to her at this time of year, but additionally the specific topic of cancer had popped up on my radar these last few days, which made me think that I needed to explore further this…
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Music Therapy in Hospice and Palliative Care
Recently I was asked by the hospice company where I work to write an article about what I do as a music therapist. I’m sharing it here with you so that you may also get a clearer sense of what music therapy is and the role it can play within the realms of hospice and…
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Hearing Ourselves: Voicework for Self-Care
A few months ago I was asked by music therapist colleague, Megan Resig, to write a guest post for her website Music Therapy Annex. I jumped at the chance to do this because I love her holistic approach to music therapy, and have enjoyed reading about her perspective on wellness and self-care. Below is what…