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Mental Health HomepageConditions LibraryConditions CategoryConditions CategoryHow the Right Song Can Help You Manage Anxiety
Table of Contents:Overview
Anxiety DisorderRead Time: 4 Minutes
Published On: November 20, 2017
Updated On: November 3, 2023
OverviewMaya Benattar is a licensed psychotherapist in New York City. Her office looks like the typical therapist’s office — calm and quiet, comfortable seating, soothing lighting. The perfect place to work through difficult feelings ofanxietyand depression.But a few items might catch your eye: a piano, drums, a guitar, and various other music-making tools. Not things you’d typically expect to see in a therapy setting.That’s because Benattar — in addition to her credentials as a psychotherapist — is also a board-certified music therapist.When it comes to coping tools, it’s hard to find something more universally loved and leaned on than music. Music therapy takes that to the next level, using music as an evidence-based tool for reaching clinical goals, with applications ranging from physical rehabilitation to mental health treatment.
Overview
Maya Benattar is a licensed psychotherapist in New York City. Her office looks like the typical therapist’s office — calm and quiet, comfortable seating, soothing lighting. The perfect place to work through difficult feelings ofanxietyand depression.
But a few items might catch your eye: a piano, drums, a guitar, and various other music-making tools. Not things you’d typically expect to see in a therapy setting.
That’s because Benattar — in addition to her credentials as a psychotherapist — is also a board-certified music therapist.
When it comes to coping tools, it’s hard to find something more universally loved and leaned on than music. Music therapy takes that to the next level, using music as an evidence-based tool for reaching clinical goals, with applications ranging from physical rehabilitation to mental health treatment.
Just because music is the primary tool doesn’t mean you need to be a skilled musician to benefit. Though the people she sees often have an emotional connection to music, Benattar stresses that musical skill or experience is not required. “Humans are naturally rhythmic. Our breath, our heartbeats, our schedules all have a rhythm,” she explains. “The beautiful thing about music therapy is that it incorporates the mind, body, and spirit into the therapy process, at a visceral, sensory level.”
The basis for using music as a therapeutic tool extends beyond anecdotal evidence — there’s hard science behind the melodies. Music therapy interventions have beenshown in peer-reviewed studiesto reduce stress levels, facilitate emotional release, and decrease anxiety in a variety of mental health settings.
But how does music therapy differ from simply throwing on some headphones and listening to your favorite album?
“I want to help my clients use music listening in an intentional manner. To not just disconnect, but to understand and process their emotions.”
Jennifer Townsend — a board-certified music therapist based in Houston — takes a similar approach with her clients. Townsend works on an acute psychiatric facility, where patients are experiencing severe mental health crises. Yet the foundation is the same.
“Something I do with some of my clients is to help them with the process of really identifying anxiety and peace,” says Townsend. “Having them list out the words that describe both their anxiety and their ultimate goal, and using music as a vehicle to discuss those states of being.”
Townsend stresses that music is more than just lyrical content as well. The actual music — tempo, rhythm, melody, harmony, and timbre — can have a physiological effect on our bodies. Our heart rate and breathing can speed up or slow down to match the rhythm of a song, a phenomenon known asentrainment, and affect our physiological state as a result.
“We can use this to help move people into a more alert or calm state, depending on their need,” says Townsend. “We can match someone’s heart rate and emotion, and as the music changes, we can speed up or slow down that heart rate or mood. We entrain together, resulting in a physical change in the person.”
Besides addressing long-term therapeutic goals, Townsend also finds herself helping clients survive challenging “in-the-moment” mental health crises, using music to support things like progressive muscle relaxation to help manage an oncominganxiety attackand teaching symptom management beyond the therapy room.
“The music therapist’s role is to build a relationship and observe while listening to or making music,” she says. “I want to see what nonverbal and verbal responses happen, and work through those responses to assist the healing process.”
While clinical music therapy requires the assistance of a trained and certified music therapist, both Townsend and Benattar stress the importance of empowering people to use music effectively on their own. “I never want to discount how people use music for their own self care. That’s very important,” says Benattar. “But I encourage people to use music listening in an intentional manner. Can you create a playlist for when you feel anxious? Or that lets you feel sad? That intentionality is important, rather than just masking what’s there.”
Curious where you can find a board-certified music therapist in your area? Check out theAmerican Music Therapy Association websiteto find qualified music therapists near you. Or talk to youronline therapistfor suggestions.
Andrew LittlefieldContributor
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