Music therapy

Categoria: Referat Engleza

Descriere:

A number of adherents of Music Therapy are growing every year. Music is used to fight stress conditions and to cure stress related disorders (neurosis, psychosomatic disorders). Application of music in such cases is justified by the fact that music has a capability to modify psycho-emotional condition of a man. That is exactly the reason of the very existence of music and that is exactly the purpose it has always been serving. For psycho- and neuro-physiologist the term PSYCHO-EMOTIONAL condition stands for PSYCHO-PHYSIOLOGICAL condition because the psychological function of the brain is directly as well as indirectly based on the processes of the physiological level...

A number of adherents of Music Therapy are growing every year. Music is used to fight stress conditions and to cure stress related disorders (neurosis, psychosomatic disorders). Application of music in such cases is justified by the fact that music has a capability to modify psycho-emotional condition of a man. That is exactly the reason of the very existence of music and that is exactly the purpose it has always been serving.  For psycho- and neuro-physiologist the term PSYCHO-EMOTIONAL condition stands for PSYCHO-PHYSIOLOGICAL condition because the psychological function of the brain is directly as well as indirectly based on the processes of the physiological level. Neuro-physiologist tends to interpret the influence of music on psycho-physiological condition as an influence over the central nervous system in a certain way (via the sound analyzer of the brain). It is an influence of organized rhythmic sound signals. The later are transformed into bio-electrical impulses and are communicated by nervous routes to sub-core brain structures (Limbic system), where the emotional centers are located, as well as centers that regulate functioning of vegetative nervous system responsible for functioning of internal organs.  The very idea of such a mechanism of an influence of music over psycho-emotional condition is prompted by the fact that rhythmically organized bio-electrical fluctuations, generated by brain neurons (such fluctuations are registered by Electric Encephalograms - EEG) are among the manifestations of physiological activity of the brain. The specter of such fluctuations varies in individuals and changes differently with change in their psycho-physiological condition. This perhaps explains the difference in musical preferences in different people as well as change of these preferences depending on one's emotional condition.   In such a way a specter of bio-electrical rhythms of the brain indirectly indicates psycho-physiological condition of a man and an activity of different physiological brain systems. On the other side the contemporary scientific research indicates that influences, directed at modification of bio-electrical rhythms of the brain are accompanied by a change in psycho-physiological condition. So when a person learns to use EEG - Biofeedback methods independently for a directed modification of his EEG-specter, he achieves improvement of his emotional condition whereas a "programmed" application of this method proves to be highly effective in therapy of several nervous disorders.  The traditional Music Therapy is directed mainly at overcoming stress, i.e. it is emotionally pacifying (this is reflected on EEG by an increase of a content of a so-called alpha-rhythm that is characteristic for a calm condition). However, such an influence of music is restricted to a possibility to create only this single mood and it may not be long enough. Besides, an ordinary music therapy does not take into account individual musical tastes that depend on individual's physiological peculiarities of the brain, as it was mentioned earlier.  At the first stage, the author of the method uncovers a psychologically traumatic problem dominating the conscious mind of the patient and using his originally developed music technology of his BMT Method, and composes some individual music that corresponds to the psychological, or to be more correct, to psycho-physiological condition of a patient. Even as early as the first stage of treatment the patients usually get submerged in a meditative condition followed by specifically: positive emotions, changes of the feeling of time, feeling of their body and spontaneous visualizations (that they relate after the end of the session).  EEG of such conditions demonstrated even more pronounced alpha and especially beta and theta rhythms and their rhythmic modulation was changing as well. Quite often the manifestations of theta rhythm were higher than those of alpha rhythms and that usually coincided with the deepest meditative conditions. The therapy is accompanied by a composed or selected music and the patient is explained that this is HIS music and it SERVES TO CURE HIM. This special music technology of BMT allows the patient to create the set for recovery.  Contemporary scientific data indicates that a suggestive power is considerably increased by meditative conditions. The mechanism of its action may be compared to that of a conditional reflex. Thus the fixed SET that is constantly working on a subconscious level may become psycho-physiologically dominating so it may become capable of reconstructing a pathologically dynamic stereotype in a direction that is prompted by this SET. According to the BMT method, the patient gets the record of his music that continues to have an auto-suggestive effect whenever it is listened to (as in case of returning symptoms).  The therapeutic effect of the BRAIN MUSIC THERAPY, has three aspects: 1. Aesthetic influence over emotional condition of a patient; 2. Suggestively creating a psychological SET that normalizes functioning of a nervous system and of the whole human organism; 3. Physiologically - restructuring bio-electrical rhythm system of the brain.