From my previous post I have been thinking a lot about what exactly I did to earn such a wonderful email. I have been working with the previously mentioned patient for four months now and while I have seen a HUGE change in her I also realize that I am learning a lot and have much further to go. However, lessons I have learned about being a music therapist include the following:
1. Don't be afraid of the silence.
Learning about therapeutic techniques, I'd assume you have heard people say "Don't be afraid of the silence" but that is an exceptionally hard lesson to learn. But IT IS SO TRUE. Be calm. Take time to gather your own thoughts. Recognize that the patient you are working with may need time to process their thoughts and feelings as well. Let a question hang in the air awhile. If you don't get an answer it's ok, you can move on. But if you wait you may just get an answer you weren't expecting. Don't just string every song you can possible think of together so to avoid the silence, because in reality - you are avoiding the therapy as well. We aren't there to just play a bunch of songs and "perform"... the music is there to assist the therapy. And I'm really coming to realize that a lot of therapy is being done in the silence.
2. Don't rush.
This particular patient takes a while to gather her thoughts and then vocalize them. I watch another person interact with the patient once and she talked and talked to the patient but she didn't take the time to really sit and patiently listen. I have learned to just sit and wait and listen. If I don't understand what she is saying I ask her to repeat herself (which can be a painstakingly long task) or I give myself time to process and think harder about what she might have said (which reinforces the first point).
3. Don't assume you know anything.
I don't even know 1/16th about music therapy. It amazes me that even in my 5th month of internship I am faced with new situations or new challenges - with patients I have been seeing for 5 months! Read, read, read. When I went back and read about Parkinsons Disease I understood this patient that much more.
4. Be present in the moment.
I am exceptionally lucky to be an intern right now. I do not face the pressures of "productivity" that my supervisors and the other professional do. I can sit with my patients and spend as much time as they need with me. Sometimes that means I am with someone for 10 minutes, and other times I am there for 2 hours. I don't know what would be the "correct" time but I am glad I don't have to look at my watch and worry about fitting everyone in on one day. Sitting with the patient and being present in the moment not only allows me to be more relaxed and attentive, but it also communicates to the patient how important they are and that they are cared about.
There are more things I've learned but for now, these are good starting points... and one that I want to talk about will likely take up it's own post. So! Be sure to check back soon.
1. Don't be afraid of the silence.
Learning about therapeutic techniques, I'd assume you have heard people say "Don't be afraid of the silence" but that is an exceptionally hard lesson to learn. But IT IS SO TRUE. Be calm. Take time to gather your own thoughts. Recognize that the patient you are working with may need time to process their thoughts and feelings as well. Let a question hang in the air awhile. If you don't get an answer it's ok, you can move on. But if you wait you may just get an answer you weren't expecting. Don't just string every song you can possible think of together so to avoid the silence, because in reality - you are avoiding the therapy as well. We aren't there to just play a bunch of songs and "perform"... the music is there to assist the therapy. And I'm really coming to realize that a lot of therapy is being done in the silence.
2. Don't rush.
This particular patient takes a while to gather her thoughts and then vocalize them. I watch another person interact with the patient once and she talked and talked to the patient but she didn't take the time to really sit and patiently listen. I have learned to just sit and wait and listen. If I don't understand what she is saying I ask her to repeat herself (which can be a painstakingly long task) or I give myself time to process and think harder about what she might have said (which reinforces the first point).
3. Don't assume you know anything.
I don't even know 1/16th about music therapy. It amazes me that even in my 5th month of internship I am faced with new situations or new challenges - with patients I have been seeing for 5 months! Read, read, read. When I went back and read about Parkinsons Disease I understood this patient that much more.
4. Be present in the moment.
I am exceptionally lucky to be an intern right now. I do not face the pressures of "productivity" that my supervisors and the other professional do. I can sit with my patients and spend as much time as they need with me. Sometimes that means I am with someone for 10 minutes, and other times I am there for 2 hours. I don't know what would be the "correct" time but I am glad I don't have to look at my watch and worry about fitting everyone in on one day. Sitting with the patient and being present in the moment not only allows me to be more relaxed and attentive, but it also communicates to the patient how important they are and that they are cared about.
There are more things I've learned but for now, these are good starting points... and one that I want to talk about will likely take up it's own post. So! Be sure to check back soon.
After silence that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.
~Aldous Huxley
~Aldous Huxley
Hey, Annie- you're learning some great things and developing some extremely useful insights. My experience has been that the same realizations keep happening over and over, but I "get it" at a deeper level each time. How cool is that? So excited to know you're joining the ranks of professionals soon!
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