'SOUND'

My Experience

As a student in my final year studying Occupational therapy I was intrigued to find out if music therapy could assist with managing the demands of study with my everyday life.

I set myself a personal daily challenge to listen to sound and music at different intervals and connect the sounds I hear to how I felt.
 Twice a day for eight minutes at a time I will listen to sounds in my environment and describe my feelings associated with those sounds. I will also select two different types of music to listen to and also describe my feelings during and after listening to them. I will repeat this for three days and blog my results.

Sound is defined in the oxford dictionary (2013), (also musical sound) sound produced by continuous and regular vibrations, as opposed to noise.

    Sound                      Feeling            Effect              Sound                Feeling              Effect    

9th July Niue 5.30pm Cars Roosters Bird Door	Travelling Crowing Tweeting slamming	Disturbed Distracted Pleasant disturbed	9.30pm Crickets Voices Water footsteps	Bugs People taps footsteps	Contented Fascinated energetic settled
10th July 10.30am Waves Water Voices wind	Breaking Swirling faces weather	Brave keen Joyous gratified	4.30pm Birds Rooster Cars wind	Chirping Clucking Travelling rustling	Delighted Bold Energetic gratified
11th July 7.00am Voices Vehicles sizzling (cooking) singing	People Movement Food faces	Talkative Restless Hopeful enchanted	5.30pm Water Wind Waves laughing	Swishing Swirling Lapping faces	Refreshed Safe content rewarded

My next challenge was to listen to two pieces of music while having a break in writing of assignments.

Mano (1992) asserts that ‘music listening experiences can provide a suitable way to positively influence enduring mood states and in turn the 'time out' needed for quality decision making.
My first choice of music had a fast rhythm. The beat of the music interrupted in my thoughts, sped up my heartbeat and I found I it difficult to relax.

Labbe et al (2007), reported that listening to either classical music or music selected by the individual reduces anxiety and increased relaxation ratings more than listening to heavy metal music or sitting in silence.


                              

My second choice had a slower rhythm - slower that I would usually listen to. My body and mind relaxed more easily. The music was soothing and I sensed a calmness of thought and overall in my mind. I could hear individual instruments being played as the rhythm of the music carried me along. In this challenge I began to understand that music can accompany and have a positive result on a performance of occupation such as intense writing activity.

ACTIVITY:

Make time to have a break and try listening to sounds for 3-5 minutes a day for a regular period of time. Listen to the layering of sounds, be aware of feelings experienced and take note of levels of relaxation in your body. Ask yourself, how do I feel with certain types of sounds and rhythms so you can more consciously select sounds and music that aim to reduce your level of stress and anxiety? 

                                      

Reference: 
Labbé, E., Schmidt, N., Babin, J., & Pharr, M. (2007). Coping with stress: The effectiveness of different types of music.  In.Gadbury, A. (2011). A steady beat and state anxiety. Journal of Music Therapy 48 (3). 346-356.
Mano, H. (1992). Judgements under stress. In: Lesuik, T. (2010). The effect of preferred music on mood and performance in a high-cognitive demand occupation. Journal of Music Therapy. 47 (2). 137-154.
Musical instrument: Retrieved from: https://www.google.co.nz/search/dreamstime.com
Sound definition: Retrieved from http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/sound, 2013