Author of Music Medicine, Christine Stevens, believes that guided practices for the medicine of music can release tension, bring healing, and provide energy. To watch and follow along with guided practices, click here.

Listening with Your Body: Start with preparing yourself to receive the rhythm with an open mind. Breath deep and then exhale a sound of release. Set an intention to allow the rhythm to enter a particular part of your body. Say out loud, “I am inviting the healing of rhythm into blank part of my body”; then place your hand on that body part to direct the rhythm energy while you are listening to a calming tune. As you listen, sit absolutely still and resist the temptation to move with the beat. This circumvents the automatic pathways for rhythm into your body to provide a deeper occurrence of healing.

    • I use this guided practice whenever I need to open up my mind or if I need help breathing calmly. The trick is to sit still and focus on the music. The song I use often is Anathema by twenty one pilots. Resisting the temptation to move to the beat, I held my hand on my chest and focused on healing that part of my body.

Drum-Massage: This practice is known to loosen up the patient and allows the body to receive the vibration of the drum by listening deeply. Choose a drum with a deep tone; like a hoop or frame drum. Play the drum near but not exactly at its center to really hear it sing. Position the drum about two inches away from yourself, without it touching the body. Play a simple pulse at a tempo that feels comfortable in order to feel the energy and vibration against your body. This is called the sonic ultrasound.

Drum Prayer: This practice is for if you want to send energy to someone or a play in the world. The drum will be your prayer partner in the practice. First, set your intention. Think about who or where you want this prayer to go. Hold a moment of silence to think. Whenever you’re ready, play out a beat on the drum that portrays your intention. Drum the tone of the energy of your prayer, not the word phrases you are thinking. When you are finished, soften your playing to eventually fall back into silence. Visualize where the prayer is going, and let it get there.

Play with Nature: Choose one of your favorite places to go to in nature where you feel a sense of peace. Let your soul listen to the sounds around you. The music of the world should play for you. Isolate just one sound that you resonate most with. Focus and listen to that one sound and find your peace.

 

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