One-on-One Music Therapy

Do you know what Music Therapy is?

Music therapy is the use of music to reach goals that are tailored to each specific client. Music is a non threatening entity, and has characteristics that allow it to be especially useful with clients who may not respond to traditional therapies. Music therapists assess emotional well-being, physical health, social functioning, communication abilities, and cognitive skills through musical responses, create goals, and design music sessions appropriate for the individual.

Some common goals of music therapy can include the following: sensory stimulation, interaction with therapist, developing decision making skills, increasing expressive communication, learning a leisure skill, such as adaptive piano lessons, and different relaxation techniques.

A few of the different techniques and methods a music therapist may use can include, music improvisation, song writing, lyric discussion, learning through music, and music performance.

When clients who are currently receiving one on one music therapy were asked what they liked about music therapy, they said “I like learning how to play the piano.” “I like singing songs together with you.” “I like learning songs I haven’t heard since my childhood.”

St. Ann Center offers one-on-one music therapy that is available to anyone, not just St. Ann Center clients.

It's the Little Things

Sometimes it's just the little things that matter most.
Sometimes it's just a "God bless you," when someone sneezes.
Sometimes it's an "excuse me," when trying to move out of the way of a wheelchair.

Sometimes it's as simple as an act or gesture of caring; bending down to pick up something someone has dropped, holding a door for someone who struggles, moving things out of the way for a wheelchair to get through, a high five, a hand shake, a pat on the back.

Yolanda, the art and crafts teacher at St. Ann Center, understands this well.  She teaches arts and crafts, helps with computer time, feeds clients at lunch time, and occasionally, when she has time, she also paints the clients nails.  It's a small act really.  It doesn't take much time.  But it really means a lot to the clients.  It helps to make them feel cared for and loved.

"Look at my nails!" said one client as I was walking through the atrium.  Yolanda had just painted her nails and she was feeling very pretty!  It made me smile all day!