Songwriting is a kind of music therapy that is often employed as an adjunct therapy for the treatment of mental illnesses. However, scientific research works show this method brings considerable positive results and should be developed further.
How Songwriting Therapy Works
Songwriting is a therapy method that offers a variety of techniques and ways of expression. The diversity of music styles allows for the selection of the most appropriate one for a patient. The freedom of choice and improvisation reveals fixed mental patterns and allows you to choose how to deal with them.
The method has been shown to have a biological effect. During songwriting, several zones of the brain are activated. The prefrontal and right anterior cortex represent cognition, emotions, and psychological awareness of one’s own mental state. The bilateral lobe is also engaged during the songwriting process activating the memory mechanisms. It’s defined that almost all parts of the brain responsible for cognitive procedures and emotions are activated during songwriting.
Uncover memories, both positive and negative, can be recalled through songwriting. Many researchers emphasize that songwriting serves as a good means of marking psychological traumas experienced in the past. It allows the patient to express himself or herself through words and music, revealing psychological anchors to the past that may cause various complexes and exacerbate disorders. Songwriting increases self-recognition and develops emotional awareness.
During songwriting, the patient often becomes aware of his or her emotional state and is able to estimate it. Songwriting reflects the current and general mood and helps the patient find out and accept his or her specifics. It also provides a clue to the emotions’ discharge and stabilization of the inner calm and control.
Benefits of Songwriting as a Therapy Method
While songwriting is becoming increasingly popular among mental health professionals, many clients are concerned about its efficacy. The advantages of utilizing this mental therapy method as identified by experts are listed below.
- Minimal risk of complications or unfavorable results. Although, like any mental health therapy technique, songwriting should only be used by a qualified therapist, its potential level of harm is very low. The method is frequently used in conjunction with other forms of mental disorder treatment, including behavioral therapy, conversational therapy, medication course, and is known to alleviate the patient’s negative reactions.
- Individualized approach. Songwriting can be practiced individually or in groups. However, the results are always estimated for each patient separately, even during group therapy. The method is very useful for achieving individual goals like revealing the inner world, diagnosing the state of mental health, highlighting the specifics of perception and cognition of the patient. Songwriting is also a powerful tool for retrieving memory layers.
- A socially acceptable form of expression. Songwriting is generally recognized as a positive activity. Therefore, it’s easier for a patient to express his or her feelings and emotions in this form. It is especially important when dealing with negative emotions and experiences such as anger, frustration, offense, and so on. Experts note that songwriting also helps in decreasing or eliminating aggression by allowing negative emotions and tension to be released.
Songwriting Techniques
Songwriting is related to creativity because it activates appropriate patterns in the brain. As such, this way has multiple sub-techniques, many of which are transformed by clinicians during therapy. Nonetheless, the applied sub-techniques can be divided into two broad categories:
Rewriting and Filling the Gaps Technique
This method involves an assignment to write a song about the patient’s condition. Depending on the actual assignment and the patient’s condition/capacity, it may be necessary to fill in the blanks in a popular song with some words or phrases missing. The patient should fill in the blanks on his or her own.
Another condition can be to make a song for a preset melody (it can be a well-known one or a general tune). The theme of the song can also be determined by the clinician. Individual and group therapy are both options. As for group therapy, it aids in revealing each group member’s involvement in a common activity, the group’s overall emotional state, and its attitude toward certain issues. During individual therapy, this technique allows the clinician to create a mental picture of the patient, including his or her emotional state and features of cognitive processes.
Broad Creativity Technique
The patient is free to choose the topic, melody, and/or lyrics. There is usually no time limit for such tasks, but the clinician may limit the length of the text. This technique helps reveal individual cognitive and emotional patterns, activating deep memory layers. The interaction with the music and the paper is beneficial for unraveling the history of past psychological traumas and unpleasant emotions. The latter is often harder to perform during conversational therapy. This technique also helps in focusing on the patient’s current state of consciousness and the actual problems with which he has to deal. It also serves for releasing neurological tension and decreasing aggression. This method is highly efficient for patients who need to improve psychological awareness and self-control.
