by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 9, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello Again,
As students, interns, and music therapists, I think it’s safe to say that we are a passionate bunch. And when you love what you do it can be very difficult to take a step back, even when it is absolutely necessary. This is something I have been dealing with for the past month, and it has been a great learning experience that I would like to share with you.
The week that I came back from the holiday break, I began to have back pain which soon made it difficult to even get out of bed. After a doctors visit I learned that this is not a quick fix, and that it would be at least a few months before I would begin to feel the relief I was searching for.
Now, this was all fine and dandy because I was entirely convinced that I could go full speed ahead and be just fine. Except the fact that it hurts when I play guitar. When I realized this, panic ensued and I felt the worry sweep over me… No, you cannot take my guitar. I understand that to other people, the attachment I have to my guitar might be odd, but I’m sure that I am in good company here.
Soon thereafter I noticed that I was getting behind on my work, and that sitting in a chair and standing all day was not helping in the least. I began to feel overwhelmed and disappointed in myself. I had just passed the mid-point of my internship and I wanted to be able to do everything as planned so as to make the most of my short six months. It wasn’t until my supervisors Rachel and Katey spoke to me that I began to understand.
They expressed to me the importance of knowing your capabilities, and knowing your limits. Playing to your strengths and understanding when your body has had enough for the day. Katey compared this to having a bad cold, flu, or losing your voice for an extended period of time. It is true of anything. This is how I have been working effectively in the midst of everything…
- Simplify. One of the first things my supervisors did for me after I returned was to list my weekly responsibilities in level of importance so when I sat down to work I knew what was most important to complete and what could be done another time. Simplifying also means accepting that I don’t have to use my guitar at every session. I have been strengthening my other accompaniment skills even more in the process.
- Streamline. Use your time practically, and effectively. I have been doing this by going to bed early and getting up early, because I have minimal pain in the mornings, and utilizing the bean bags at work versus a chair because they are much more supportive than an upright chair. These things increase my longevity, energy, and drive throughout my day.
- Self-Care. Here’s the big one. Stop, and self-care. It is essential. No questions asked.
What I have found is that working this way feels good. It is productive and the work I do gets done faster. What I have found is not just a way to deal with an illness, pain… it is much bigger than that. This is the recipe for burnout prevention. Working with this level of simplicity, and a “make the best of your situation” attitude has been very effective for me. These are tools that have been so helpful to me, I wanted to share them with you.
Have an amazing week!
-AH
by Alisabeth Hopper | Feb 7, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello everybody!
So far 2016 has been a whirlwind and we have already completed our first five-week session of Listen & Learn for Little Ones. This session we tried something a little different by splitting our little ones into two groups based on ages and development. We were all very excited to see how the parents and little ones would adjust to the change. As it turns out, they loved it!
What was most amazing is that the little ones who used to be reserved and quiet were coming out of their shells and participating throughout group in ways that they never had before. The change was instantaneous.
In our very first week of classes with the split, I was leading the older class and it was wonderful chaos. The little ones were laughing, dancing, singing, and playing; that is, until I took out the book. Then the running, screaming, and jumping stopped as they all quietly gathered around and watched in awe as I read The Little Blue Truck. They watched and listened with intent until the little blue truck in our story got stuck in the mud and I watched as the kids cried “Oh, no!” “He’s stuck in the mud!” and shook their heads with deep concern.
The age split allowed us as instructors to focus on more specific developmental markers to that age range and encouraged each child to come out of his or her own space and truly experience the class. I don’t think a single one of us could keep from sharing in the joy that these little ones experienced in music class that day and throughout the session.
-AH
by Alisabeth Hopper | Jan 21, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello All!
I am so glad to be back in the swing of things after the break and posting again!
It has been a whirlwind of a few months here at Music Therapy Connections. I am approaching my four month mark for my six month internship. I am now at the point where I am leading most of the sessions and interactions between students, clients, patients family, doctors, nurses, and so on. Every day I get asked questions like…“So you play guitar for the kids here?”, “You help them to relax?” or the most common response “What is music therapy?”.
So, what do you say? How do you explain what we do to parents, students, doctors, or someone who overheard you at the grocery store. Well..
- Who are you talking to? If you are speaking to a student or a child it is perfectly appropriate to use abbreviated terms and casual speech, but when parents, nurses, and other adults ask they usually want to hear the more clinical aspect of what we do and how we approach therapy.
- What is their need to know information? Are they asking about music therapy concerning their mother who has Dementia, their niece who has autism, or even themselves. If time permits it is very helpful to ask what sparked their interest. That can be help you to give them information and resources that cater to their interests.
- Finally, and this is a big one… TIME. Is this an inquiry via email, in a shopping line, in passing in the hallway or even on an elevator. What do you do when someone asks you the big question “So, what is music therapy?” and you have two floors to give them a clear and concise answer. AND GO!
I like to have my go to facts in my head to refer back to. They include…
- To be a music therapist you have to have a four year degree in music therapy and complete a six month internship full time totaling 1040 hours. After internship the student must take the board certification exam and pass to become a board certified music therapist or MT-BC.
- In music therapy we address non-musical goals like speech, cognition, social skills, emotions, and motor goals. If we were to focus on musical goals that would be more of an adaptive lesson.
- Music contributes to therapy in many ways including providing grounding and orientation, rhythmic stimulus for calming heart rate or promoting a steady consistent gait, and in general music comes with less verbal and physical expectations. There are many ways to achieve a successful therapeutic experience in music therapy without any speech at all.
Music therapy is a wide reaching profession. It is impossible to explain all of what we do in a few sentences in a line at the grocery store, but with a few go to facts we can all advocate for music therapy every day.
Best of luck!
-AH
by Alisabeth Hopper | Jan 1, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Happy New Year, everybody!
Can you believe that we made it? 2016 has begun!
I know for some of us a new year means a new start, a new workout regimen, a new set of books to read before next year, or a resolution.
To be honest I didn’t plan to have a “resolution” this year. Life is a bit hectic for me right now to say the least. I have finished four years of schooling and am officially over halfway finished with my internship. I am that much closer to being a certified professional and reaching a goal which I have been working toward and planning for since I was fourteen.
My plan for my break was to catch up on work and maybe even get ahead… so I’ll just be upfront with you… that did not happen. It is now three days until we are back in the grind of crazy life and this blog post is my first completed task on my to do list. Whats crazy though, is that I am entirely okay with it.
Over my break I actively chose to make decisions that would bring me joy, not happiness, but lasting, true joy. So instead of making myself complete and assignment that wasn’t due for another week, with a frazzled holiday mindset I chose not to. Instead, I spent time with my family, I laughed, I babysat my cousin, I bonded with my brother and brothers in law. I fostered relationships that were important to me. And when, on occasion I had free time alone after others had gone to sleep, I found that I enjoyed doing research and looking up ideas for the clients I see in my internship. I found that I would have bursts of random ideas for songs, interventions, even documentation.
I was inspired. The joy that I had decided to bring into my life was now fueling a passion and drive to complete the work I had determined to be taxing from the start.
My new years resolution this year is to choose joy in my daily life and actively pursue a personal and professional lifestyle which allows me to do that.
-AH
by Alisabeth Hopper | Jan 1, 2016 | Intern's Corner, MTC
Hello Everybody,
This last week has been much more of an introspective sort of week. My internship supervisors have completed my midterm evaluation and have asked me to evaluate myself as well. This is very difficult to do because I want to be the best therapist I can be. Unfortunately, that leads me to hold myself to unreasonable and at times, unrealistic expectations for myself.
So I have been trudging through this challenging task with all of this in mind. Fortunately for me a very important point was brought to my attention…
A few days ago I was working on the pediatrics floor of St. Johns hospital when I approached a patient’s room. As usual I knocked, said hello, introduced myself and what I do and asked if the patient would be interested in doing music with me. The patient shook his head and said no. With the guardian’s interest and encouragement I walked to the patients bedside and asked about the toys he was playing with.
Soon thereafter the patient agreed to playing a song. Throughout the session we took frequent breaks to talk about his family, toys, and interests of his. His affect was flat through most of the session but appeared to be relaxed so we kept going. Finally, it was time to go. After I sang goodbye, the patient’s eyes began to well up with tears and he nodded when his guardian asked him if he liked the music.
This patient did not express outright interest in active music making, but because I was able to engage with him he was able to have a musical experience that clearly meant a lot to him in the end.
The reason why I tell this story is because three months ago when I first began my internship, I would not have attempted engaged a patient after being told no. I’m not even sure that I would have left my supervisor’s side in any given patient’s room. Internships are meant to be challenging, difficult, new, exciting, terrifying, eye opening, and truly an experience that can only be defined as organized chaos. This enviornment fosters rapid growth.
To measure success without understanding where I have been and where I am now would be an entirely inaccurate and meaningless measurement.
So my very important point, or epiphany was centered around the idea of growth.
Growth is the most important thing. No greatness came from stagnation.
If you’re growing your getting closer to your goals everyday.
-AH
