Stephen Tok Music & Wellness

03/31/2026

Better late than never. March marks the end of yet another term supervising interns, completing my first year of PhD studies, and celebrating the work I do as a music psychotherapist. While my work is deeply entrenched in mental health principles, it is also greatly informed by music and the creative arts. I'd like to argue that creativity sets us apart from other creatures of this world, and it is the very thing that lights a spark within us. It exists not only in the arts, but in everything that requires us to think, and live, outside the box - from sport strategies, to courtrooms, to breakthrough science and more. I'm proud to be a MUSIC psychotherapist and to have my special role at WRHN. Original post with more pictures in comment below.

09/17/2025

A welcomed reminder. Simple yet profound. Easy to understand, yet challenging to live out.

06/28/2025

The end of another school year, but the thank yous are hitting a little different this time. They are off to other teachers as I embark on new projects. The handmade and heartfelt gifts are as special as the growth I've had the pleasure to witness, from before the pandemic til now.

06/20/2025

Inviting qualified MTAs and RP/RP(Q)s specializing in music psychotherapy to apply for our part-time child/adolescent outpatient mental health position. WRHN Midtown Campus, Kitchener. Link in comments.

06/04/2025

Privileged to be invited by our Indigenous Care Team to learn more about drums and its role for healing. Music therapy also has roots in ancient/traditional practices for holistic wellbeing. We handmade these Grandmother drums from cedar wood and deer hide, and they will be used with indigenous patients at the hospital. My hands remain raw from stretching the hides into laces for securing the drum head.

03/22/2025

I've not posted as frequently to this page as work grown quite excitingly over the last couple years. This weekend, I am honoured to have been invited to speak as a panelist about my music psychotherapy work, at this year's Ontario Network of Child and Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatry Services (ONCAIPS) annual conference hosted by our own hospital. Just unpacked the goody bag I received - a couple of cookies didn't make it into the picture...

06/21/2024

05/23/2024

03/08/2024

I feel honored to have received some words of wisdom from a client today, too special to keep to myself. As a refugee who has fled horrible trauma and persecution in their home country, they found solace in our recent music psychotherapy sessions. After reflecting on the music we co-created at the piano today, they commented on its sad quality and was quick to affirm that there is beauty in sadness. This is how they reframed sadness (paraphrased): "Sadness is cleansing. Sadness washes the dirty away. When I see someone cry, I see beauty in their eyes. When I see someone crying, I know they have no malice." It was then empowering to talk about their own sadness and how it reflects their own beauty, their own resilience. A reminder, from a refugee, to never be bound by sadness. ❤️

02/06/2024

Sometimes social media drops helpful truth bombs; easy enough to be shared and understood by children...