What is Music Therapy?
Music Therapy is an evidence-based therapy that uses the power of music to address a variety of goals including social, cognitive, emotional, behavioral, physical, sensory and communication. The benefits of Music Therapy include enabling communication, connecting to others, emotional support, motivation, promotion of self-expression and self-awareness, relaxation and stress reduction.
When I was in early elementary school my mother suffered a brain aneurysm and from there suffered several debilitating strokes. Coming from a family of musicians I remember walking alongside my mom in the living room of your rural Nebraska home as my dad played the piano and my brother and I sang - guiding her along and rehabilitating her body and her speech. As a teen I discovered this profession known as Music Therapy and knew in my heart that someday I wanted to do that. I chose a path into Music Education where I remained for 25 years and loved it however I knew that wasn’t quite the dream I had as a teen. So I retired from teaching and pursued this dream of becoming a Music Therapist. I have now completed my coursework towards my Masters degree and was recently Board Certified. I have a heart and passion for using music to assist those who struggle with addiction, mental heath issues and those that have deficits in developmental and neurological areas.