From cave paintings and ancient drumming to modern symphonies and street art, creative expression through art and music has been a cornerstone of human culture for thousands of years. But these practices do not just enrich our lives emotionally and culturally. Research has shown that they can provide real benefits for our mental, physical, and social well-being, too.
The Healing Power of Making Art
Creating visual art like painting, drawing, sculpting, or craftwork allows us to express ourselves in a free-flowing, non-verbal way. This open-ended creative process can be incredibly therapeutic and restorative. Following our creative impulses helps to quiet the mind’s incessant chatter, relieving stress and inducing a state of relaxed presence often described as a “flow” experience.
Making art also engages several regions of the brain that are associated with healing and feelings of pleasure, including reducing the body’s cortisol levels. And the sense of pride and accomplishment that comes from creating something can boost self-esteem and confidence. For these reasons, art therapy is increasingly used to help those who struggle with trauma, addiction, depression, and other types of mental health challenges.
Music’s Impact on the Mind and Body
Music has an almost supernatural ability to stir our emotions and change how we feel physically and mentally. That’s because different musical elements like melodies, rhythms, and tempos affect various parts of our brain and body in very specific ways.
For example, slower musical rhythms can be synchronized with our heart rate, lowering blood pressure and anxiety levels. In music therapy sessions, trained professionals, like those at Maloca Sound, use these powerful connections strategically to achieve desired therapeutic outcomes, like managing pain, improving cognition, elevating mood, or facilitating communication.
The Neurological Power of Rhythm
Rhythm, in particular, has an incredible effect on the brain and nervous system. The repetitive pattern of rhythmic sound actually synchronizes the firing of neurons in our brains, producing alpha and theta brain wave patterns that are associated with deep relaxation and higher consciousness. Rhythms also seem to organically regulate our vital signs, like heart rate, breathing, and even blood pressure. This may be why the steady beat of a drum, or the ebb and flow of the ocean’s waves can lull us into such a Zen-like trance state. Integrating rhythmic elements like drumming, clapping, or chanting is an effective way for music therapists to induce desired brainwave states and physiological responses.
The Magic of Musical Play
There’s a profound joy and freedom that comes from spontaneously playing an instrument or making music. While mastering technique can take years of practice, we all have the innate ability as humans to groove, hum, drum, or move our body rhythmically in musical ways from a young age.
Group drumming, singing, and improvisational “sound circles” create strong feelings of social connection and belonging. Making music together, even informally, is a bonding activity linked to increased trust, cooperation, and pro-social behaviors.
Art and Music in Healing Spaces
For all these mind-body benefits, incorporating art and music into healthcare facilities, nursing homes, schools, and other community spaces is becoming increasingly common. Hospitals use art therapy programs to help patients process difficult emotions, reduce loneliness, manage pain, and stay mentally and physically engaged during treatment or recovery.
Music therapy is used in similar ways by harnessing sound and vibration’s restorative effects. Ambient musical environments have been shown to relieve pre-operative anxiety, neonatal pain, and even speed up healing from injury or illness in surgical patients.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, art and music connect us to something greater than ourselves, igniting our creativity, childlike wonder, and sense of humanity. So get out there and make some noise or colorful self-expression. Your mind, body and soul will thank you.
