Music gives people a voice when words fail them at the end of their lives | Bob Heath
A music therapist describes how improvising songs can open a vital channel of communication in palliative careAll that was dear to me, down below the seaI cannot hold this piece of driftwoodWhen life abandons meLiz, a patient at the Sobell House hospice, 2013In palliative care, when clients and their therapists get to know one another they do so with a shared knowledge, whether voiced or not, that while both of them are going to die eventually, at least one of them is going to be doing it very soon.The relationship between client and therapist is always unique. And whatever you may think about "therapy", all (or most) of it is based on a fundamental human process. Where there is trust and dialogue, there is an opportunity for creativity and healing. But how do you talk about dying when you know that it's about to happen? Are you frightened, angry, anxious or depressed? Are you full of remorse? Or are you relieved? What will you leave behind? Who will you leave behind?A few classic movie scenes spring to mind where the hero on the very brink of death sees his life flash before him, a 10-second review of an entire life in colour, and then he's gone. Off to … wherever.But if, for instance, you are dying of cancer after active, curative treatment has stopped, the 10 seconds can become 10 weeks, or 10 months. And then what do you do? Do you simply wait for the end of the movie, do you try to stop it now and freeze the picture, or do you hit rewind and look at it again, frame by ...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Tags: Psychology theguardian.com Music Health Medical research & wellbeing Society Life and style Editorial Science Source Type: news
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