Music Therapy
What Is Music Therapy All About?
Sometimes, when a person is in pain, talking about their feelings and experiences can be difficult or even scary. In cases like those, healing requires a different approach—one that goes beyond language and gives people a non-verbal way to express themselves.
This is where music therapy can be incredibly helpful.
Music therapy involves using music or instruments to promote healing on a deep and lasting level. A typical session could involve listening to, playing, creating, recreating, or discussing music—and you don’t have to be musically skilled in any way to benefit from music therapy.
The advantage of using music in therapy is that it allows clients to express and process thoughts and feelings that are difficult to verbalize, either because they are heavy (emotionally) or because they’re unconscious thoughts that are difficult to access.
One unique approach we use is called The Bonny Method, also known as Guided Imagery and Music (GIM). This technique involves listening to a specific song designed to elicit a particular response within a meditative state. Our therapists are also trained in general psychotherapy, so we often supplement sessions with traditional talk therapy, especially for processing and discussion.
When Did This Become An Effective Form Of Treatment
Music therapy traces its roots back to the aftermath of World War I when soldiers returned home with trauma and PTSD (known then as “shell shock”). Hospital staff noticed the positive impact music had on the mental health of their patients and started to integrate it into therapy and their rehabilitative programs.
Though this therapeutic model’s origins can be traced back to the use of music in healthcare settings, it has since become a sophisticated treatment modality over the years. The first music therapy college training program was established in 1944. The National Association for Music Therapy was formed in 1950, and subsequently, the American Music Therapy Association in 1998.
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The first thing our therapist will do is work with the client to determine what role music might play in sessions. Some people want to share music that expresses how they feel while others use music to express themselves, which is why we have a wide variety of instruments on hand. Other times, the therapist plays songs geared toward helping the client process what they’re bringing into session.
These songs, drawn from carefully designed “music programs,” are specifically selected to enable clients to access thoughts and feelings that are too difficult to express verbally in therapy. As music plays, the client talks about what comes up for them—memories, feelings, thoughts, physical sensations, etc.
Then, the therapist guides the client in learning from their emotional and sensory experience, bringing together what is discussed to help the person move toward their goals.
How Our Approach To Music Therapy Works
Who Can This Form Of Treatment Help
It’s also a powerful tool for people who have tried other forms of therapy before without seeing results—or for those who have difficulty opening up in a traditional counseling setting. Unlike many cognitive approaches, music therapy engages the senses and deepens emotional experiences.
Just as a song can activate people's emotions or transport folks to another place or time, music in treatment helps clients access thoughts and feelings that are generally more guarded. For example, through these interventions, clients can access unconscious beliefs that lie behind certain habits.
In that way, we’re going beneath the symptoms, processing the underlying causes of distress, and addressing the issue at its root.
This holistic, non-invasive form of therapy is a great way for teens and adults to deal with a multitude of challenges. That includes exploring issues with complex relationships, sexual orientation, and gender identity. We support clients who are healing from trauma, coping with difficult childhood experiences, or recovering from disordered eating (including anorexia and bulimia).
Music therapy can assist with managing intense emotions, like grief, anger, depression, worry, and anxiety. It’s even an effective way of helping clients interrupt unhelpful habits, improve interpersonal connections, and feel more in control over their life choices.
What Can Clients Take Away From Sessions?
Music therapy is insight-oriented, meaning clients walk out of sessions with a deeper understanding of their experiences. It's great for people who want to figure out the "why" or the "how" of their actions. Music also helps the therapeutic process flow more freely by creating a safe, comfortable therapeutic environment and experience.
Though the music itself already does a lot of the work, the therapist supports the client in using the sounds they’re hearing to deepen their therapeutic experience and move toward their goals. Maybe they’re going through a difficult breakup, struggling with hopelessness, or just feeling stuck.
Even if a client has talked about their problem before, music therapy helps them engage it in a different way that allows for greater insight. It also acts as a container that “supports and holds” a client so they don’t become overwhelmed as they share their story and explore difficult emotions.
Because using song, sound, and music is a more sensory and experiential approach to therapy, the changes in a client’s thought patterns, their mental health, and their overall feelings are more deeply rooted. It’s an approach that can feel easier than plain talk therapy. It allows clients to get into the therapeutic process faster—and it’s a process that deepens as it evolves.
At LaunchPad Counseling, we’re passionate about what we do—using music and traditional forms of therapy to help people heal and get unstuck. Many clients report feeling more hopeful after the first few sessions. Others say that their whole outlook has changed over time. So, we know it works, and we want to help others achieve the change they want to see in their lives.
Our Background With Music Therapy And Mental Health
Allie Longworth, MT-BC, has provided Music Therapy at LaunchPad Counseling for over five years. She started studying music therapy in 2012 and has been a board-certified music therapist since 2016. After graduating from Radford University, she continued through graduate school, completing her post-graduate training in the Bonny Method of Guided Imagery and Music.
Although she initially considered becoming a talk therapist, she learned through reading case studies how powerful music could be as a tool in the healing process. Inspired by that realization, her natural love for music, and her own background as a musician, she changed course and became a music therapist.
Allie is happy to work on a treatment team with prescribers, dietitians, or other professionals. In her work with minors, she sees the parents, client, and herself as a team that works together for the best interest of the client while respecting that person’s confidentiality as much as is reasonably possible.
“I know deeply the power of the healing process to transform and allow people to change in ways they did not think were possible. I've done my own healing work and am grateful to therapists, mentors, and supervisors who came along before me and walked this path with me so that I may walk it with others."
—Allie Longworth
Does Music Therapy Resonate With You?
If you’re looking for a safe, fun, alternative way of healing and overcoming challenges, LaunchPad Counseling has a unique solution for you. Please call (804) 665-4681, Email , or Contact Us to set up your online or in-person intake session and learn more about how we integrate music therapy into the healing process.