Wellbeing Tip #6: music

The next in a monthly series where I’ll offer some suggestions for tools and strategies that can help with our well-being.

Each one of us is different, and what one person finds helpful, may not resonate with others. 

We may find that what has helped previously, may not be connecting with us in the same way in the present.

Or you may have a well-established set of tools that are ‘tried and trusted’, but you’d like to add some more.

It is my hope that these tips will give you some ideas. 

June: Music

Whilst sat watching Lewis Capaldi at Glastonbury today, I was struck by the emotion in music; the emotion showed by Lewis at being back performing, finishing what he started a couple of years ago, and the emotion seen on the faces of the crowd, ranging from tears, to smiles, people sat on shoulders arms raised aloft, or dancing and singing along. 

Also, the way that the moment brought people together – people linking arms in the crowd, or arms around shoulders, all singing or chanting as one, thousands of people, strangers and known, joined in a shared moment.

Music is sometimes referred to as ‘the soundtrack of our lives’. 

We can hear a piece of music and be taken back to a moment in time.

We can hear a music and be lifted or be connected further to emotions that we may be feeling in that moment.

We can hear music and dance around, or we can hear music and be captivated by its lyrics, and perhaps its resonance or the lyrical beauty.

We can discover, through new genres, artists or songs, or we can be comfortable and familiar, with music that we have listened to many times before.

We can talk with others about the music that we listen to, or a new track that we heard, or we can use to it to help us explain how we might be thinking or feeling, when words on their own escape or fail us.

Music can bring connection in so many ways.  It can connect on a regular basis with the same people, or it can bring connection between people in a short, but sweet moment.  Music and its power can be timeless or be etched in a chapter of a lifetime.

Music can help.

It can nurture; it can heal.

So how can you incorporate music into your life and support wellbeing?  Here are some tips:

·       Create a playlist: songs that leave you feeling uplifted, songs that create a feeling of calm.  Or songs that encourage, that leave you feeling like you can conquer the world, or songs that help you feel focused for those times when productivity or motivation may be low.

·       Incorporate music into your daily routines: perhaps during the commute, whilst doing chores, making dinner or before sleep

·       Use music as a tool for connection: join an activity that has music at its core, such as playing an instrument, singing, or dancing.  Or join a social group that goes to gigs together or attends a local music quiz.

·       Write lyrics as a way of expressing emotions or thoughts: they don’t have to be perfect, and they don’t have to been seen or heard by others.  Think of it as a variation of journaling!

·       Spend some time mindfully listening to music: focus on the lyrics, the melody, the harmonies.  Close your eyes and listen to the music in its fullness.  Be still and see where the music takes you.  What emotions is it evoking, what feelings?  Where does the music take you?  

Music can take you on a path into your emotions, or out of them.

It can bring you joy; it can bring you calm, or it can meet you where you are.

It can explain, it can hug, it can ease.

It can help us to feel, to express, to ‘be’.

Music can be there for us in our darkest time, our lightest times, our happiest times, and our saddest. 

Music can be a companion; it can be with us, holding us, helping us, and sometimes, healing us.

On a weekend of music being all around us, and as the season of music festivals and summer performances continues, why not pop on that album that you haven’t gotten round to listening to? 

Or dance around to your favourite tunes next time you’re in the kitchen making dinner?

Or just hit play on a random playlist and see what you hear, perhaps finding a new musical discovery?

Bring music into your daily life and see where it takes you!