Mindful Music Listening as a Potential Treatment for Depression

Abstract

This column is designed to underscore relationally based creative interventions used by counselors and psychotherapists in their practices. Our intention is to provide examples of novel, innovative ways of working with clients in their efforts to deepen self-awareness and their connections with others. Although the interventions within this column will be presented in a linear “how-to” manner, an essential premise of this column is that interventions submitted for publication have a contextual and relational basis. Basic to this column is the therapeutic focus of working through latent hurts and impediments to our clients' health and happiness. Client goals generally involve creating the requisite emotional space needed for genuine relational choice for connection to manifest. If you have created a useful therapy tool or if you have adapted an existing creative tool that you would like to share with readers, please follow submission guidelines in the author information packet available at http://www.creativecounselor.org/Journal.html

Depression is one of the most common mental health issues. Although drug therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy remain popular and effective treatments, alternative interventions such as the use of music listening and mindfulness practice as interventions during therapy have gained ground. Research on the use of music listening and mindfulness practice shows each to be effective in treating depression. The authors propose a combined intervention called Mindful Music Listening, during which clients with depression use mindfulness skills while listening to music to notice, label, discuss, and learn to manage their emotions. Possible advantages include greater client self-awareness and emotional regulation as well as a strengthened counselor–client relationship.

Keywords:

• music listening
• mindfulness
• meditation
• depression
• self-awareness
• counseling
• creativity