If you like music, you probably already know it can affect your mood. Maybe you put on your favorite song to pump yourself up for an important meeting or listen to soothing music when you’re relaxing at home before bed. I don’t know about you, but I finished 2020 by kicking back and listening to my favorite holiday songs. I enjoy the holidays each year. The extra time with my family helps me to start the new year on a positive note. While music therapy is often used to assist with cognition, mental, and emotional health, the research continued to show the benefits of music therapy are wide-ranging. As therapists, we do important work during our sessions which can go unrecognized because many times it looks like fun. However, our goals can include cognitive, physical, communication, social, emotional, and behavioral just to name a few. Here are a couple of tips to remember when using recorded music with your child in 2021.

• Use music with a steady beat

• Repetition is the key

Gina G. Glidewell, MT-BC