Music Therapy

Music Therapy in Group Settings

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It is a pretty well known fact that if a student is a part of a smaller class, they get more individualized attention and thus increases learning rates and quality. While individual music therapy sessions are appropriate for many music therapy clients, group sessions can also be highly effective. Here is a must-read article highlighting a Chicago … Read more

New Studio Grand Opening

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On Sunday, March 1st, Play Your Part, Inc.’s new studio opened with a bang! Over 60 people joined us in celebrating our new studio space in Mission Viejo. Check out our Facebook post for a glimpse into all the fun! Kids enjoyed checking out the new waiting room, bathroom and clinic space. Arts and crafts … Read more

Reflect(ions)

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Today was my last day of teaching at OCSA for the semester. Parts of me were happy, parts of me were sad, but when the students led a few interventions for their final project…part of me felt anxious. Why…? I’m not sure…but as I reflect on my first semester (ever!) of teaching high schoolers, I … Read more

Majoring in Music (dot) Com

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I recently came across this great website. Great concept. Great articles. Why hadn’t I heard of it before? Check out MajoringInMusic.Com. And more specifically, check out Music Therapy for Children with Autism. This fall semester, I am teaching an Introduction to Music Therapy course at the Orange County School of the Arts. Most of my students … Read more

Glass Mountain

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This past Saturday I presented about music therapy to the folks at Glass Mountain in Irvine, CA. Ten people were in attendance and I spoke about the field of music therapy, my story of why I became a music therapist, and then we ended with a drum circle. The participants were just lovely, smart, kind, … Read more

Play Your Part Happenings

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Here’s what’s happening at Play Your Part this month! We finished up our first series of “Music and Me” groups! We have started two new clients this month (yay!) and currently looking for more students and clients to fill our schedule. Brianna Shaffer was featured in the Winter 2014 Chapman Magazine (picture above). Play Your Part … Read more

Play Your Part: Recent Community Events

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As a new company in the Orange County community, we are trying to get involved as much as we can. This past week has been very busy, so here is an update of what we’ve been up to! On Saturday, November 16th, we hosted a booth at the OC Walk Now for Autism Speaks resource … Read more

Use of Music Therapy for Children With Maladaptive Behaviors

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Today’s post is about the use of music therapy with maladaptive behaviors (i.e. aggression, short attention span, won’t follow directions, difficulty coping, etc). Depending on diagnoses, approaches might vary a bit, but you will read a few tips/suggestions regarding this population. Sample Goals/Objectives: Request/Terminate an Activity: Lots of times, a child can become frustrated (which … Read more

Sensory Processing Disorder

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If you’ve seen or worked with a child with Autism, it’s very likely that you’ve encountered a child who has issues processing information.  I’ve worked with children who need a lot of input (Hypo-Reactive Nervous System): they might enjoy really deep pressure and tend to enjoy very loud noises. I’ve also worked with the opposite, where a kiddo becomes over-aroused from too much input (Hyper-Reactive Nervous System): doesn’t like to be touched, is over sensitive to certain textures, and loud noises bother them.  As a music therapist, it is important to get to know the client, how they process their environment, and plan sessions accordingly.

Here are some great ways to help a child cope and benefit from school/therapy who might be struggling with SPD:

  • Set routines/schedules (Keep things consistent with a good flow)
  • Use visuals (I cannot stress the importance of this while working with any child with ASD)
  • Use timers (Set them up for success: First we will do 5 minutes of work and Then you get to play)
  • Provide fidget toys/breaks (I have a bin of toys I keep handy with squeeze balls, play-doh, etc.)

I came across this flier (link attached) from North Shore Pediatric that perfectly describes and outlines Sensory Processing Disorder.  I’m actually going to print it and keep it to continuously refer to as new clients come in for treatment.

Shifting to a New Autism Definition

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As of July 2013, the DSM-V has been released, shifting the already complicated requirements for ASD diagnoses.  A child will now be diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder without  subcategories such as PDD-NOS, Asperger Syndrome.  However, it will be organized in two categories: 1) social communication/interaction and 2) restrictive and repetitive behaviors.

My favorite quote of the entire article is “the most important thing we need to keep in mind is that we need to treat the child, not the diagnosis.” How true is that. Even though the criteria is changing, the child is not, and we as doctors, educators, therapists, and parents need to remember that the child, not the diagnosis, is what we need to focus on.

Please read the article and comment below.  How do you feel the new criteria will effect new diagnoses? Do you agree or disagree with the new parameters? What are your thoughts of the increasing evidence that Autism may be genetically linked?

The article was written by Dr. Lisa Dana on September 23, 2013 and posted on Autismnews.com.