Musical Instruments as Active Pain Killers

Music has the power to keep all living beings away from diseases and enhance their performance levels. It is beneficial in the growth of plants and trees. These facts are well-known all over the world. Now it is the turn of musical instruments to prove their importance in our daily life as they act as pain killers.

Drummer

From the US to Russia, from the European countries to Japan all are good in one musical instrument or the other. Most of the nations have their own musical instruments passed on from one generation to the other. Most of the time musical instruments are used in public gatherings like marriages, parties or other important occasions like festivals and fairs. In some countries they are used in worshiping the deities and during religious processions.

Music reaches the deep emotional levels. Each individual may respond in a different way and may hold special meaning for a particular music. Percussion instruments are very effective while singing the devotional songs and songs of public entertainment. Perhaps the use of musical instruments and the importance of using them in daily life would have been better explained by the ancestors who discovered them.

Active involvement in playing musical instruments may ease pain, anxiety and depression. It is becoming increasingly popular, and its effects on pain intensity and distress associated with pain have been documented in studies. Participants’ pain decreases as they became more and more absorbed in the percussion instruments and their tunes.

How can musical instruments become pain killers?

Actively involving in playing percussion instruments is better than just hearing music. It gives the power to humans to tolerate pain. Researches done at Oxford University have proved this. A book on Evolutionary Psychology has given a good explanation on it.

Pain is related to emotions and it shows the signs of some kind of dysfunction in a body part. Pain may also be a sign of danger many a times. The treatment to pain can never be postponed as it may result in breakdown of some part of the body. Type of pain varies with each individual and his problems. Only doctors can provide a good treatment and give relief from pain either with the help of pain killer tablets or injections.

If there is a resistance power to tolerate pain then doctors and medicines can be kept away for a long time. Human body produces endorphins to tolerate pain naturally. Endorphin is a kind of protein that is released from brain as a pain reliever. Like other resistances that are produced in the body to fight diseases, endorphins are released just to keep the pain away. Sometimes when the threshold of pain goes out of control then medication becomes a necessity.

There are many ways to get those extra endorphins.

1. Other than medications, it can produce excessively in the body just by laughing loudly for nearly 10 minutes.
2. Hear some good music for half an hour.
3. Food prepared with an ingredient like black pepper.
4. Eat chocolates.
5. Acupuncture.
6. Exercising that can give relief from pain.
7. Have sex with a co-operative and healthy partner.

Only acupuncture is extra in the list above. All others are common in everybody’s life.

Importance of playing the Instruments

Researchers at Oxford University have tested on Instruments and seen how they help in producing endorphins which are active in relieving pain. They had two groups with 12 members in each. One group had drummers and others had only the listeners of drum beats. Drummers were told to beat the drums for half an hour. The other group just heard it for half an hour. To see the result both the groups where tested by straining their hands for sometime. The group of drummers showed better resistance to pain than that of listeners. It proved that endorphins were produced more in drummers.

Scientists went on to find more evidence. They tested the devotees who danced and clapped in front of their deity. The group of people who danced and clapped to the rhythms and beats simultaneously while having their top portion of the body active had a better tolerating power. They proved more powerful than those who sit or stand erect to offer their prayers to god. Folk singers and cultural artists belong to this group. Social life and cooperative ways of living is well supported by this type of active involvement. Studies proved that music along with the active involvement of the human body was very much needed for a healthier and happier life.

Benefits of learning to play the musical instruments

Learning to play any musical instrument offers lot of benefits. Learning any instrument in ones lifetime is an achievement in itself.

1. Better IQ and development of brain is seen in children who are active in playing the musical instruments. Performance skills and sharper concentration is also a plus point. Adults who play instrument have an alert mind and sharp memory. Teaches perseverance and makes us well disciplined at work place or while studying somewhere.
2. Betters the mathematical and manipulating ability of an individual. Reading ability and comprehension skills are enhanced while learning to refine the time management and organizational skills.
3. Soft and soothing music calms the mind and gives enjoyment. Relieves stress from mind and keeps a person well relaxed.
4. There is lot of frustration to learn a new instrument. It gives a sense of achievement after mastering an instrument. It is fun and exciting to show relatives and friends that you have achieved something.
5. Mind and body coordination becomes excellent as you synchronize the movement of fingers, arms, hands, cheeks as well as facial muscles. Chest muscles, back, stomach and diaphragm are under control while playing a musical instrument. People suffering from respiratory illnesses like asthma will have more benefits when they opt to play the wind based instruments.
6. It promotes happiness in life and those living around us. When the audience applauds and cheers it becomes a memorable moment in ones life. It is very honorable and gratifying to voluntarily play in our local community and share the happiness as they enjoy watching you play

How to make the children get interested in learning percussion instruments?

1. Encourage children to create their own musical instruments. Thus they can become more creative.
2. Use percussion instruments to create a rhythm or to keep a beat like in an orchestra or band where percussionists often keep the beat and other musicians follow it.
3. Let the children know that a percussion instrument is a group of instruments that make sound when they are struck, shaken, or rubbed.
4. Tell them how drums are produced. The hollow frames and the membrane stretched across to produce different kinds of sounds.
5. A brainstorming session on percussion instruments that are struck with mallets or sticks. Explain how an instrument works. Show them how it vibrates and produces sound as it moves back and forth.
6. Show them the difference in various genres of music. May be classical, hip-hop or rock and compare their beats. Share music from different countries. For e.g. West African, Indian, or Native American folk music to learn those rhythms that are not typically found in modern Western music.
7. Basic scientific explanation on how most of the instruments work and how useful it is to humans. Show them how it produces sound while striking on an empty vessel or when filled with water or when a empty can is filled with few stones.
8. Let them bring in their favorite music, or select different songs to play it for the whole class. Tapping the feet along to the beat and comparison of the music. Scan the radio or stream music on the Internet, listening to different genres of music and exploring music from different culture and communities would be exciting.

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Comments:
maddot 3 days ago - from Northern NSW, Australia Very interesting and a pleasure to read.

Author - Thank you, maddot for your kind comments.