The Pharmaceutical Properties Of Music Can Make The World Awesome

I often say, “Music is my drug.” All of my life, it has been the one common thread that I could turn to and always find comfort…or inspiration…or excitement. Music is able to bring out the vast array of emotions in me, whatever those may be. It brings color to an otherwise very monotone and desaturated life. It is for this reason that my passion, my dream, is to help artists share their music with as many people as possible. Music inspires, it heals, and most of all, it unites. We are brought together as a result of the love of a particular song and how it makes us feel. Music allows us to share emotions that we would otherwise be unable to articulate. In his TED talk, Music is medicine, music is sanity, Robert Gupta shares how music actually caused a “profound change” in a schizophrenic student of his named Nathaniel. When Gupta started playing his violin, Nathaniel, who was full of manic rage, was transformed into a state of “understanding, a quiet curiosity, and grace”. One thing I learned when I was a mental health therapist was that schizophrenia is a very difficult disorder to treat. There are few, if any, drugs that are actually effective without serious and undesirable side effects. Music, however, has no side effects. Yet it has the power to change our brainwaves and thus, focus our mind in ways we likely never thought possible. Here, for your own inspiration, is Gupta’s TED Talk:

The effect that music has on the brain is complex. One of the things I have studied in my journey as a life coach is a technique called brainwave entrainment, or brainwave synchronization. Use of this technique can have a deep and profound impact. The specific sounds used in brainwave entrainment can allow for deeper thought, deeper relaxation, increased focus, and increased creativity. All this without a pharmaceutical "drug" in one's system. Some say that it’s like an out-of-body experience at times. Here is a short video from Steven Halpern that briefly explains how brainwave entrainment works:

This just goes to show that all types of musical sounds can elicit different kinds of feelings and emotions. It can reduce pain, elevate mood, and truly has the power to change the mind. Music is a better drug than anything a pharmaceutical company can create. It is because of this powerful connection that everything I am working towards has to do with sharing music, promoting music, and supporting the artists who create music. I thank God every day that I found a way to live my passion. One of the most profoundly inspiring videos I’ve seen recently is from Kid President on YouTube. He asks the simple question, “What will you create that will make the world awesome?” Watch Kid President’s video here and ask yourself the same question. Music and coaching artists to effectively create and share their music is my contribution to making the world awesome. What’s yours?