The Power of Music: How Listening to and Playing Music Can Improve Your Mental Health

If you suffer from mental illness, music is a tool that can help to improve your health and wellbeing. If you’re a musician, this may seem like common sense, but many of us don’t use music as a healing method and rarely give it credit.


My journey to becoming a musician was very similar to how I became a writer. I started playing piano at age 4 and later discovered guitar. I studied classical music and then jazz before becoming interested in rock and electronic music. At that time, I felt like I was on the verge of a breakthrough and I felt an incredible amount of pressure to make a success out of music.

After I played my first gig, I was hooked! The rush and adrenaline that comes with performing live really helped me to develop and grow as a musician. I began studying music psychology and was fascinated by how listening to certain types of music could influence our state of mind. My passion for music grew exponentially over the years and I decided to focus on composing music instead of playing it.

When I began composing music, I noticed a strange phenomenon that I’ve never experienced before. Whenever I listened to music, I would start to think about my feelings and anxieties about my life. Music often triggers emotional memories, especially the more emotional the music, the more intense my emotions become. I discovered that this effect was not only related to the music I listened to but also with the way I listened to the music.

I experimented with different methods of listening to music and found that I had the most intense and positive results with using headphones while lying down. I also discovered that the more I focused on playing music, the better the results. I found myself more focused and productive with my work.

As I continued to experiment with different ways to listen to music, I came across research by the University of Washington regarding the effects of listening to music. They discovered that music has the power to change our mood and alter our state of mind.

Another fascinating study showed that listening to music while working can actually improve your productivity. It also improves your overall satisfaction with your work. These studies show that we should consider music as a tool for stress relief and recovery.

The Power of Music: How Listening to and Playing Music Can Improve Your Mental Health