SOMATIC MUSIC AND MOVEMENT MODALITIES FOR TRAUMATIC GRIEF RECOVERY 

Occasionally people comment, “my life could be a movie!” Other times, words fail, and the gaping chasm of grief sits silently in the centre of the counselling space. Traumatic grief renders us disconnected and isolated; from ourselves, and from each other. PTSD trauma impacts our sense of safety. A significant element of hypervigilance is being alert to sounds of danger and warning. Conversely, intentional use of music and movement can support the nervous system’s re-learning to be safe, through experiences of regulation and gradual mobilization at increments carefully gauged by the therapist. Using music in trauma counselling sessions can be a way to sit with memories and emotional states. It can be both a container and interactive experience. Music can be accompanied with talk or simply be the connection, when words are not available. This workshop will facilitate engagement and discussion, of a selection of musical recordings that promote comfort, regulation, and gentle mobilization, to address traumatic grief. The first workshop activity will involve participants listening and engaging with recorded instrumental music while sitting. This will be followed by small group discussions of how such somatic experiences support reflections and conversations of emotional states, and how this contributes to the process of trauma recovery. Theoretical considerations will be presented and discussed, such as individual and group formatting, choice of instruments, time-signature, tempo (speed), melodic and harmonic structures), multicultural, and age-appropriate choices, with resource guides. After a break, the second workshop activity will involve music, singing and more expansive movement, to establish understandings of the discussions, and to enjoy and finish the session.

Workshop run time: 3 hours