Caring for the Caregiver

Well, I suppose my job is my schoolwork, really. As a modern dance major I need to be able to take class fully and healthfully. This means spending time outside of class doing my own supplemental exercises to aim for even musculature, since I have scoliosis. Another way to care for myself while being a modern dance major is to sometimes not dance through school. Having dance in a university setting can feel suffocating sometimes since you're always in the same building, seeing the same people, getting the same vibes. I often take an African dance class through a community class and sometimes I spend time in a dance studio by myself or go to a contact improv session. Never enough though. Outside of dance, I feel like I need to balance by doing completely opposite things. That's why I have a math minor.

With so many good care practices in place Joanna, perhaps it returns to a more basic physical concept. I have two colleagues who spent the first 10 years of their professional lives as opera singers and have now re-trained as music therapists. They are constantly dismayed by the lack of real singing technique and vocal care we learn in our training and thus carry into practice.
I knew that their concerns were well-founded, but when one of them offered a workshop at conference a couple of years ago I was stunned by how poor my care practices really were and how many bad habits I had which contributed to the poor state of my voice.

Great topic! Working as a private consultant with a set amount of hour/hours at over four sites covering over 200 miles a week is exhausting. It certainly takes a toll on both my senses and physical self. Working out and keeping a healthy diet has been essential for the physical part.
To release tension as a music therapist one may think that I'd use music to unwind. But to really unwind I've begun painting. I've had a need to try another creative modality for self-expression and painting has been it. Painting is quiet and doesn't require any instruments to be lugged around. It's tangible and lasts where music making isn't unless it's recorded. All I hear is the canvas and brush and I love it. Another great thing is continuing ed courses. Last year I took a class to help with caring for myself. I took the course 'Music and the Self' at Anna Maria College's, Institute for Music and Consciousness. Loved it. It has helped me tremendously as a musician and music therapist to keep the learning process going. Hope this helps.

Hello Joanne! I am so happy to have discovered your blog while I am recuperating from laryngitis and a virus. As a music therapist and singer, I probably slacked off on drinking the eight plus glasses of water (by not refilling my water bottle!) and eating throat lozenges throughout my work day. I also know that I stopped doing my yoga, which definitely replenishes me by forcing me to stop worrying and obsessing about things, and to concentrate on my body. I must turn off the "noise inside my head" in order to focus my attention on moving my arms, legs and torso in different directions, while simultaneously regulating my inhalations and exhalations! I feel both relaxed and energized afterward. I also discovered a less strenuous and just as effective way to replenish: Tai Chi or Chi Gong, both of which I have on DVD and DVR. I need to discipline myself to do it on a more regular basis. Also, I find that if I am going through a stressful situation and am not able to release the anger or disappointment, my throat may suffer. I actually read in Louise Hay's book You Can Heal Your Life, that laryngitis or hoarseness of the throat may be caused by stifled anger or by stifled creativity. So, I have also been meditating on how my anger or creativity may have been stifled. Also, I have found that I experience replenishment and enthusiasm when I make the time to go to a restaurant with other music therapists, or speech therapists, or social workers; we brainstorm about work-related experiences while nurturing ourselves. Finally, the best way I replenish is by watching and taping those Great Performances concerts on PBS by the greatest musicians in every genre from rock to jazz to blues to opera to doo-wop!