Last Friday, I was honored to be a guest on the longest-running music therapy podcast, Janice Harris’s Music Therapy Show. I spoke about music therapy in corporate settings, self-care, and wellness. I transcribed the show below. (I have a new-found appreciation for transcribers – This took me forever!) Read below, listen to the show, and check out Janice’s blog!

Janice: Hello everyone! Welcome to the Music Therapy Show with Janice Harris. I’m Janice Harris, the host and producer of this show. I have been working in music therapy for 15 years with a variety of populations, and designed this show to talk about music therapy, to educate people about what music therapy is, find topics that I think are interesting that I’m interested in learning more about, and to hear from you all to find out what’s interesting to you. Today is Friday, August 20, 2010, and I have a very special guest with me today, but before I introduce my guest, I’d like to invite all of you to go to TheMusicTherapyShow.blogspot.com and let me know what topics you’re interested in hearing or let me know what questions you have about music therapy.

My guest today is Kat Fulton. She has a Master of Music in music therapy. She’s a board-certified music therapist, and she also has her certification in NICU music therapy (with the neonatal intensive care unit, doing music therapy with that population). Kat Fulton is a speaker and board-certified music therapist whose passion is achieving therapeutic goals through making music. Her motto is “Be well, feel good, and make music.” I think that’s an excellent motto. She has a Masters in Music Therapy from the Florida State University, which is the headquarters for the Institute for Infant and Child Medical Music Therapy, and she holds high standards for scientific research and maintains a practice infused with the latest evidence-based techniques and strategies. She’s also associated with Remo as an endorsed facilitator. Remo is a corporation that produces drums and encourages drum circle facilitating. Kat maintains a professional membership in the American Music Therapy Association, the Early Childhood Music and Movement Association, and the Drum Circle Facilitators Guild. Kat welcome to the show!

Kat: Thanks for having me Janice! I’m honored to be a guest.

Janice: I’m so pleased to talk with you. I’ve been following you on Twitter and Facebook, and I know that you do a lot with the social media, but first can you tell us where is your practice. And you have a couple of websites up, can you tell us about those, too?

Kat: Sure. I’m located in San Diego, and out of the two websites, one is just the company SoundHealthMusic.com, and then the other website I have is called RhythmForGood.com, which is my blog. Basically, Rhythm For Good serves to inform healthcare professionals, educators, wellness providers, and the general public about music and health. Also, Rhythm For Good is a free online resource for music therapists, drum circle facilitators, and music-making enthusiasts in general, too. I’ll put for instance, you might’ve seen the boomwhacker videos, so I’ll put up different ideas for how to make music with your clients.

Also, I just recently finished up this MythBuster Series, kind of debunking the myths that people may have about making music. For instance, you might run into someone that says “Oh I’m already 40 years old and it’s way too late for me to make music,” and so I wrote a post about that people may have ideas about how music therapists… Oftentimes in older adult facilities, people may think that music therapists are entertainers. Or people may have preconceived notions about having rhythm or not having rhythm. You know, people are either born with it or born without it, whereas, in fact, we’re all born with it. You know, I try to spread the good word on the blog.

And as far as the company goes, we work with a variety of populations. I break them up into four settings: corporate, wellness, medical, and enrichment. As far as corporate goes, it includes special events or team-builders. I also do special event drum circles for non-profit organizations such as the International Rescue Committee where I facilitate drum circles for refugees. The last one I did was really amazing. There were about 30 people who spoke 7 different languages. No one spoke English very well, but we all made music. It was an incredible bonding experience. I do other drum circle fundraisers. I’m really blessed to be endorsed by Remo, so I’m able to be connected in that way with special event coordinators.

I also do cancer survivor support groups, NICU graduate support groups and siblings, all levels of care for older adults, medical sub-acute units, and individual private clients as well. I collaborate with a lot of other music therapists in San Diego, and we all work together.

Janice: That’s a wide scope of practice! I’ve worked with a wide variety of populations, but I don’t think I’ve worked with that many at one time in my career. I tended to shift from the really early ages to the later ages and that sort of thing, but that’s fascinating.

Kat: Well, I’m really lucky to have a lot of support and a good network of music therapists who have specialties working with certain populations, you know. It takes a village to raise a child. Well it takes a village to provide music therapy service to a community. And there are a lot of other really great music therapy organizations in San Diego, too. You probably know Dr. Barb Reuer with Musicworx of California and Resounding Joy. They do really great work in the community. The Music Therapy Center is based in San Diego, which is an organization that works mostly with children who have special needs. Coast Music Therapy is another one. It’s a really good community for music therapy here in San Diego.

Janice: Yes, I do know a lot of those organizations. It reminds me I need to invite them to be on the show later! I follow you on Twitter and Facebook, and I know that you use social media a lot, and it expands your community to not just be in the area where you live, but all across the nation. How did you get involved in those venues, and how do you use it for your own growth and development?

Kat: Great question. The social media. I basically discovered it in January or maybe December. I noticed http://MusicTherapyMaven.com which is run by Kimberly Sena Moore, http://ListenLearnMusic.com, which is run by Rachel Rambach. These are great websites. They’re trail blazers really, and you too, Janice, with your podcast. It’s been running for over two years, right?

Janice: Yes, it has. Thank you.

Kat: Yes, so I’ve been observing the trail blazers and realizing “Wow they’re able to connect with people all over the world by way of their blog or your podcast. In December I decided to start a blog myself and see how it went. I gave myself until April. I found out I really have a knack for it. I really love blogging, so I continued with it. I’ve been able to connect with so many others including Bill Matney in Texas, Joanne Loewy in New York City, and Blythe LaGasse (Sorry Blythe, I don’t know how to say your name exactly). But Blythe runs the http://MusicTherapyResearchBlog.com, which is an amazing resource. She’s located in Colorado. I’ve just been really lucky to interact with all these people who I’ve heard of, and I’ve read their stuff in various publications. But to be able to make comments on their writings and have them comment on my blog… It’s been really neat. I think everybody should blog. [laugh] Facebook and Twitter: I use them as the vehicle to tell people about my blog. To connect with people, too, but probably if I didn’t blog, I doubt I’d be doing Twitter. Facebook, LinkedIn… They’re all really great ways to connect with others.

You’ve got to have a balance between being obsessed with it versus having a healthy practice of updating Twitter. For me anyways. There’s a human tendency towards obsession and addiction, so I don’t have an iPhone. I can’t tweet all the time. I take breaks during my day and leave the internet, leave my phone, and just go out to the ocean.

Janice: That is fantastic. I know a lot of people who cannot be apart from their Smart Phone for more than 10 seconds or they start getting the shakes. [laugh] I highly recommend a technology break for everyone. At least once a day.

Kat: Exactly. [laugh] Everybody does a different thing, and everybody operates a different way, so if it works for some people then more power to them. But for me, definitely, I enjoy my breaks.

Janice: That’s actually a good point. Something I’ve thought a lot about this week is how people operate in different ways. I think it’s great because I know that I could not do accounting, but I sure do need an accountant. So I’m glad that there are people who can do that.

Kat: Yeah!

Janice: And people that can create… I went to a great play this week, and I don’t care for doing that myself, but I sure do enjoy sitting there. So you bring up a great point that people take care of themselves in different ways. I know that you work in the self-care industry. Do you have any tips for people, or anything that you tend to see a lot of in your work?

Kat: Funny you ask because this morning I posted 8 Tips for Self-Care While Serving a Client. It’s geared towards therapists, facilitators, and people who serve in different ways… especially in the healthcare settings. But I really believe that you can take these 8 tips and adapt them to whatever setting you’re in. For instance, if you’re sitting in a cubicle all day, then a lot of these tips can be helpful. Number one is “Check in with yourself.” As therapists, we always begin with a hello song or a greeting or those first deep breaths with our client. So what I suggest is when you’re checking in with your client, also (you can do this silently) check in with yourself.

For instance, I’ll come to a session completely out of breath because I’ve lugged all these drums up the stairs into the multi-purpose room, I’m out of breath, I’ve just made it in time. For me when I’m checking in, maybe I’ll take that time to have everyone in the group take deep breaths so that I can also clear myself, center myself, balance myself in the beginning.

Another thing I write about is watching your body position and ergonomics. I have a lot of music therapy friends who get injured because of all the floor time we spend with our kids. If we’re working with kids who have special needs. [breaking up] Use discs and wedges to support yourself on the floor.

Janice: You’re breaking up. Can you call back? Sorry about that. She was speaking about ergonomics, and the minute mentioned that I noticed I was slouching in my chair. I corrected that so my back isn’t strained. That is a really important thing.

Kat: I’m back. Sorry about that! Yes, so ergonomics, and also notice the volume and usage of your voice. I also talk about… At the end of the day, no matter where you work and what you do, if you come home at the end of the day and you’re exhausted and tired, then there’s something out of balance in your practice or in your way of working throughout the day. I believe that work should be a steady flow of energy exchange, so you’re putting energy out and you’re also receiving energy back into yourself. What I suggest for therapists is to notice how much physical exertion you’re putting out there. Is it really necessary to put that much physical or even emotion exertion into your session? Is it necessary, and is really benefiting your client? Try to tone down and conserve your energy. See what happens. Hopefully that give you an idea of the way I perceive self-care throughout the day.

Janice: I think that’s a really important point and not one that I’ve really thought about specifically. I’m glad you’ve put that out there in more concrete terms. It’s absolutely true and necessary. How can you take care of your clients if you’re giving all your energy away and have nothing left to give?

Kat: Exactly! I have a couple more tips. My number 8 tip is also financial health is part of self-care. Basically I write “Make sure you’re getting paid an honorable salary for your services. Otherwise burnout happens really quickly, right? Nothing is worse than going into a session with resentment for not being able to afford the gas it takes to get there.

As therapists we want to serve the client, serve the client, serve the client, and that’s very important. But we have to realize that you can’t serve the client unless you are feeding yourself. Unless there’s that even exchange that I really believe in.

Janice: Absolutely. I know that a lot of music therapists only tend to play music for work. I know that for a long time, I didn’t even listen to music or use music in my personal life. I really felt that void once I noticed it. Now I try to make music just for me, listen to music that I like. And I try to reserve a few styles that I don’t use in my practice for my own personal use.

Kat: Yeah, that’s a great idea, too. Number 7 is take time for your own self-expression. I do that myself, too. I write songs, then I share them with certain friends who also write songs. It’s a nice creative outlet and a way to take our skills and use them for ourselves.

Janice: Absolutely true. I really like this post. RhythmForGood.com. You stated in a call “If you come home from work, and you’re exhausted, too tired to make dinner, too tired to exercise, then something is out of balance in your practice.” I think that’s true not just for therapists. It’s true for moms, CEOs, housekeepers, no matter what your line of work is. If you’re too tired to take care of yourself, then something is out of balance. It’s important to find that balance.

I know you do a lot with training people in the work place to find that balance as well as some team-building sorts of exercises at corporate training sessions. How does music therapy work in a corporate setting?

Kat: I do a lot of drum circles with different corporations. I talk about everything we’ve touched upon here. The even exchange of energy, and how drumming is a time to touch on those tips we spoke of. We check in, we’ll do stretching, get ready, get acquainted with each other. Oftentimes when people work a corporate job, they are in a cubicle. Maybe they don’t have a lot of human interaction. Maybe they work from home, in coffee shops. It can be isolating. In the drum circle, it’s a very social, creative stress reducer. There’s research out there that shows decrease in corisol levels, significant increase in mood, … I don’t have the research at my fingertips now, but there’s evidence that shows the benefits. I also talk about how rhythm is the silk in the web that strings us all together. We all have a heartbeat, we walk in rhythm, we breathe in rhythm. So, it’s an easy way, no matter what gender, race, ethinicity, or language you speak, rhythm breaks all those barriers. Cuts across, unifies the human race and the world. Rhythm is also in nature.

I also have cards that people can paste onto the side of a laptop. They are reminders about using rhythm during your day. One is to take a breath. Another is to take time to have your fingers dance on the desk. I think playfulness is part of wellness. People write off playfulness as something that’s not deep or significant. Honestly I think there’s depth to being playful, being able to laugh at yourself, and have fun. I really think there’s depth to that.

Janice: I completely agree with you about playfulness. Are there other things beside drum circles that can be used in a corporate setting?

Kat: Sure, relaxation to music. A lot of places have a relaxation room. One suggestion is to go into the room and play an ocean drum with a video playing that shows the beach or ocean waves. Rainstick, chimes. It’s nice to take a break. If you sit too long in the same position, you’ll have an ergonomic issue. Some corporations have a gong chime at 2 o’clock every day. That gives everyone a reminder to check in with yourself, to notice if you have any anxiety, tense muscles. Let’s just take this silence to be silent, to stop typing, to walk around. I think to be effective in the workplace you have to take breaks every couple of hours.

Janice: Interesting idea. I have not heard of corporations encouraging their employees to take breaks. You definitely get better productivity when you add some breaks into your day than if you work straight through. I like the ocean drum idea. That’s a product that was created by Remo wasn’t it? It’s a frame drum that has ball bearings inside so when they roll across, it sounds like the ocean.

Kat: Exactly. Actually everyone who attended the International Summit for NICU Music Therapy (myself included) got ocean drums from Remo. Thanks to Remo. Such a wonderful gift. We all flew back home with a nice big ocean drum.

Janice: Amazingly we just have a couple minutes left. Can you tell people how to contact you and where to leave comments on your blog?

Kat: Definitely. You can contact me at www.RhythmForGood.com. You can also email me at Kat@SoundHealthMusic.com. I think that’s it. I’m also on facebook, twitter, linkedin.

Janice: Thanks for being a guest on the show. I appreciate Kat being on the show. We’re at the end of the show. Thank you all for listening! Comments are the lifeblood of any blogger. Leave a comment for me at TheMusicTherapyShow.Blogspot.com. Next week I’m going to be doing some self-care. Have a great week, and I’ll talk to you soon!