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Music therapy in the military

History

Music therapy finds its roots in the military. The United States Department of War issued Technical Bulletin 187 in 1945, which described the use of music in the recuperation of military service members in Army hospitals. The use of music therapy in military settings started to flourish and develop following World War II and research and endorsements from both the United States Army and the Surgeon General of the United States. Although these endorsements helped music therapy develop, there was still a recognized need to assess the true viability and value of music as a medically-based therapy. Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the Office of the Surgeon General worked together to lead one of the earliest assessments of a music therapy program. The goal of the study was to understand whether “music presented according to a specific plan” influenced recovery among service members with mental and emotional disorders. Eventually, case reports in reference to this study relayed not only the importance but also the impact of music therapy services in the recovery of military service personnel.

The first university-sponsored music therapy course was taught by Margaret Anderton in 1919 at Columbia University. Anderton's clinical specialty was working with wounded Canadian soldiers during World War II, using music-based services to help the recovery process.

Today, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom have both presented an array of injuries; however, the two signature injuries are Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). These two signature injuries are increasingly common among millenial military service members and in music therapy programs.

Methods

Music therapists work with active duty military personnel, veterans, service members in transition, and their families. Music therapists strive to engage clients in music experiences that foster trust and complete participation over the course of their treatment process. Music therapists use an array of music-centered tools, techniques, and activities when working with military-associated clients, many of which are similar to the techniques used in other music therapy settings. These methods include, but are not limited to: group drumming, listening, singing, and songwriting. Songwriting is a particularly effective tool with military veterans struggling with PTSD and TBI as it creates a safe space to, "...work through traumatic experiences, and transform traumatic memories into healthier associations."

Programs

Music therapy in the military is seen in programs on military bases, VA healthcare facilities, military treatment facilities, and military communities. Music therapy programs have a large outreach because they exist for all phases of military life: pre-mobilization, deployment, post-deployment, recovery (in the case of injury), and among families of fallen military service personnel.

Resounding Joy, Inc., a San Diego, California-based music therapy program, is a pioneer for the use of music therapy in the military. Its Semper Sound program specializes in providing music therapy services to active duty military service members and veterans diagnosed with PTSD, TBI, substance abuse, and other trauma-related diagnoses. It features different programs such as The Semper Sound Band, based in San Diego, California, and the GI Jams Band, based in Chelsea, Massachusetts.

Walter Reed Army Medical Center located in Bethesda, Maryland, is another pioneer for the use of music therapy in the military. All patients at the medical center are eligible to receive music therapy services; therefore, the variety of clients is a wide range: TBI, stroke, psychological diagnoses (anxiety, depression, PTSD), autism spectrum disorder, and more.

The Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) also exists to provide music therapy services to active duty military families who have a family member with a developmental, physical, emotional, or intellectual disorder. Currently, programs at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Resounding Joy, Inc., and the Music Institute of Chicago partner with EFMP services to provide music therapy services to eligible military family members.