Creating a Wellness Playlist

Listen carefully. No really, there鈥檚 self-care in what you listen to. Music therapy is an evidence-based wellness technique that requires only your ears and a playlist, and isn鈥檛 pseudoscience 鈥� it鈥檚 evidence-based. Which songs can help move your mood in the right direction is determined by a number of quantifiable and science-based factors, like beats per minute, but it鈥檚 also contingent upon taste. A song you dislike isn鈥檛 going to focus or relax you if you don鈥檛 enjoy it, so don鈥檛 force the smooth jazz if you鈥檙e more of a Chopin fan (hey, that rhymes!).

Music has been shown to cause a dopamine release in the listener, and while dopamine is most commonly associated with feelings of euphoria, it鈥檚 also tied to . All of these are positive effects, but if you鈥檙e seeking a particular mood swing, you can make an educated choice. While some music therapy might seem intuitive, some recommendations might surprise you. To help you get your playlist started, we鈥檝e picked a few songs to try, and offered some science on why they often work.

Relaxation: Consciously Calm

If you want to relax but not doze off, songs with approximately 60 beats per minute (bpm) can synchronize with your brain. This encourages alpha brainwaves for an alert but easy state.

• Chopin: Nocturne in E Flat Major Op. 9 No. 2
• Natalie Cole: This Will Be (an Everlasting Love)
• Death Cab for Cutie: Grapevine Fires

Memory: The Mozart Effect

For study, make something classical your first stop. The so-called 鈥淢ozart Effect鈥� has been somewhat debunked due to inconclusive research, but studies have indicated that orchestral music may benefit recall. in particular played the same classical music for subjects during study and then repeated that song during sleep. Students who used this method performed almost twice as well as their peers in the control group.

• Vivaldi: Mandolin Concerto in C Major
• Mozart: Symphony No. 40 in G Minor
• Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake Op. 20 Act II No. 10

Sleep: Tune In & Turn In

Remember the beats-per-minute guideline for alert relaxation? This comes with a delta brainwave, which differs from the alpha brainwave mentioned above. Choose calming music of 60 bpm or fewer and don鈥檛 expect to doze immediately. It may take while in a sleep-ready posture to achieve drift-off.

• Bjork: Utopia
• Erik Satie: 3 Gymnopedies No. 2
• Prokoviev: Romeo and Juliet Op. 64

Advanced Technique: The Iso Principle

Compiling your playlists above is an enjoyable and effective way to use music as therapy, but if you are trying to move from one strong mood into another, try this technique utilized by some : The Iso Principle. This is used to move from one (undesired) mood into another (desired) emotional state. You need to change the station, but it鈥檚 slightly more nuanced than that.

Simply put, you start with a song that matches your current mood, let鈥檚 say anger. Choose a song that matches where you are emotionally, then follow that with something slightly less aggro. Keep going, moving each song choice incrementally from the mood you鈥檙e in toward the mood you鈥檙e trying to achieve 鈥� let鈥檚 say calm.

This is just an overview of a few ways to decompress as needed, but there鈥檚 a lot of available about using music as mental and physical medicine. Whether you want to combat stress, enhance your focus, or shift your mood, music can be a powerful tool for well-being and psychological fitness. Basically, you鈥檙e just using music to retune. Here鈥檚 to your instrumental health!

This post was brought to you by the music and wellness lovers at 国产主播. For more Decompression Sessions and other health insights, visit the Health Tips section of our blog.

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