The Role of Music and Art Therapy in Mental Health

Freddy Murphy

Beyond The Blues

Artistic expression has long been a sanctuary for those who suffer from emotional pain. Yet, over the past decade or so, art and music therapy have emerged as valuable treatments within the mental health community. You do not need to be talented to benefit from these treatments—just open to participating. 

Music therapy provides a distinct access point to emotional control since it allows people to get attached to their feelings in a secure and organized setting. Through listening to calming music, making individualized playlists, or writing original songs, music can help individuals gain control over anxiety, minimize symptoms of depression, and manage stress. Music has been said to stimulate brain regions related to emotion, memory, and reward, which can result in catharsis or relief. For the individual for whom verbalization is difficult, music becomes their language, providing release and comprehension without explanation. 

Similarly, art therapy provides the patient with a nonverbal method of knowing and interpreting the inner world. Through drawing, painting, or sculpture, feelings such as grief, anger, or confusion can be externalized and thus less threatening and more accessible. Creating art promotes mindfulness, decreases intrusive thinking, and anchors one in the here and now. Art therapy benefits traumatized clients as it enables slow and gradual processing. Aside from coping, creating also gives individuals a sense of empowerment—a feeling of control, mastery, and meaning in recovery. 

Music therapy and art therapy show us that healing isn't always word-based. These artistic therapies are a field for emotional release, reflection, and healing, transmuting pain into something expressive, even beautiful. For anyone who has grappled with mental health, working with creativity might be more than helpful—it might be life-altering.

Works Cited:

Mental Health Program at Banyan Treatment Centers. “Music & Art Therapy | Banyan Mental Health,” October 22, 2024. https://mentalhealth.banyantreatmentcenter.com/therapies/art-and-music-therapy/.

Reynolds, Fátima. “The Transformative Power of Music in Mental Well-Being.” www.psychiatry.org. American Psychiatric Association, 2023. https://www.psychiatry.org/news-room/apa-blogs/power-of-music-in-mental-well-being.

Shukla, Apoorva, Sonali G Choudhari, Abhay M Gaidhane, and Zahiruddin Quazi Syed. “Role of Art Therapy in the Promotion of Mental Health: A Critical Review.” Cureus 14, no. 8 (2022). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.28026.