CIRCULAR MOTION

Studies have demonstrated the calming, focusing, and healing effects of drumming on Alzheimer's patients, autistic children, emotionally disturbed teens, recovering addicts, trauma patients. Drumming is a valuable treatment for stress, fatigue, anxiety, hypertension, asthma, chronic pain, arthritis, mental illness, migraines, cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, paralysis, emotional disorders, and a wide range of physical disabilities.

 

Health & Brain/Body Benefits from Drumming and Drum Circles:

 

1) Improved happiness, personal confidence, and emotional connection to oneself & others thru feelings & "self expression."

2) Improved cognition, mental clarity, and sensory processing thru engaging the brain & body in coordinated movement, and improvement in

   proprioceptive memory - albeit thru rhythmic progressions.

3) Improved connection with others thru Brain Wave Entrainment (BWE) of group play.

4) Increased blood flow to muscles, tendons, joints, and organs from coordinated movement of the body.

5) Reduction of Stress, and improved sensory processing, esp. in sensory processing disorders (SPDs), from the vibration of the instruments.

 

Stress and Depression Relief:

Stress, according to current medical research, contributes to nearly all disease and is a primary cause of such life-threatening illnesses as heart attacks, strokes, and immune system breakdowns. Drumming induces deep relaxation, lowers blood pressure, and reduces stress. A recent study found that a program of group drumming helped reduce stress and employee turnover in the long-term care industry and might help other high-stress occupations as well.

 

Diabetes:

It is reported that upper and lower body movment while drumming, like any other form of physical activity will contribute to lowering blood glucose levels in diabetics. It will also contribute to lowering blood pressure which is another common ailment affecting most diabetics.

 

Autism:

Drumming for Autism Project in New Jersey started as a “School Peacemaker” program to address the needs of youth through creative self expression then expanded to specifically address autism. The stated objectives of the project are increased and improved socialization and the reduction of anxiety and behavioral problems. Additional, some experts contend that drumming helps individuals access their right-brain which controls emotions, intuition, artistry and relaxation. This is of particular benefit to the child with autism and can provide a type of neurological re-patterning for a concrete thinker. Drum therapy encompasses hand/eye coordination, vestibular movement and visual perception. How to hold sticks, where to strike the instruments and necessary body movement are all part of an occupational therapy lesson come to life in a meaningful way.Drumming also provides a functional activity that supports language skills such as categorization, sequencing, predicting, turn taking, listening, problemsolving and following directions. The complexity and “call and response” action of drumming mimics and encourages human speech. The structure and repetition of drumming appeals to individuals on the autism spectrum and gives them an outlet for their emotions and a means to channel their energy. 

 

Addiction:

Group drumming has found widespread utility in health & wellness as integrative medicine in recent years. One of the more specialized applications has been in the treatment of addiction disorders, where favorable results have been observed and reported. The most widely recognized study is the 2003 paper, “Complementary Therapy for Addiction: Drumming out Drugs,” by Michael Winkelman, PhD, MPH. This study reported favorable results among four (4) separate addiction treatment programs, also citing a number of Shamanic practices.

 

Exercise and physical movement is widely known to relax the brain, balance & entrain the body/mind, and stimulate the release of dopamine mimicking neurotransmitters. This generally heightens brain function, improves control over one’s thoughts, and boosts one’s state of happiness and optimism. But rhythmic movement, such as drumming in particular, offers a more dramatic response than simple exercise. On a neurosciences level, Winkelman et. al. reported, “Drumming and rhythmic auditory stimulation impose a driving pattern on the brain, particularly in the theta (3-6 Hz) and alpha (6-8 Hz) brain wave ranges. Synchronized patterns in these frequency ranges typify altered states of consciousness and meditation activities. These slower wave discharges produce strongly coherent brain-wave patterns that synchronize the frontal areas of the brain with ascending discharges, integrating non-verbal information from lower brain structures into the frontal cortex and producing insight.”

 

Parkinsons, Multiple Sclerosis, Stroke, Paralysis

Using the body's sensory ability, participants can be taught to initiate precise physical movements to walk, talk, and perform specific actions - all using drum rhythms as cues. This method requires less of the brain's voluntary thought and cognitive centers, and more of the rhythmic ability of the body to create syncopation of voluntary action.

 

As people age, and similarly after a brain injury or onset of neurological disorder, precise voluntary control of actions like walking can become compromised. The participant is taught how to initiate action to the cue of a rhythm using the sensory system of their body. Participants are encouraged to pick a rhythm they can easily play, and be cued with either the upbeat or downbeat. Cues are carried out by tapping the hands, fingers, feet, and other body parts in accordance with turns, steps, and bending to pick things up. This is helpful in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS), post TBI, or stroke who have a lot of difficulty standing and walking.

 

NOTE: Be advised that Kevin is not a medical professional, the information supplied here has been gathereed by other medical professionals and is reproduced here for your edification.