Enhancing improvisational music therapy through the addition of resonance frequency breathing: Common findings of three single-case experimental studies

Abstract

One core characteristic of active music therapy is the facilitation of emotional expression through the creation of music improvisations. In an attempt to further develop this approach, we created an enhanced form of integrative improvisational music therapy by including 10 minutes of resonance frequency breathing (RFB) at the beginning of the sessions. RFB is a type of slowbreathing known for its ability to reduce stress and support emotional regulation. This paper summarizes the common findings of three single-case experimental studies and introduces a provisional model to explain the observed effects of RFB. During the breathing itself, all three clients (two of them healthy and one diagnosed with anxiety disorder) displayed significantly higher relaxation levels compared to the control intervention, as seen through their level of heart rate variability (HRV), a measure of autonomic nervous system response. We also found an association between RFB and the high frequency HRV component (HFnu) during music-making, with the two healthy clients presenting lower HFnu after RFB, whereas the opposite was true for the diagnosed client. Lastly, talking and music-making proved to be two very different activities in terms of HRV, each client perceiving one of them as systematically more stressful than the other. RFB appears to be an adaptive intervention providing either emotional upregulation or downregulation depending on the client's needs, while keeping arousal levels inside the window of tolerance. Between-group studies would be required to determine whether the addition of RFB also leads to better therapeutic outcomes.

Music Therapy for Depression Enhanced With Listening Homework and Slow Paced Breathing: A Randomised Controlled Trial

“…These results point to the existence of qualities specific to RFB and music therapy which, when combined, can create a synergy effect. In our experience ( Brabant and Erkkilä, 2018 ), clients who are starting their therapy sessions with RFB tend to have deeper and more productive sessions, which we attribute to RFB’s ability to rebalance the autonomic nervous system, reduce stress, and increase emotional resilience ( Goessl et al, 2017 ). As to improvisational music therapy, three of its unique characteristics are to offer a non-verbal way of expressing emotions, to provide an absorbing experience anchored in the present, and to allow the emergence of unconscious material ( MacDonald and Wilson, 2014 ).…”

“…At the Music Therapy Clinic for Research and Training (University of Jyväskylä, Finland), we have developed and tested our own therapy format, whereby each session of IIMT begins with 10 min of RFB. Our pilot studies suggest that the inclusion of RFB helps clients upregulate and downregulate their emotions during music therapy, depending on their clinical status and current needs ( Brabant and Erkkilä, 2018 ). These preliminary findings require follow-up with a between-group study such as the present one, to determine whether the observed effects on therapy processes also lead to better outcomes.…”