Drumming for Cancer Patients

Andrew Ecker, founder of "Drumming Sounds," facilitates a drum circle three times a month at Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Goodyear, Arizona. According to Ecker, up to 30 participants come together each week to create a "sacred space" filled with a sense of community and empowerment. The drum circle is a unique and powerful opportunity for patients and caregivers to share their emotions while connecting with others in a musical environment. As Ecker puts it, "It is an opportunity to connect with our spirit. The spiritual nature of our existence is very apparent when we drum with intention. It's about being present with one's own connection to their spirituality."

Since there is no technical musical knowledge or expertise required to participate, the drum circle breaks down many of the barriers that might otherwise prevent a patient or caregiver from experiencing the healing power of music. For many patients music plays an important role in spiritual and emotional healing during cancer treatment. Ecker believes that healing begins with the soothing vibration that comes from the drums. "We all experience nine months of that type of rhythm -- connecting to our mother's heartbeat," Ecker explains. "The vibration in the drums is the result of joining our heart and mind and spirit in action. When we drum we give ourselves the ability to feel beyond words. We feel connected to something bigger than ourselves, and we feel love."

The Neuroscience of Drumming

According to new neuroscience research, rhythm is rooted in innate functions of the brain, mind, and consciousness. As human beings, we are innately rhythmic. Our relationship with rhythm begins in the womb. At twenty two days, a single (human embryo) cell jolts to life. This first beat awakens nearby cells and incredibly they all begin to beat in perfect unison. These beating cells divide and become our heart. This desire to beat in unison seemingly fuels our entire lives. Studies show that, regardless of musical training, we are innately able to perceive and recall elements of beat and rhythm.

It makes sense then that beat and rhythm are an important aspect in music therapy. Our brains are hard-wired to be able to entrain to a beat. Entrainment occurs when two or more frequencies come into step or in phase with each other. If you are walking down a street and you hear a song, you instinctively begin to step in sync to the beat of the song. This is actually an important area of current music therapy research. Our brain enables our motor system to naturally entrain to a rhythmic beat, allowing music therapists to target rehabilitating movements. Rhythm is a powerful gateway to well-being.

Neurologic Drum Therapy

Neuroscience research has demonstrated the therapeutic effects of rhythmic drumming. The reason rhythm is such a powerful tool is that it permeates the entire brain. Vision for example is in one part of the brain, speech another, but drumming accesses the whole brain. The sound of drumming generates dynamic neuronal connections in all parts of the brain even where there is significant damage or impairment such as in Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). According to Michael Thaut, director of Colorado State University's Center for Biomedical Research in Music, "Rhythmic cues can help retrain the brain after a stroke or other neurological impairment, as with Parkinson's patients ...." The more connections that can be made within the brain, the more integrated our experiences become.

Studies indicate that drumming produces deeper self-awareness by inducing synchronous brain activity. The physical transmission of rhythmic energy to the brain synchronizes the two cerebral hemispheres. When the logical left hemisphere and the intuitive right hemisphere begin to pulsate in harmony, the inner guidance of intuitive knowing can then flow unimpeded into conscious awareness. The ability to access unconscious information through symbols and imagery facilitates psychological integration and a reintegration of self.

In his book, Shamanism: The Neural Ecology of Consciousness and Healing, Michael Winkelman reports that drumming also synchronizes the frontal and lower areas of the brain, integrating nonverbal information from lower brain structures into the frontal cortex, producing "feelings of insight, understanding, integration, certainty, conviction, and truth, which surpass ordinary understandings and tend to persist long after the experience, often providing foundational insights for religious and cultural traditions."

It requires abstract thinking and the interconnection between symbols, concepts, and emotions to process unconscious information. The human adaptation to translate an inner experience into meaningful narrative is uniquely exploited by drumming. Rhythmic drumming targets memory, perception, and the complex emotions associated with symbols and concepts: the principal functions humans rely on to formulate belief. Because of this exploit, the result of the synchronous brain activity in humans is the spontaneous generation of meaningful information which is imprinted into memory. Drumming is an effective method for integrating subjective experience into both physical space and the cultural group.

Drumming for Mindfulness and Healing

Chöd Practitioners

A significant number of research studies have documented both drumming and mindfulness meditation as effective therapy for everything from stress to depression to supportive cancer treatment. This is not new science. Since the time of Buddha (about 2,600 years ago), we have known about the stress-reducing benefits of both drumming and mindfulness meditation, which focuses on nonjudgmental awareness of sensations, feelings, and state of mind. Combining these two ancient practices -- drumming and mindfulness -- can be life-altering. Even one session of meditation, focused on a drum's beat demonstrates how powerful this meditation method can be in our stressful modern lives. The powerful and compelling rhythm of drums can still and focus the mind -- the quick path to mindfulness and well-being! Read more.

Drumbeat of the Rainbow Fire

The drum has been the guiding force in my life for many years. My journey into rhythm began under the tutelage of Mongolian shaman Jade Wah'oo Grigori. Jade's ancient knowledge of drumming and healing rhythms was most influential in putting together my first book, The Shamanic Drum: A Guide to Sacred Drumming. I had a deep respect for the power of the ceremonial rhythms and drum ways of Jade's tradition, but I had to follow my own path of rhythm.

Though Jade was my mentor, the drum became my teacher and creative addiction. I developed an insatiable thirst for its rhythms. I became a rhythm seeker, learning new rhythms from other drummers, from nature, and from dreams and visions. I explored the rhythms of many of the world’s shamanic and spiritual traditions. It was only natural, at least from my perspective, that rhythm, as a path, would lead me to the rhythmic roots of all cultures.   

As I learned the drum ways of various world cultures, I found the same rhythmic qualities underlying all of them. Like the colors of the rainbow, each culture has its own hue or identity, yet each is a part of the whole. Although the focus or intent differs from culture to culture, rhythmic drumming invariably has the same power and effects in all traditions. The resonant qualities and attributes of these rhythmic phenomena are universal and come into play whenever we drum.          

The sound waves produced by the drum impart their energy to the resonating systems of the body, mind, and spirit, making them vibrate in sympathy. When we drum, our living flesh, brainwaves, and spiritual energy centers begin to vibrate in response. This sympathetic resonance leaves reverberating effects up to 72 hours after a drum session. These powerful effects can best be described in terms of their influence on the subtle energy centers known as chakras. Read more.

10 Reasons to Add Drumming into Your Spiritual Practice

Drumming is perhaps the oldest form of active meditation known to humanity. It is a simple and effortless way to still the chatter of the mind, thereby inducing altered states of consciousness. It is one of the quickest and most powerful ways I know to open the heart and connect with a power greater than ourselves. Here are 10 good reasons why you should incorporate drumming into your spiritual practice:

1. To induce natural altered states of consciousness. Researchers have found that if a drum beat frequency of around 180 beats per minute is sustained for at least fifteen minutes, it will induce significant altered states in most people, even on their first attempt. This ease of induction contrasts significantly with the long periods of isolation and practice required by most meditative disciplines before inducing significant effects. Rhythmic stimulation is a simple and effective technique for affecting states of mind.   

2. To produce deeper self-awareness by inducing synchronous brain activity. Recent studies have demonstrated that the physical transmission of rhythmic energy to the brain synchronizes the two cerebral hemispheres, integrating conscious and unconscious awareness. The ability to access unconscious information through symbols and imagery facilitates psychological integration and a reintegration of self.

3. To experience being in resonance with the natural rhythms of life. Rhythm and resonance order the natural world. Dissonance and disharmony arise only when we limit our capacity to resonate totally and completely with the rhythms of life. The origin of the word rhythm is Greek meaning "to flow." We can learn to flow with the rhythms of life by simply learning to feel the beat, pulse, or groove while drumming. When drummers feel this rhythmic flow, especially at a slower, steady beat, they can shift into a state of deep relaxation and expanded awareness. It is a way of bringing the essential self into accord with the flow of a dynamic, interrelated universe, helping us feel connected rather than isolated and estranged.

4. To access a higher power. Drumming directly supports the introduction of spiritual factors found significant in the healing process. Drumming and Shamanic activities produce a sense of connectedness and community, integrating body, mind and spirit. According to research published in the American Journal of Public Health, "Shamanic activities bring people efficiently and directly into immediate encounters with spiritual forces, focusing the client on the whole body and integrating healing at physical and spiritual levels. This process allows them to connect with the power of the universe, to externalize their own knowledge, and to internalize their answers; it also enhances their sense of empowerment and responsibility. These experiences are healing, bringing the restorative powers of nature to clinical settings."

5. To release negative feelings, blockages, and emotional trauma. Drumming can help people express and address emotional issues. Unexpressed feelings and emotions can form energy blockages. The physical stimulation of drumming removes blockages and produces emotional release. Sound vibrations resonate through every cell in the body, stimulating the release of negative cellular memories.

6. To reduce tension, anxiety, and stress. Drumming induces deep relaxation, lowers blood pressure, and reduces stress. 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. A groundbreaking 2005 study demonstrated that group drumming not only reduces stress, but reverses genetic switches that turn on the stress response believed responsible in the development of common diseases.

7. To create sacred space. The drum is also a versatile instrument for creating sacred space. You can use it to summon the spirits into a ritual or ceremony. According to Wallace Black Elk, the renowned Lakota shaman, "When you pray with that drum, when the spirits hear that drum, it echoes. They hear this drum, and they hear your voice loud and clear." Conversely, a forceful beat of the drum can be used to drive away malevolent spirits or intrusive energies that cause confusion, disease, and disharmony. Used in this way, the drum facilitates the creation of a purified sacred space.

8. To reconnect with your inner or spirit self. Drumming heightens the ability of perception and enables you to see into the deeper realms of the self. The moment you bond with your spirit is the moment your heart opens. The first time you glimpse your spirit self, you gasp and cry. You know who you are. That is the moment you begin to heal.

9. To gain insight into an issue that you want to know more about. You can take concerns into a drum meditation in order to access personal revelation. Drumming stills the incessant chatter of the mind, allowing you to view life and life's problems from a detached, spiritual perspective, not easily achieved in a state of ordinary consciousness.

10. To clarify life purpose. When we are unaware of our soul's true purpose or simply not aligned in our actions, we often experience a malaise of the spirit. We can engage the blueprint of our soul path through the vehicle of drumming. Drumming is a time-tested medium for individual self-realization. We can go within to access wisdom and energies that can help awaken our soul calling and restore us to wholeness. Drumming reconnects us with our deepest core values and our highest vision of who we are and why we are here. It heightens our sense of mission and purpose, empowering our personal evolution.

Awaken the Shaman Within

Shamanism has achieved a dramatic modern resurgence. Recent studies by some of the world's foremost scholars on shamanism reveal that the contemporary world still hungers for transcendent experiences because the shamanic narrative is hard-wired in us all. Study results demonstrate that the cross-cultural manifestations of shamanism and its contemporary appeal are rooted in innate functions of the brain, mind, and consciousness. Furthermore, recent studies demonstrate that the innate modules of rhythm, like percussion, provide a secular approach to accessing a higher power and applying spiritual perspectives. Each person has the ability to connect directly with shamanic states of consciousness through the power of the drum.

When pulsed at some three beats per second, rhythmic drumming induces an alpha wave cycle in the brain. Alpha activity is associated with meditation, light trance states, and holistic modes of consciousness. The alpha rhythm is the resonant frequency produced by our planet's electromagnetic field. All life on this planet is plugged into this primary frequency. When the brain oscillates in this common frequency, attunement to planetary collective consciousness is achieved. One's sense of being a separate individual gives way to an experience of union, not just with other individuals, but with the entire planet. Drumming is a quick and easy way to induce this state of unity consciousness.

This ease of induction of altered states and related experiences contrasts dramatically with the months or years of practice usually required by most meditative disciplines to induce significant effects. Today's drummers are rediscovering the trance or ecstatic aspects of drumming. This new rhythm consciousness is oriented not toward performance and musical virtuosity, but toward personal transformation, consciousness expansion, and community building. Shamanic drum ways do not require faith or changes in your definition of reality. No change in your subconscious mind is required either, for the drum only awakens what is already there. It will awaken the shaman that lies dormant within you. Read more.

How Drumming Improves Mental and Physical Health

Drum therapy is an ancient approach that uses rhythm to promote healing and self-expression. From the shamans of Tuva to the Minianka healers of West Africa, therapeutic rhythm techniques have been used for thousands of years to create and maintain physical, mental, and spiritual health. Current research is now verifying the therapeutic effects of ancient rhythm techniques. The American Journal of Public Health reviewed drum therapy in its April 2003 edition, concluding that "shamanic drumming directly supports the introduction of spiritual factors found significant in the healing process. Shamanic activities bring people efficiently and directly into immediate encounters with spiritual forces, focusing the client on the whole body and integrating healing at physical and spiritual levels. This process allows them to connect with the power of the universe, to externalize their own knowledge, and to internalize their answers; it also enhances their sense of empowerment and responsibility. These experiences are healing, bringing the restorative powers of nature to clinical settings." Read more.

The Transformative Power of Drum Meditation

Drumming is perhaps the oldest form of active meditation known to humanity. It is a simple and effortless way to still the incessant chatter of the mind, thereby inducing a shamanic trance state. Shamanic drumming carries awareness into the transcendent realm of the collective unconscious, the infinite creative matrix of all that we are and have ever been. It is an inward spiritual journey of ecstasy in which one interacts with the inner world, thereby influencing the outer world. Drumming can help with a myriad of issues, such as: retrieving lost aspects of soul, releasing unhealthy entities, solving conflicts within the unconscious, transforming the negative energy of past traumas into positive energy, helping people finally feel suppressed emotions, and healing unhealthy patterns and habits. Read more.

"Drumming for the Orisa"

Colin Townsend is a cultural anthropologist and drummer who published a study on the ways identity is constructed among a group of drummers at Oyotunji Village, South Carolina. Oyotunji Village was founded by Oba Oseijeman I, born Walter King of Detroit, in 1970 with the purpose of providing African-Americans in the United States with a geographical, political, and cultural space to experience African culture. Modeled after Yoruba culture of southwest Nigeria, members of the community practice a religion known as orisa-voodoo.

Throughout the year, festivals are held dedicated to various orisa, "deities," in which the drummers play a crucial role in the religious experience of the orisa-voodoo adherents. An essential part of Yoruba culture, drumming acts as a musical bridge between humans and orisa, enabling orisa-voodoo practitioners to petition the orisa for guidance and intervention in their daily lives. Drumming traditions at Oyotunji Village provide drummers with a repository of cultural knowledge and practices from which to draw, while at the same time offering them a creative outlet capable of reshaping and redefining those very same traditions.

Townsend examines various processes of identity formation among the drummers as part of their musical apprenticeship, during which they learn not only how to play the instrument but also about Yoruba culture in general. He employs an analytical framework involving a "subject-centered musical ethnography" within a three-dimensional space of musical experience including time, location, and metaphor. Read "Drumming for the Orisa: (Re)inventing Yoruba Identity in Oyotunji Village."

To learn more about African drumming, I highly recommend Sule Greg Wilson's informative book, The Drummer's Path: Moving the Spirit with Ritual and Traditional Drumming. Wilson provides a useful introduction to the many different styles of traditional African drumming. This is an intriguing work that shows the relationship between drumming, spirit and health. His writing offers an interesting insight into the physical, metaphysical and spiritual aspects of drumming.

Drum Therapy for Depression

A Finnish study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry finds that drumming alleviates depression. Twice a week, with the help of trained music therapists, the participants in a 2011 research study learned how to improvise music using a mallet instrument, a percussion instrument or an acoustic, West African djembe drum. Study results demonstrated that participants receiving active music therapy in addition to standard care had a significantly greater improvement in their symptoms than those receiving standard care alone after three months of treatment. Researchers believe the addition of music therapy allows people to better express their emotions and reflect on their inner feelings. It has been argued that music making engages people in ways that words may simply not be able to. Read more.

The Therapeutic Effects of Drumming

Drum therapy is an ancient approach that uses rhythm to promote healing and self-expression. From the shamans of Mongolia to the Minianka healers of West Africa, therapeutic rhythm techniques have been used for thousands of years to create and maintain physical, mental, and spiritual health. Current research is now verifying the therapeutic effects of ancient rhythm techniques. Recent research reviews indicate that drumming accelerates physical healing, boosts the immune system and produces feelings of well-being, a release of emotional trauma, and reintegration of self. Other studies have demonstrated the calming, focusing, and healing effects of drumming on Alzheimer's patients, autistic children, emotionally disturbed teens, recovering addicts, trauma patients, and prison and homeless populations. Study results demonstrate that drumming is a valuable treatment for stress, fatigue, anxiety, hypertension, asthma, chronic pain, mental illness, migraines, cancer, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, paralysis, emotional disorders, and a wide range of physical disabilities. Research studies mentioned below indicate that drumming:

 

Reduces tension, anxiety, and stress

Drumming induces deep relaxation, lowers blood pressure, and reduces stress. 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. A 2003 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. A groundbreaking 2005 study demonstrated that group drumming not only reduces stress, but reverses genetic switches that turn on the stress response believed responsible in the development of common diseases.

Helps control chronic pain

Chronic pain has a progressively draining effect on the quality of life. Researchers suggest that drumming serves as a distraction from pain and grief. Moreover, drumming promotes the production of endorphins and endogenous opiates, the bodies own morphine-like painkillers, and can thereby help in the control of pain. Endorphins are among the brain chemicals known as neurotransmitters, which interact with the opiate receptors in the brain to reduce our perception of pain and act similarly to drugs such as morphine and codeine. In contrast to the opiate drugs, however, activation of the opiate receptors by the body's endorphins does not lead to dependence or addiction. Although more research needs to be done, endorphins are believed to produce four key effects on the body/mind: they relieve pain, reduce stress, enhance the immune system, and postpone the aging process.

Boosts the immune system

A 2001 medical research study indicates that drumming circles boost the immune system. Led by renowned cancer expert Barry Bittman, MD, the study demonstrates that group drumming actually increases cancer-killing cells, which help the body combat cancer as well as other viruses, including AIDS. According to Dr. Bittman, "Group drumming tunes our biology, orchestrates our immunity, and enables healing to begin. It's simply a matter of letting go, joining in and having fun -- Mind Over Matter!"

Alleviates depression

By helping people express their emotions, music therapy appears to be an effective treatment for depression. Twice a week, with the help of trained music therapists, the participants in a 2011 research study learned how to improvise music using a mallet instrument, a percussion instrument or an acoustic, West African djembe drum. Study results demonstrated that participants receiving active music therapy in addition to standard care had a significantly greater improvement in their symptoms than those receiving standard care alone after three months of treatment.

Produces deeper self-awareness by inducing synchronous brain activity

Research has demonstrated that the physical transmission of rhythmic energy to the brain synchronizes the two cerebral hemispheres. When the logical left hemisphere and the intuitive right hemisphere begin to pulsate in harmony, the inner guidance of intuitive knowing can then flow unimpeded into conscious awareness. The ability to access unconscious information through symbols and imagery facilitates psychological integration and a reintegration of self. Drumming also synchronizes the frontal and lower areas of the brain, integrating nonverbal information from lower brain structures into the frontal cortex, producing "feelings of insight, understanding, integration, certainty, conviction, and truth, which surpass ordinary understandings and tend to persist long after the experience, often providing foundational insights for religious and cultural traditions."

Accesses the entire brain

The reason rhythm is such a powerful tool is that it permeates the entire brain. Vision for example is in one part of the brain, speech another, but drumming accesses the whole brain. The sound of drumming generates dynamic neuronal connections in all parts of the brain even where there is significant damage or impairment such as in Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). According to Michael Thaut, director of Colorado State University's Center for Biomedical Research in Music, "Rhythmic cues can help retrain the brain after a stroke or other neurological impairment, as with Parkinson's patients..." The more connections that can be made within the brain, the more integrated our experiences become.

Induces natural altered states of consciousness

Rhythmic drumming induces altered states, which have a wide range of therapeutic applications. A recent study by Barry Quinn, Ph.D. demonstrates that even a brief drumming session can double alpha brain wave activity, dramatically reducing stress. The brain changes from Beta waves (focused concentration and activity) to Alpha waves (calm and relaxed), producing feelings of euphoria and well-being. Alpha activity is associated with meditation, shamanic trance, and integrative modes of consciousness. This ease of induction contrasts significantly with the long periods of isolation and practice required by most meditative disciplines before inducing significant effects. Rhythmic stimulation is a simple yet effective technique for affecting states of mind.

Creates a sense of connectedness with self and others

In a society in which traditional family and community-based systems of support have become increasingly fragmented, drumming circles provide a sense of connectedness with others and interpersonal support. A drum circle provides an opportunity to connect with your own spirit at a deeper level, and also to connect with a group of other like-minded people. Group drumming alleviates self-centeredness, isolation, and alienation. According to music educator and leadership consultant Ed Mikenas, "Drumming provides an authentic experience of unity and physiological synchronicity. If we put people together who are out of sync with themselves (i.e., diseased, addicted) and help them experience the phenomenon of entrainment, it is possible for them to feel with and through others what it is like to be synchronous in a state of preverbal connectedness."

Helps us to experience being in resonance with the natural rhythms of life

Rhythm and resonance order the natural world. Dissonance and disharmony arise only when we limit our capacity to resonate totally and completely with the rhythms of life. The origin of the word rhythm is Greek meaning "to flow." We can learn to flow with the rhythms of life by simply learning to feel the beat, pulse, or groove while drumming. When drummers feel this rhythmic flow, especially at a slower, steady beat, they can shift into a state of deep relaxation and expanded awareness. It is a way of bringing the essential self into accord with the flow of a dynamic, interrelated universe, helping us feel connected rather than isolated and estranged.

Provides a secular approach to accessing a higher power

Shamanic drumming directly supports the introduction of spiritual factors found significant in the healing process. Drumming and Shamanic activities produce a sense of connectedness and community, integrating body, mind and spirit. According to research published in the American Journal of Public Health, "Shamanic activities bring people efficiently and directly into immediate encounters with spiritual forces, focusing the client on the whole body and integrating healing at physical and spiritual levels. This process allows them to connect with the power of the universe, to externalize their own knowledge, and to internalize their answers; it also enhances their sense of empowerment and responsibility. These experiences are healing, bringing the restorative powers of nature to clinical settings."

Releases negative feelings, blockages, and emotional trauma

Drumming can help people express and address emotional issues. Unexpressed feelings and emotions can form energy blockages. The physical stimulation of drumming removes blockages and produces emotional release. Sound vibrations resonate through every cell in the body, stimulating the release of negative cellular memories. As a counselor of at-risk youth, Ed Mikenas finds that, "Drumming emphasizes self-expression, teaches how to rebuild emotional health, and addresses issues of violence and conflict through expression and integration of emotions." Michael Winkelman, a leader in neurotheological perspectives on shamanism, believes that drumming and other shamanic altered states of consciousness activities can also address the emotional needs of addicted populations. In his 2003 article, "Drumming Out Drugs," Winkelman concluded that, "Drumming circles have important roles as complementary addiction therapy, particularly for repeated relapse and when other counseling modalities have failed."

Places one in the present moment

Drumming helps alleviate stress that is created from hanging on to the past or worrying about the future. When one plays a drum, one is placed squarely in the here and now. One of the paradoxes of rhythm is that it has both the capacity to move your awareness out of your body into realms beyond time and space and to ground you firmly in the present moment. It allows you to maintain a portion of ordinary awareness while experiencing non-ordinary awareness. This permits full recall later of the visionary experience.

Provides a medium for individual self-realization

Drumming helps reconnect us to our core, enhancing our sense of empowerment and stimulating our creative expression. Music educator Ed Mikenas believes that, "the advantage of participating in a drumming group is that you develop an auditory feedback loop within yourself and among group members -- a channel for self-expression and positive feedback -- that is pre-verbal, emotion-based, and sound-mediated." Each person in a drum circle is expressing themselves through his or her drum and listening to the other drums at the same time. "Everyone is speaking, everyone is heard, and each person's sound is an essential part of the whole." Each person can drum out their feelings without saying a word, without having to reveal their issues. Group drumming complements traditional talk therapy methods. It provides a means of exploring and developing the inner self. It serves as a vehicle for personal transformation, consciousness expansion, and community building. The primitive drumming circle is emerging as a significant therapeutic tool in the modern technological age.

Drum Therapy for Cognitive Development

Copyright 2011 by Pat Gesualdo

Drum Therapy and the DAD Program help the special-needs population with cognitive development and cognitive restructuring by replacing negative thoughts with positive thoughts. Children with learning disabilities often develop negative thought patterns--and rather easily, I might add, because they are aware that they lack the same abilities that their non-disabled peers have. As a result, they often compare themselves to others and rate their own level of ability, or lack thereof, to that of their peers. This can cause the special-needs child to easily develop depression and/or anxiety.

The modalities of Drum Therapy help in several ways. First, they help to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. The negativity that surrounds the special-needs child can be overwhelming. Most of these children are told they are stupid, dumb, or lazy by their parents, teachers, and/or friends. This can occur on a daily basis. I experienced this myself from many school teachers, peers, and drum teachers. Thankfully I had love and support from my family and a few very special teachers who were dedicated to helping me. Many special-needs children, especially those from the inner city, have no support system at all. This creates a huge problem for them and for society as a whole. Negative thoughts become a major cause of low self-esteem, which then turns into negative behavior.

Drum Therapy also helps an individual develop a positive outlook. If a person keeps thinking the same negative thoughts, they will keep finding themselves in the same negative situations. Drum Therapy helps people to develop and keep a positive outlook.

In addition, Drum Therapy helps a person to develop positive and successful early milestones. Early negative experiences can impact a child's life negatively when they get older. Children, especially those with a disability who grow up with pessimistic people around them, usually make bad decisions as adults. Drum Therapy helps develop positive social skills, especially with early intervention.

Drum Therapy assists disabled children and adults develop physical and cognitive functioning and a positive outlook. It does this by replacing their negative thoughts with positive ones. This helps them to attain higher goals in drumming and in life. All Drum Therapists are trained to help Drum Therapy participants to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. In order to do this, a person must become an objective observer of themselves.

The drummer, by nature, often views drumming and the drumset with a "me against it" perception. It's important that the special-needs student does not develop this outlook, though, because they often feel they are "fighting themselves" to begin with. The combination of “me against the drumset" and "me against myself" can make it extremely difficult for a special-needs student to advance their physical and cognitive development, never mind their drumming skills. Drum Therapy sessions help all participants to develop physically, cognitively, and emotionally.

Drum instructors must always remember that special-needs students are fighting a constant battle with physical and cognitive functioning. In order to help the special-needs student avoid developing the "me against it" relationship with the drumset, drum instructors must reinforce that the drummer is always in control of his sticks; the drummer is always in control of the sound his drum will make; and the drummer is always in control of the immediate area surrounding his drumset.

Drum Therapy also helps all participants to set goals. Though your special-needs drum students do need more help, you should have them set the same goals as mainstream students. Don't treat your special-needs students any differently. Special-needs students want to be treated like everyone else, and can definitely sense when people feel sorry for them. Setting goals will help the students, and it can help the drum instructor to identify one or more drumming problems, such as coordination or speed development. It will also help the special-needs drum student "see" the goal that the Drum Instructor is trying to help them set.

Remember, reaching for goals and becoming a better drummer is much easier to attain when students can see that there is finish line to reach, and that they are not merely playing rhythms and patterns.

As always, please feel free to contact me at info@dadprogram.org with questions or for further information on becoming a certified Drum Therapist.

Pat Gesualdo is an award-winning drummer, author, and clinician who has performed and recorded for various Columbia, Warner Brothers, Atlantic, RCA, and Paramount Pictures artists and special projects. He was nominated to Who's Who In America and was an associate voting member for the Grammy Awards. He is the author of The Art Of Drum Therapy. For more on Gesualdo and the D.A.D. program, go to www.dadprogram.org,www.myspace.com/dadprogram, www.zildjian.com, or www.myspace.com/patgesualdo.