Depression: overcome it with music and friends!
Depression is a modern phenomenon that is affecting more and more people today. Indeed, what is particularly impressive is the fact that depression and stress are more commonly seen in young people. The usual treatment includes medication or counseling and psychological support. However, there are also some physical methods of preventing depression.
Studies have just revealed that there are two ways to deal with depression: friends and music.
How does music fight depression?
As most of you already know, music can affect our mood instantly, automatically and in a magical way. One minute we are in a bad mood and just a short time later, after listening to a melody we feel joyful and relaxed. “Music is much more powerful than you imagine” says Marc Neikrug, a composer of contemporary classical music who has performed in both the New York Philharmonic and Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Neikrug wrote his most recent composition Healing Ceremony, taking into account the “healing powers” that music can have. “I started thinking about people who get sick -not only from cancer- but also from other diseases” he said during an interview with an American magazine.
“I thought about the power music has over people. I wanted to write something that would change how your body feels- helping you calm down, handle stress and get in touch with inner feelings and inner thoughts” he said. The composer, who has lived in New Mexico for many years, incorporated elements of this nation into the relaxing composition he created.
Healing Ceremony was primarily designed to soothe cancer patients. Nevertheless, Neikrug realized that his music also influenced the way people cope with their problems and the hardship of life.
“This is not a treatment, but it surely can put you in the right place” he explains. “The right kind of music is an antidote to your stressful feelings.” In addition, the composer says that the right beat can lower your blood pressure, slow your pulse and put you in ease. And he is absolutely right! Studies have shown that listening to music affects both our physical and mental health as it lowers blood pressure, diminishes anxiety and even reduces the intensity and duration of pain.
What is the contribution of good friends to the treatment of stress and depression?
It has been shown that good friends can help to decrease stress levels and alleviate anxiety disorders and depression. Moreover, studies have demonstrated that they also support us when we face serious illnesses. The presence of friends increases the life expectancy of patients suffering from breast cancer and simultaneously reduces the pain and symptoms associated with this disease.
These are the results of a research conducted by researchers from the Kaiser Permanente. They have been published in the scientific journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment. According to the research, close social ties and human relationships are related to improving the quality of life and the physical and emotional health of all those suffering from breast cancer.
“Social support mechanisms can impact our physical health” says a researcher at Kaiser Permanente. The research is based on data collected from 3,000 women members of Kaiser Permanente who were diagnosed with breast cancer in the 2006-2011 period. Survey participants completed questionnaires two months after diagnosis and were asked about their friendships, relationships and social ties, level of social support, quality of life and symptoms of cancer in their bodies.
Researchers have demonstrated that there is a strong link between strong social ties, friendship and quality of life and that patients with low or limited social support reported more symptoms of breast cancer. The regular company of friends has been directly related to improving the quality of life of patients with breast cancer as well as increasing the life expectancy of patients.
