Music is being used as a form of medicine at a new clinic that's opened in Orange.
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Registered music therapist Emily Thorburn has started Music In Mind Music Therapy which operates out of the Orange Regional Conservatorium.
"We're so lucky to have this tool of music to be able to connect with people, it's almost an instant way to build rapport with somebody and for us both to feel at ease and it's a real leveller, the nuts and bolts of human connection," Mrs Thorburn said.
"I feel like we are really lucky to be able to use music to help people achieve their goals in life.
"Sometimes we get to see a side of a person and see their strengths shine through when other clinicians don't really get to see that side of them.
Mrs Thorburn already had a background in music but had to learn a few more instruments since becoming a registered music therapist.
"I've been a violinist pretty much all my life since I was four years old," she said.
"I also taught ensembles and was a performer in orchestras and small ensembles and gigging around town and doing pop and rock bands.
Mrs Thorburn was also a violin teacher for 10 years at the Orange Regional Conservatorium before becoming a therapist.
"I just wanted to use those musical skills to support people in their health and wellbeing," she said.
"A family member actually sent me the ad for the Master of Music Therapy court and I auditioned and actually got in, which I couldn't believe."
After that she spent two years travelling to Sydney every Wednesday to go to university and all around the state to do clinical placements.
"I had my son half-way through the course so I was pregnant all through the first year, had him and then we were so lucky we had great support, family and friends were amazing, which helped us juggle home life.
"It's meaningful to me I think it's really important and I wanted to be able to use my skills in a way that could make a tangible difference and that's what kept me at it."
A niche field but well established
Ms Thorburn said there are only 650 registered music therapists in Australia and two Master of Music Therapy courses, one in Sydney and the other in Melbourne.
However, she said it's not a new innovation.
The Australian Music Therapy Association celebrating its 50th anniversary but the field began earlier overseas as a way of treating soldiers with PTSD after World War II.
"Music can have profound effects on the physiology of a human being," she said.
"Say in a hospital setting you can draw all those elements of music and create something that's really going to calm that person down and soothe them and for each person it's very individual.
"That's why it's important to have a music therapist who is trained in how music affects the brain and the mind and the body to make a judgement call about what's going to be the most beneficial for that person at that time and the moment."
Regional benefits
Mrs Thorburn said to her knowledge she's the first time a registered music therapist has had a clinic in Orange and they are rare in regional areas.
"I think there's been some people who have accessed telehealth for music therapy who live around this area but there hasn't been one who had a clinic or lived here," she said.
Mrs Thorburn started the clinic after completing her Masters of Music Therapy last year.
"Since there's never been a music therapist there was no role for me so I've had to create my own," she said.
Who the therapy benefits
Mrs Thorburn said the therapy helps a broad range of clients.
"It's really anybody from newborns to the elderly," she said.
"We can support bonding between babies and parents, it can support a child with a neurodevelopmental condition like autism to work on their language development or their social skills or their movement skills."
Mrs Thorburn also helps adults who are looking to improve their mood or alleviate anxiety and depressive symptoms.
People who have suffered a stroke or brain injury and lost their ability to speak or walk can also go to her to help regain their speech function or ability to walk.
For people with dementia she uses music to help them reconnect to their past or their family or even express themselves.
The way the music is used to treat people is just as broad as the range of people helped with treatment tailored to individuals.
"In the music therapy room we're working on a whole different range of different goals depending on who the person is and what they'd like to work on," Ms Thorburn said.
"The idea is they then develop those skills in the rest of their daily life outside of music therapy."
People can fill out a referral form on the Music In Mind Music Therapy website and for people on the NDIS their support coordinator will make contact on their behalf.