Young woman singing and dancing while wearing yellow headphones and a yellow t-shirt against a yellow background.

Using Music as a Portal

Speaking & Workshop Series Mental Health, Mood & Music

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Mental Health, Mood & Music

The MHMM series/workshop is psychoeducational and looks to open conversation in an indirect approach that allows groups to learn and relate to mental health issues through musical content. Through discussion produced by verbal analysis (a cognitive approach) and my personal disclosure, this series can be helpful to decrease stigma, raise personal and public awareness, develop resilience and provide coping strategies. See podcast page for example.

The concept of MHMM was developed from my graduate school thesis. It is offered in a series of mental health topics or as a full day workshop for young adults, parents, adults, businesses (workplace mental health) and in the community.

Mental health is a stigmatized issue that prevents individuals from receiving proper support. These workshops have been developed to help remove the stigma and encourage conversation around mental health. Mental Health, Mood and Music (MHMM) is a mental health series that uses music as a portal to reflect on personal experiences. It helps to explore personal thoughts, moods and feelings in a safe space.

  • Young woman with long dark hair, wearing a denim jacket and yellow shirt, listening to music with large over-ear headphones while holding a smartphone, outdoors in an urban area

    Full-Day Workshop: Mental Health, Mood & Music

    MHMM has a psychoeducational workshop (not clinical) that uses music to educate about mental illness and provided relatable experiences that are portrayed through lyrical analysis and sometimes videos. This workshop is designed to increase awareness and decrease stigma. By examining the dynamics of mental health and mental illness, the MHMM will promote self-reflection, create conversation and help to develop a personalized coping tool to help manage day to day stress and strain caused by life’s demands. This is a one-day interactive workshop that aims to improve mental health literacy and help people better manage potential or developing mental health problems. MHMM is inclusive to all races, genders and cultures.

  • Child with curly hair wearing headphones, smiling while using a tablet in a bright kitchen.

    Presentation: Mental Health, Mood & Music

    MHMM also consists of a series of psychoeducational presentations on mental health and mental illness that provides thought-provoking insight on issues that are prevalent in our community using music as a method to spark conversation.

    Select three or more of the following topics to better understand mental health:

    Mental health vs. mental illness
    Understanding the counseling process
    Empathy
    Anxiety
    Depression
    Spectrum of Learning Disorders

Winter’s Coming Series

Winter's Coming is a series that focuses on using music to help explore mental health and lessen the stigma.

The songs focus on a few negative feelings that are shared by many during the old, dark, winter months. Through the use of music, we get to build connections through lyrics that represent shared experiences from different genres. This episode helps to explore Loneliness and how it might be conveyed through song and lyrics. Lonely feelings can make us more isolated which leads us to feel disconnected and often unsupported.

This is also a common emotion experienced sometimes in the long and cold months of winter.

1. Winter’s Coming: Introduction

2. Winter’s Coming: Shame

2a. Winter’s Coming: Pain

3. Winter’s Coming: Loneliness

4. Winter’s Coming: Restless

5. Winter’s Coming: Faith

6. Winter’s Coming: Perseverance

7. Winter’s Coming: Change

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Contact Information

Locations

OTTAWA LOCATION

Kanata Office Centre
430 Hazeldean Road
Office 228
Kanata, ON K2L 1T9

KINGSTON LOCATION

Operating out of JD Physiotherapy
802 John Marks Avenue, Suite 1
Kingston, ON, K7K 0J7