Tag: teen therapy

Discovering Meaning in Transition

If life is a journey, most of us can identify transitional points along the way and perhaps some of us are negotiating these now. Transitions bring change, transformation, creativity and hope but they are often made of loss, confusion, illness and anger. You can, however, harness the power of transitional moments or periods in your life, heal and move into new spaces, finding meaning in the journey.

I am privileged to have been witness to the courage of my clients: those learning to embrace new things, those accepting themselves or others, those finally saying no, those finding their voices, those learning to let go, those walking the difficult path of grief and those navigating the treacherous waters of mental and physical health problems.

Clients have said that the sessions validated where they currently are and gave “permission to go into the future”.

Discovering meaning in transition is essential in order to tie our story together and make sense of who we are. This allows us to walk a full circle and brings a sense of completion to each journey we take, whether it be relationship-oriented, career-oriented, health-oriented or self-development-oriented. Only from this space of self-knowledge can we make sense of what we want, where we want to be and where we have come from. The process of meaning making and engaging with ourselves so deeply and honestly is difficult at times – sometimes it seems easier to forget or ignore parts of who we are or where we are. Yet our core or essence — our true self — wants to enter into conversation with us and bring transformation, healing and integration. During these conversations, we begin to discover meaning in transition and it is a rewarding, memorable journey, unique to each individual.

I use a variety of approaches in my practice to facilitate the discovery of meaning in transition including:

ARTS THERAPY – MUSIC THERAPY

DREAM WORK

MANDALA ANALYSIS

GUIDED IMAGERY, SOUND AND MUSIC

VOICE WORK

ECOTHERAPY

DEEP RELAXATION SESSIONS

Sessions are 60 – 90 minutes and aimed at adults and some teenagers. My practice is located in a beautiful garden studio in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa. Please click here to book a session.

Music Therapy For Teens

We often hear that teenagers today face a greater burden than ever before.

Indeed, they have a significant load, including navigating social media, screen time, cyber-bullying and sexting not to mention overt peer pressure, academic pressure, pressure from family members and from themselves. These stressors all come at a time of identity formation and often confusion, frustration and difficulty regulation emotions, which can lead to overwhelming feelings of isolation, misunderstanding, high levels of anxiety and distress. Teenage suicide in South Africa is something to be taken very seriously, and the rising statistics are alarming. 

It is difficult to compare the challenges of teens today with the teens of every other generation. We can say with certainty, however, that our teens have new and different, never-before-faced challenges, which bring both new innovations and joys, as well as new problems. These new problems require new and creative approaches.

In my experience, music therapy is a non-threatening, creative and engaging therapeutic process during which teenagers tend to be open to building rapport, trust and establishing a working therapeutic relationship. Music itself is an important aspect of adolescent identity formation and plays a significant role in many teens’ daily lives – this helps to improve motivation, interest and engagement in the therapeutic process. This is especially important when faced with screen time addictions or lack of motivation to engage in other creative or social interactions owing to electronics/gaming/social media. In the music therapy process, teenagers can use non-verbal, creative means to express themselves in ways that they may not be able to in words alone, yet. This may provide some relief from overwhelming emotions as well as offer perspective. Teenagers may also reflect on their participation in the creative work, and develop their capacity for introspection and self-reflection. This also helps with developing coping skills. In group work, teens are able to offer support to others, develop social skills and reciprocal behaviours as well as share a range of experiences.  The relationships developed in music, expressive arts processes and reflection become forces for change in the teenager’s life. 

Contact me if you would like to find out more about music therapy for your teenager.

Melissa Ellse, registered music therapist, completed a Bachelor of Music (University of Cape Town) followed by a Masters in Music Therapy (cum laude, University of Pretoria). She is registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA reg no AT 0001350) as well as the South African Music Therapists Association (SAMTA) and the South African National Association for Arts Therapists (SANATA).