I am not. I must make a confession before I tell you more. I have been a drummer since I was in elementary school. Much of my time in high school was spent playing in bands and orchestras. I still love to drum on anything - chairs, tables, walls and of course drums of all sizes and shapes.
The purpose of drumming is to have fun and feel better. Drumming fulfills both aspirations effortlessly. Everyone becomes young again.
It is hard to beat this list, eh? The bodys ability to heal is boundless. Drumming is a fundamental way to support this ability.
Dr. Connie Tomaino has found that listening to drumming gives people with Parkinsons better control over their movements and helps to improve their gait in stressful situations. Dr. Tomaino, DA, MT-BC, uses drumming in her work with persons with Parkinsons. Here is her report:
I once worked with a young person with Parkinsons disease who had trouble initiating movement. I explored different rhythm patterns with him. We then made a cassette of different kinds of African drumming that he seemed to find very stimulating and helped him get moving.
Anytime he had to walk across a street,whereas in the past he may freeze, he would put on his headphones and listen to African rhythms to get to the other side without freezing in the middle of rush hour traffic.
You do not have to just listen to drumming. You can drum yourself. Drumming is stress free and fun by design.
No musical ability is necessary. No talent is required. No sense of rhythm is necessary. No musical training is a prerequisite.
The only requirement is to have a body. Everyone meets this requirement. Right? The only agenda is to have fun. Everyone is qualified to participate.
Any type of drum will do. Bongos, bass drums, snare drums without the snare, tympani, hand drums, African drums - you name it. If it sounds like a drum it is a drum no matter what it looks like or how it is made.
You can drum alone or in groups. If you drum with others, someone in the group can volunteer to maintain a steady beat - often like the beat of a human heart. Everyone else in the group then beats away on their drum to their hearts content with whatever beat calls to them.
Some people make simple beats that are meditative. Others are show offs. It is not the beat per se that matters. Whatever way you drum is the right way for you. The room rocks.
Let no one convince you otherwise. You may be one who does not like to keep the beat. Good for you. Go for it.
It is fun to sit around in a circle and drum together. Even if you are not drumming yourself, it is healing to feel the thump of the airwaves. The thumbs crawl under your skin and sit on the lap of your soul.
What you get in return for having fun by just sitting in the group is euphoria. What other remedy for Parkinsons can beat that? You also receive the welcome benefit of dopamine. Who could use a little more dopamine today?
Why Drumming Helps Parkinsons
There is a marked tendency for persons with Parkinsons to be hyper-vigilant. Mental activity is usually turned up to the top notch.
Hyper-vigilance is a good trait. It is one reason why people with Parkinsons succeed in whatever they choose to do. But hyper-vigilance also takes a heavy toll on the human body which has a foundational need for rest and relaxation.
The body was not designed to pump out adrenaline 24-7 without registering loud complaints. You know the story. People who are always working and never playing have health problems.
People who are hyper-vigilant also have a much greater chance of having no alfa brainwaves. Zero. Drumming helps to jump start this deficiency by inducing alfa brainwaves at 8-12 cycles per second.
The alfa state is that delicious, relaxed place that ever so gently nudges the body into a state of pure relaxation, the place where dopamine is manufactured. The hyper-vigilant person has difficulty producing dopamine because they rarely experience this state.
I suspect that what happens in transcendental meditation is similar to what happens with drumming. Twenty minutes (or so) of a 30 minute transcendental meditation are spent floating in the alfa state.
Stress and trauma are embodied by a disconnection from the earth. One good way to survive stressful circumstances and trauma (especially when we are young) is to disassociate from ourselves and from our surroundings. We yank our roots up from the earth and let them flop about in thin air.
Drumming helps to connect you back to the earth. Drumming calls you back to the embrace of mother earth where it is safe and exciting to be alive. Drumming helps you accept everything and everyone - including ourselves - just as you are.
Drumming invites the body to relax and unwind. Results happen when you start. You do not have to wait weeks or months for the therapy to take effect. Pretty neat, eh?
Testimonials tell us that drumming helps people with Parkinsons. We have no formal research to indicate that it helps but I say why even bother.
Why not give it a try and find a drum today? You can often find great drums at garage sales for a few dollars.
It certainly cannot hurt you. It is bound to be fun. You may laugh while doing it. When you have fun and laugh ... you give yourself the best dose of dopamine that exists. It is all natural and entirely free.
So be honest with me here. Do you think this is a silly idea? If you do, please take this opportunity to laugh at me. That will do you some good for sure!
As for myself, I am always on the lookout for a good drum to beat. Euphoria is calling me.
Robert Rodgers, Ph.D. Parkinsons Recovery
Here is the simple truth. People recover from Parkinson's when they hold the belief that recovery is possible. Those who believe their health can improve do improve. They take responsibility for their own health and well being and commit to a program that gives their body the support it needs to heal.
Consciously or unconsciously many persons with Parkinson's hold the opposite belief. They are convinced they have a "disease" and are resigned to the fact their health is destined to deteriorate over time.
Perhaps the deterioration will be slow, but deterioration at any pace is unavoidable. They are convinced that their body is broken and needs to be fixed by someone else or by a magical drug in order for them to get well.
Thousands of research articles exist that evaluate the effectiveness of one treatment or another on the symptoms of persons with Parkinson's. The bulk of this research evaluates the effectiveness of one drug or another. The underlying thesis of this literature converges on the same proposition. The health of persons with Parkinson's decline on average 3-4% each year.
Virtually every published source of information on Parkinson's states that it is a progressive disease. Progressive means that once an individual is diagnosed with the condition, they are destined to get worse, year after year.
Government publications say that Parkinson's is progressive. Most web sites with a focus on Parkinson's say this. Many health care providers believe Parkinson's is degenerative.
I also believe the condition is progressive, but the meaning I have in mind has a very different spin. Progressive in my book of definitions means that anyone with Parkinson's can get progressively better.
When I examine studies that track people on drug therapies for Parkinson's, there is an interesting finding that is consistent across studies. Ten percent of people with Parkinson's on average do not get worse over time. Deterioration thus does not happen for 10% of the people with Parkinson's symptoms.
People do recover from Parkinson's. People do feel better when they begin to take care of their bodies. The body is a miracle that can always heal itself when given the proper support.
Even if you are enthusiastic and optimistic about getting well today, most people with Parkinsons eventually revert back to the belief that Parkinson's is a progressively degenerative disease. Since this belief is held by many people, it is easy to fall back into the black hole of hopelessness.
Guess what? This belief is not true.
The truth is that recovery is possible. Relief from symptoms happens. People have done it. People are doing it.
Of course it is difficult to sustain a belief that differs from what knowledgeable authorities say is true. When a bad day creeps up on you, the normal reaction is to say to yourself :
"Oh, right. The evidence is staring me in the face. I am feeling worse today than yesterday. This means I am getting worse, just as 'they' said would happen."
We feel good some days and lousy other days. Note that I say "we." By "we" I mean everyone - people who are healthy and those who are not. The difference is that people who are healthy say to themselves:
"I will be better soon."
People with Parkinson's say to themselves
"Oh God. Here it is."
The recovery process involves good days and bad days that come in strange and unpredictable patterns. When the body makes adjustments in its journey to return to a state of balance the aftermath can sometimes be pain and discomfort.
Our research shows that as symptoms improve, people report slightly more pain in the short run. Why is this so? They are paying closer attention to the messages their bodies are sending them.
Ever had an entire day of being virtually symptom free? It is so wonderful when this happens. Then, a bad day comes out of nowhere.
Symptoms smack you in the face. It is challenge to get out of bed. Brushing your teeth is more difficult than yesterday.
On a bad day it is tough to dispute the belief that you are deteriorating. After all, you feel lousy. Those who love you probably hold the same belief that most other people hold. What is this belief? Your ill health today means you are deteriorating.
The path to recovery is not a gentle slope in an upward direction. Our observation from working with clients with Parkinson's reveals that recovery zigzags all over the place.
Recovery is difficult to track for this reason, especially when you happen to be the one who is experiencing the unpleasant symptoms.
The last ditch hope is always for a quick fix. A miracle would be nice. Surely there is a supplement, a drug or some therapy that will cure Parkinson's? Isn't a cure just around the corner?
Wouldn't it be wonderful if a cure were just around the corner? Waiting for a cure is just a lame excuse for not giving your body what it needs to recover.
The problem in a nutshell is this. If you believe you are getting worse, you will get worse. If you sustain the belief that you are in recovery, you will recover.
The belief in recovery will be absorbed by each and every cell in your body.
Your cells will exude hope. Hope is infectious. Hope heals.
Both Ben Needles & Robert Rodgers are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Ben Needles has sinced written about articles on various topics from Business Credit Cards, Anger Control and Business Credit Cards. About the Author (text)Robert Rodgers, Ph.D. maintains a clearinghouse of information for people with Parkinson's interested in finding ways to get relief from their symptoms using natural methods at. Ben Needles's top article generates over 550000 views. to your Favourites.
Robert Rodgers has sinced written about articles on various topics from Alternative Medicine, Parkinsons Disease and Heart Conditions. believes that the body knows how to heal itself. It just needs a little help sometimes. Information is updated daily on natural treatmen. Robert Rodgers's top article generates over 5400 views. to your Favourites.