Ways to feel better and improve your day
Want to know three ways to boost a dull day or any day for that matter?
Singing, dancing and listening to music….Obvious right? But how often do you actually do them?
Below I’ll share why you’d want to consider incorporating them into your life and how each can have a profound impact on how you feel.
Music for healing and emotional expression
Since ancient times music has been a powerful medium through which people have expressed emotions, told stories, found refuge or even healing. Researchers have also looked into how music has connected humans emotionally, culturally and socially (4).
Whether you create it through belting out a tune or singing in the shower, move to it through dance, or simply listen to it; specific types of music and how they are experienced, have been shown to have a positive effect on the body.
The Impacts of Singing on Stress Levels and Immune Response
More recent studies have been conducted to analyze the impact of singing on stress levels and the immune system, several of which have shown promising results.
Several studies have shown that singing in a group can relieve anxiety, lower stress and increase endorphin levels in the body (2).
Singing in a group, such as a choir or on ones own can increase levels of Secretory Immunoglobulin A (S-IgA) and decrease cortisol levels. S-IgA is a protein that is responsible for defending the body’s respiratory tract against viral and bacterial infections(1). So basically singing can help the body defend itself against pathogens while reducing stress, to some degree. Pretty cool, huh?
Through several studies, both singing and listening to music were found to have a positive effect on the body, though singing in a choir has a greater impact on both emotional state and immune response (1). And performing music through singing, dancing and playing instruments has been shown to elevate a persons pain threshold through triggering endorphin release (3).
Listening to music and dancing
So what if you can’t make it to a choir practice or aren’t in a location where you can openly sing (not sure other people working at your local coffee shop or library would appreciate someone singing at the top of their lungs exactly)? You can still benefit by listening to music while you cook, study, work, fold laundry and perform other chores. Don’t have the best tracks saved, try pre-made free playlists on a music app.
If you’re in the mood, don’t just listen, put on some beats you can dance to. It doesn’t matter if you “don’t know how,” there’s no right way when you’re dancing for fun.
Dancing and recreational dance programs can be great for kids too, not only is it fun for them but it can potentially help them improve their behavior and develop social competence (5).
As a species we are hardwired to dance. I remember when my daughter was just a little baby and could barely even walk, but she could move to a beat and loved to hear music, as a toddler she would dance around the living room with so much enthusiasm for what she was doing, twirling and spinning and then moving from one end of the room to the next and just enjoying herself completely. I would often start or join in and it was so much fun! It would immediately brighten my day and hers too.
So, if there’s a couple things you do today, bust out some moves or belt out some tunes to some really great music and notice how you feel. You’ll be glad you did.
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