Music can help ease the transition from the waking up stage to a return to normalcy and may help reduce stress around that transition
Music – whether it is soothing, jarring, pop, or rock – any kind can help you recover faster from surgery with lesser use of painkillers, a new study has revealed. According to researchers from California Northstate University College of Medicine, listening to music significantly brings down anxiety, pain, and heart rate of patients waking up from surgery.
And so, as a result, surgical patients who are provided music need less than half the amount of morphine – medicines that act on the central nervous system to relieve pain - required by those who were not listening to tunes.
“When patients wake up after surgery, sometimes they feel really scared and don’t know where they are,” said Dr. Eldo Frezza, senior researcher and professor of surgery at California Northstate University College of Medicine. “Music can help ease the transition from the waking up stage to a return to normalcy and may help reduce stress around that transition,” Frezza added.
How does music help soothe nerves?
According to the study, the findings of which were presented at the American College of Surgeons annual meeting in San Francisco, researchers analyzed the pooled data from 35 studies on music that have already been conducted and its role in recovery from surgery. Data showed that those patients who listened to music had significant reductions in pain and anxiety the day after surgery.
Researchers say music not only induces a relaxation response in your body that causes heart rate and blood pressure to come down, but the soothing melodies and comforting rhythms also create a calm and steady environment. It therefore allows your cardiovascular system to find balance and promote overall well-being.
Music also reduces the levels of cortisol - the stress hormone.
Further, music can be added to a recovery room without much cost or effort, they noted. The researchers added that the best music for a patient likely is whatever they enjoy most. “We’re not trying to say that one type of music is better than another,” Frezza said in a journal news release. “We think music can help people in different ways after surgery because music can be comforting and make you feel like you’re in a familiar place.”
Tips to use music to improve your well-being
According to experts, the kind of music you listen to helps enhance your recovery. It includes:
Listen to relaxing music
The best music for stress reduction is the kind that works for you. If you are not too sure where to start, look for music that plays at about 60 beats per minute.
Keep the sound levels low
Experts believe music should always be enjoyed best and have the best effect when you listen to it at lower decibels – as it does increase stress levels.
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