In the shower, at home listening to music and nobody listens to us, among friends?Singing also makes us happy. This universal practice fills us with Serotonin and Oxytocin, and is a sensational injection of enthusiasm available to everyone, plus we can see that even people with Alzheimer’s react and wake up with joy every time they are encouraged to sing.
Edith Piaf said singing is a way to escape to another world. However, psychologists and neuroscientists do not entirely agree with this idea; in fact, music therapy is a sensational channel to connect with others, to awaken the emotions that help us establish more intense bonds with others.
- For example.
- A study published in The Journals of Gerontology found that when older adults begin attending a community choir to sing.
- The feeling of loneliness decreases and health improves; it cannot be ignored that from the age of 65 it is very common for this to happen.
- Population group at risk of depression associated with social isolation.
Therefore, something as simple as being part of a group with which they participate in music improves interaction and generates very positive changes on an emotional, cognitive and physical level, in addition, it should be noted that daily practices, such as singing alone in the shower, also function as a reset button capable of giving us energy, happiness and a good dose of positivity?
“I don’t sing to be happy, I’m happy because I sing. ” – William James-
Happiness, after all, is lived through the simplest acts. Good company, an afternoon off, a meal with friends?Now singing also cheers us up for a fact as basic as it is fascinating: our brain loves music.
In addition, scientists say that there is in our ears a structure as interesting as it is basic for singing: it is the sac, this small part of the inner ear responds to the frequencies that are created during singing, the physiological response gives us pleasure, these vibrations induce the brain in a state of calm as cathartic as beneficial, almost magical.
Pablo Picasso said that to paint and draw you have to close your eyes and sing, if we realize, this practice of singing high or low, growling or humming is a recurring habit among many of us while performing other tasks. very common to sing while driving, physical activity, organizing the house or even when working.
Singing improves mood. It releases endorphins, produces Serotonin and also reduces our level of cortisol, the stress hormone. In addition, studies such as that conducted at the University of Frankfurt show that singing strengthens our immune system and improves breathing, diaphragmatic flexibility and lung health.
However, one of the most noteworthy benefits we were referring to at the beginning is that it generates in people with neurodegenerative diseases. America’s own Alzheimer’s Society, for example, has been doing what they call the “corner of the brain” for years.
It has been observed that singing improves the alertness of older people with this disease, which helps promote a connection with others in a positive way, laugh, are more receptive to communication and interaction, are more focused on certain tasks and their mood. Improvement.
On the other hand, another aspect that intellectual disability specialists such as Tom Shakespeare and Alice Whieldon of the University of East Anglia can see is that people with mental disorders benefit greatly from singing workshops. security and social skills.
You could say that, in a way, singing is the exercise with which our brains will always feel rewarded, music is another type of language that acts as more than just a purely cultural production, it is a space where we all agree, it is the kind of communication in which words are not necessary.
It is also this corner of the brain that almost always remains intact in diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, and that allows us to come into contact with what is most precious to humans: emotions.