Music

Luckily there is a better alternative to a remedy sleepless nights, music. Music offers various advantages compared to sleep medication. Most importantly, there are no side effects when listening to music. The inextricable link between music and stress relief lets you use sound to create a productive rhythm for each part of your day. Whether preparing for a test, exercise circuit, or bedtime—all it takes is the right range of BPMs.

Jackson says that it can also increase the release of the feel-good neurotransmitter dopamine in your brain, which can reduce stress and, as a result, help you feel more relaxed. Plus, she adds, “When we listen to music, our mood improves, and we feel happier.” Check out these breathing exercises that can help you relax in minutes. It is of great interest that the lowest concentrations of cortisol were observed in the acoustic control condition (i.e. listening to the sound of rippling water). Given that, to the best of our knowledge, no study so far has investigated the effects of natural sounds on stress-related HPA axis responses, we did not anticipate this outcome. The sound of rippling water was equally preferred and perceived as relaxing as music by our participants.



So turn on the radio, or plop down at the piano and invite others to enjoy the music with you; the notes could go a long way in bringing you closer. There’s also a body of evidence showing that listening to music before bed can help improve sleep quality for adults with insomnia. Several studies show listening to music at bedtime improves sleep quality, including in young adults, older adults, and in children. The ability to hear music depends on a series of steps that convert sound waves coming into the ear into electrical signals in the brain. As the brain interprets these sounds, a cascade of physical effects are triggered within the body. Many of these effects either directly promote sleep or reduce issues that interfere with sleep.

For example, in 2017 the National Institutes of Health partnered with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to announce the Sound Health Initiative. This program initiative supports research that focuses on the use of music in health care settings and has already funded several projects. Night-time noise, whether it’s from roads, airplanes, or noisy neighbors, can decrease sleep efficiency and is linked to several adverse health consequences including cardiovascular disease. Music can help to drown out these environmental noises and increase sleep efficiency.

And even mild anxiety can have a negative effect on our ability to lead a productive life. It can interfere with being able to enjoy the simple things in life. The State Meditation Music and Trait Anxiety Inventory was used to assess anxiety. The STAI consists of two 20-items questionnaires which assess state respectively trait levels of anxiety in clinical and non-clinical populations. The STAI-state was used as a continuous measurement for possible changes in anxiety during the experiment.