COLORADO SPRINGS — Social isolation doesn’t have to mean emotional isolation.
According to therapist Becky Bressan, she’s using music to create community.
“In hospice, this means that we use the way the brain processes music and the way that the body responds to music to help increase relaxation, increase comfort, decrease pain sometimes. But also help with a lot of emotional processes and emotional support,” said Bressan, who works for Sangre de Cristo Community Care.
Bressan says right now, physical needs for patients in senior care are being emphasized, but we can’t forget about their emotional and spiritual needs.
Rather than meeting with patients inside their home, she plays for them outside their window.
“There’s been stories since COVID-19 has started, just all all over the world. People singing on their balconies, of writing songs about COVID-19, and songs of support. And it really just shows how much of a universal language music can be, depending on where you are in the world, but also how supportive it can be for us, how much we can rely on it and use it as a coping mechanism when things are stressful,” Bressan said.
While Bressan spent Tuesday playing easter for music for those at the Belmont Lodge Health Care Center in Pueblo, she says she’s up for anything, including reggae, western, and even Led Zeppelin.
“Here in southern Colorado, it’s usually a lot of you know, Christian spiritual music and country music that people ask for. But I mean, I have a patient later today that I’m going to go play some you know, classic pop with,” Bressan said
