Drumming Therapy. Drum Therapy. Drumming for Wellness. Drum Circle Therapy. Best Drum Circle Therapy. Therapeutic Drumming. Therapeutic Effects of Drumming. With the way and frequency the words ‘Therapy’ and ‘Therapeutic’ are being touted around, it is of utmost importance to understand the words, what they mean and the differences between the two. The dictionary defines the adjective ‘Therapeutic’ as ‘something that helps you to relax and feel better’. In a medical setting a therapeutic drug helps you to cure an illness. The noun ‘Therapy’ is a treatment to help or cure a mental or physical illness, usually without drugs or medical operations. 

By these meanings it ought to be clear that the the word ‘Therapy’ hence comprises

  • A person or a group.
  • A long term objective (usually more than a couple of sessions at least). This objective could be measurable quantitatively or qualitatively.
  • A repeated measure intervention (something that is not a one-off session) .
  • An intervention (in medical settings this could be a medical drug. In psychological settings this could be traditional psychotherapies, arts based, music  or expressive arts therapies).
  • A timeline by when the treatment will reach its goal. 
  • A follow-up / feedback and re-calibration mechanism to assimilate, understand and process the efficacy of the therapy to plan the way forward.

The word ‘Therapeutic’ implies an activity, incident, circumstance, thought, a person that helps or facilitates a feeling of relaxation, expression, realization, flow or an epiphany. By this logic even a (seemingly) insignificant happenstance can serve as a therapeutic experience for the person in question. 

Let’s connect this information to the world of drumming, drumming therapy, drum circles and drumming for wellness. What are the Therapeutic Effects of Drumming? If you are someone who attends a community drum circle whenever you have the time, intermittently and you feel a sense of lightness at the end of the session, this is a therapeutic effect of the drumming activity. If you feel a sense of catharsis (expression of intense emotion) that is a therapeutic benefit of the best drum circle that you have just participated in. Having deep emotional expressions (crying, welling up, intense love, euphoric happiness, altruistic and bliss have all been reported by walk-in participants of our monthly community drum circles). Each participant takes part in this activity and brings with them their stress, their baggage, their emotional content, their circumstantial issues, their strengths and energetic offerings. The expert facilitators at Team Taal Inc. are trained to create and hold space such that the group is protected and safe. The drums are instruments that communicate via vibrations. The circle contains the expression of vibrations, energy and allows for the transfer of this energy. The ground (and the Earth) that surrounds this activity absorbs this energy facilitating a safe process of coming to the here and now. Such are the Therapeutic Effects of Drumming. Imagine the benefits of taking part in such an activity on an ongoing basis? This brings us to the word Therapy. 

Drum Therapy, Drumming Therapy, Drum Circle Therapy or Music Therapy (which is the umbrella under which drumming therapy fits) would be when we are working with a group over a period of time to positively influence a pre-decided goal or objective. This group would meet at a specific place, with a specified frequency for a particular duration. There would usually be an observation / documentation mechanism in place to be able to track progress of the drumming activity. This would help us measure the efficacy of the drumming for wellness activity. In this way the claims that we make about how group drumming helps will be based on science, be more realistic and hence responsible. 

Due to the general rise in awareness of mental health, emotional and overall psychological health the word Therapy is no longer alien to us. The pandemic also helped us further understand the importance of holistic health (physical, mental and emotional). This is reason enough for us to invest in our holistic health, the mental health of our families, our social community, our teams, our employees, our partners and any group that we will be meeting (either once or over a period of time). An expressive arts therapy session, dance movement therapy session, having an in-house counselor / mental health professional would all serve as ways to provide a channel for your group / team to start therapy. But to access the therapeutic effects of drumming, what would be best? – A Taal Inc. Drum Circle. Hands down!

Come. Drum. Be One. 
Varun Venkit