Harnessing the healing power of music in clinical care

Rhonda Wineegar remembers that he had watched the documentary “Ill Be Me” from 2014, who described the fight of Country Music Glen Campbell with Alzheimer’s disease. A assistant professor at the University of Texas in Arlington with 25 years of experience as a nurse in neurology, Wineegar was struck by how the disease had taken away from Campbell’s life so much, but he was still able to strum his guitar and sing his songs.

“He continued to wander and they should push him back on stage,” said Wineegar. “Yet he was still able to play all those difficult chords and remember the lyrics of his songs. I often recommend that documentary to my patients who are newly diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or Dementia-It helps them understand the disease.”

Wineegar led that experience to investigate the subject deeper. While music therapy dates around 20,000 years, when Shaman used ritual drumming to ward off the disease, Wineegar discovered how effective music can be as a complementary treatment for a series of disorders, including dementia, chronic pain, developmental arrears and heart rate regulation.

She collaborated with colleague Dustin Hixenbaugh, professor at San Jacinto College in Pasadena, Texas, to be co -author “prescribe music as an additional treatment”, published in the March 2025 edition The magazine for nurses.

Music slows down neurodegeneration in circumstances such as Alzheimer’s. Sometimes patients with memory problems become anxious and upset, which can begin with influencing their speech and the ability to communicate. But if they can sing, they can express their feelings, which helps to reduce anxiety, stress and depression. “

Rhonda Wineegar, university lecturer, the University of Texas in Arlington

Wineegar described two types of music therapy: Active, where an instrument is played or sing, and passively, where simply listening means. Both can be favorable in different situations. A military veteran who served from 1987-2003 remembers Wineegar how music helped her nerves or gave her a required boost in a difficult time.

“If you run with music that plays, it can encourage you to continue,” said Wineegar. “In a clinical setting, patients who have to deal with Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders can improve their current cadence and frequency by just listening to music.

“In neurology it has been shown that music reduces the activities of the attacks by calming abnormal electrical impulses in the brain. Research also shows that music can regulate heart rate and blood pressure by reducing overexcitation in the nervous system.”

When it comes to the most useful types of music, Wineegar said it is completely dependent on the person. Someone can calm down metal than country music, or vice versa. Personal preference is the key.

Wineegar, a fan of a country music herself, organized her presentation of this research on the genre when she shared her findings last year at the International Country Music Conference in Nashville.

“We focused on how country music in a clinical setting can be used,” she said. “It often tells the stories of struggle, my wife has left me behind, I am an alcoholic, my truck will not start. We have framed our presentation around the idea that music can serve as a support group, so that people can make contact with others who are confronted with similar struggles.

“At the end of the day, music is a powerful tool,” she continued. “It takes nothing to turn on the radio, and it can be for you during raw patches whether you have anxious, depressed or pain. It can motivate you, help you to practice or offer comfort. Music has always been there for us. That is the most important collection meal of this research.”