Music and Mandala

A Self-Reflective Method to Identify a Helping Professional’s Needs for Self-Care, Supervision, and Personal Therapy

Authors

  • Elaine Abbott Duquesne University, Pennsylvania, USA

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v23i1.3614

Keywords:

music and mandala; self-reflection; therapist’s needs; receptive music therapy method

Abstract

It is recommended that music therapists engage in self-care, supervision, and personal therapy to cope with professional stressors. As a result, it is important that they can determine when one or more are needed. The purpose of this paper is to describe a self-administered, seven-step music and mandala method that can be used to determine those needs. Music therapists’ understanding of the purpose of each step will support successful use of the method. Therefore, the description of each step is accompanied by an explanation of the key concept(s) related to it, and a case example. The desired outcome of participation is for music therapists to increase self-awareness and identify their needs for self-care, supervision, and/or personal therapy.

Author Biography

Elaine Abbott, Duquesne University, Pennsylvania, USA

Elaine Abbott, Ph.D., MT-BC is an associate professor of music therapy at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. She is a Fellow of the Association for Music and Imagery and an Associate Trainer with the Therapeutic Arts Institute. She maintains a small, private, music psychotherapy practice and is a post-graduate counseling intern at the Duquesne University Counseling Center.

Photo of the author Elaine Abbott

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Published

2023-03-01

How to Cite

Abbott, E. (2023). Music and Mandala: A Self-Reflective Method to Identify a Helping Professional’s Needs for Self-Care, Supervision, and Personal Therapy. Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v23i1.3614

Issue

Section

Reflections on Practice