PBP- Week 10: Empathy and music

Music plays huge part in both my practice and my life. I am very emotional, both on a personal level and a psychic one. There are a lot of times where things overwhelm me, no matter how well I shield. I know that if I need to be in public for long periods of time, especially at a crowded event (like a school function, or holiday shopping), that I will most likely be a bit twitchy.

For me, music is a huge savior. It forms a filter between me and others, both energetically and socially. If I have to do a lot of shopping, and I have headphones on, a lot of salespeople won't try to see if I need help. But more than that, I can ride the energy of the music I am listening to and use it as a dampener to any other energy that I come across.

I spent a lot of this past summer in doctors offices and hospitals, which are not my favorite places. I was driving a family member for treatments, and had a lot of wait time. Music helped me to deal with my personal anxiety so that I was in a much better place to be supportive to my family member.

One thing I love about music is that you can tailor it to your needs. If I just need to be upbeat, I can put on something that makes me feel happy. If I need to vent, I can put on something and dance about and rave. If I want to relax, I can play something mellow and soothing and it will help calm me down.

Music is great to add into your practice as well. For meditation there are tons of good songs and tracks designed to aid meditation. I also like using music as a timer. If I know I want to meditate for twenty minutes, I can either find a piece that is twenty minutes long, or build a playlist that is the length I want, and when the music stops it is a nice gentle reminder to come back to my waking mind (as opposed to a timer which can be quite jarring).

For rituals, you can pick your music based on your intent. Playing something that matches the outcome you are working towards helps put you in the right mindspace. It also helps block out any random road noise or sounds from the neighbors which might be distracting. For me, it is like building a bubble of sound that I can be in. Even though I can still hear other things, my mind can focus on the sounds I like instead of the ones that just happen to be there.