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Over the past several years, PBS-TV has aired several landmark documentaries by such notable people as journalist Bill Moyers and filmmaker Ken Burns. And Thou Shalt Honor, produced by Harry Wiland and Dale Bell, and hosted by Joe Mantegna is the latest quality program offered by PBS.

And Thou Shalt Honor, which aired in October on various dates, brings to light the challenges facing caregivers. Until recently, most people were unaware of the huge and growing numbers of people who now fit the definition of being a "caregiver." Over 22 million US households are currently involved in caregiving for an elderly parent or friend. Over 54 million individuals are directly affected by the time and financial responsibilities.

Consider this: The typical family caregiver is a 46 year old woman who spends 18 hours a week, and at least $171 per month, caring for a parent. Indeed, it seems like this topic has come up with almost every conversation, whether it be with a friend, or a record reviewer, or my graphics designer, or the VP of the company that prints my CD booklets.

My first-hand experience came suddenly, and I'll tie this in to why sound healing is so important as a resource for caregivers in a moment.

About two years ago, my mother fell down and broke her knee. She went into surgery, but came out of the anesthesia a changed person. Suddenly, she was forgetting things, and had become much more irritable, angry and paranoid. I didn't know what to make of it, so I started doing some research.

Turns out she was exhibiting classic Stage l symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. Suddenly, speaking with her was an emotional roller-coaster.Since I live in California, and she lives in South Florida, most of the contact was over the phone. Sometimes, the exchanges were so stressful that I had to sit down at my piano and release by playing and singing the blues, making up stream of consciousness lyrics as I downloaded the experience.

I went to the bookstore, and bought a few books on Alzheimer's. That gave me some information and background, but really didn't give me hands-on strategies to handle the interchanges "in the moment."

Luckily, I had met a remarkable woman, Dr. Madeleine Singer, who is a leader in this field. As we spoke, I was guided to invite her to share some of her knowledge and experience -- in combination with my music. At first, this was a private production. But when we shared it with others, the response was overwhelmingly positive.

The result is a new series of spoken word plus music recordings. If you're touched by the cultural phenomenon of being a caregiver, you may want to honor, nurture and support yourself—or someone you know--with one of these CDs: 1. Coping Skills for Caregivers; 2. At Ease with Alzheimer's; and 3. Now It's My Turn.

Until now there have been remarkably few audio self-help resources to support caregivers. It's one thing to read something, but for most people it's quite another thing to hear the same information. Because of the different ways we process information, when the information is encoded in music that anchors you into a deeper and more receptive brainwave state, it stands to reason that you'll resonate at a deeper level.

Madeleine Singer, Ph.D. has worked with Dr. Bernie Siegel, Olympic athletes and many CEOs, as well as senior citizen groups. On these programs, she combines life coaching and affirmations to help us maintain an attitude of love, compassion and acceptance, while keeping your own life in balance.

With her background in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) hypnotherapy, and superb voice tone, there is a power in her words that transcends the words themselves. Many is the time I have gratefully played one of the tracks after a particularly harrowing phone call. To get a sense of what I'm talking about, check out the samples at www.innerpeacemusic.com

Sound Healing for Caregivers

In general, I would invite you to consider that if you don't take care of yourself first, you won't be able to take care of anyone else very effectively, either. What are some of the ways we can take care of ourselves? By taking time every day to remember who we are.

Within each of us lies an oasis of inner peace. Whatever and however you can access that, whether thru meditation, prayer, yoga, walking in the woods, or listening to music that brings you to a place of peace, do it.

Even if you have only five minutes, take those five minutes for you. Just as we now know with exercise, we can take five minutes here and there throughout the day, rather than spending an hour all at once.

At work, or at home, you can put on your headphones, and go into your private oasis. Let sound take you there. Years ago, I started assembling my "Take 5" collection of CDs. Each one might have only one great song, but that was all I needed to change my mood and get back into balance. Or, as my old friend Jean Houston so eloquently puts it, "to self-orchestrate on the spectrum of consciousness."

My latest albums, Inner Peace and Perfect Alignment, both begin with a song that is just what the doctor ordered. Every time I listen, the positive effect is virtually instantaneous. I invite you to see if it has the same effect on you. Free samples are available at www.innerpeacemusic.com -- but there's nothing like being able to listen to the luminous audiophile quality, which is still far better on the actual CD.

Over the past 25 years or so, many people have listened to my music to relax their body, open their heart and soothe their spirit. Many new listeners, who have not come from a "New Age" background, but from the medical and caregiver population, are now also discovering the blessings of music like this. May it serve the highest and best for each of you.

Until next time, stay tuned!

Steven Halpern

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Steven Halpern is one of the world's leading composers of music for healing, wellness, and inner peace. His most recent releases are INNER PEACE II and PERFECT ALIGNMENT (the latter features Grammy winner Paul McCandless).

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