In daily life, we listen to music to relax, feel emotions, and share experiences with others.

In addiction treatment, therapists use these benefits as a powerful tool for exploring and healing underlying causes of addiction. Music may help the recovery process in various ways, including:

A Distraction From Stress

Addiction causes your brain to produce strong urges to seek a drug that is difficult to resist. It also interferes with your ability to control these urges.

Often these urges are associated with certain triggers. These may be environmental cues or certain thought patterns and feelings. Experiencing stress and other negative emotions are common triggers for drug-seeking behavior.

Music has the power to hold your attention and distract you from painful or unpleasant feelings. We often use music to distract us from stressful events in everyday life. It relaxes us and makes difficult moments more manageable. Clinical studies have found that music can also reduce feelings of pain and anxiety.

In addiction treatment, music may help you cope with stressful experiences that could otherwise cause you to use a drug. It can be a strategy for avoiding and dealing with the emotional triggers that underlie your drug use. This can be a valuable tool in the rehabilitation process and for maintaining abstinence in future years.

Processing Emotions

We process music in our brain’s auditory cortex, prefrontal cortex, and cerebellum, and it can evoke a huge range of emotions. Sometimes this emotional response is highly personal – a song might remind us of a former friend, experience, or lover.

Therapists use music to help you experience emotions, recall emotional events, and develop more flexible emotional reactions. It is a novel way to explore the underlying causes of your addiction and develop emotional, cognitive, and social skills to cope with difficult situations.

A Different Kind of Communication

When we have a conversation, we take it in turns to communicate. One person speaks while the other listens, and then we switch.

Music, on the other hand, allows us to communicate simultaneously. We use music to help us share the same experience at the same time. It can be a powerful tool for group cohesion and developing bonds between people.

Recovering from addiction involves healing your relationships with family members and others around you. It requires building strong networks of mutual support to guide you in your recovery journey. Developing genuine, open, and honest communication with others is fundamental to this process.

Many people with a substance use disorder have another underlying mental health condition or co-occurring disorder.

These conditions may have developed as a result of the substance use disorder or have contributed to the addiction.

Treating co-occurring disorders is an essential part of effective treatment. If ignored, these disorders can result in the re-emergence of addiction, even after years of sobriety.

Research suggests that music therapy is a novel motivational tool for patients with co-occurring disorders. It can help you overcome co-occurring disorders and lay the foundations for lifelong recovery.

Offering an enriching and enjoyable rehabilitation experience is essential.

Experiential therapies are an integral part of this. Research has found that taking part in hobbies such as art, music, or gardening leads to better satisfaction and makes you more likely to complete your treatment.

At Cirque Lodge, professional therapists and medical experts design and lead our treatment program.  

Our therapists have the skills and experience to provide the most effective individualized music therapy sessions. They are sensitive to the difficult and personal experiences that may underlie your addiction and ensure you feel comfortable throughout the process.

Therapy often involves working through the underlying causes of your addiction.

These causes may be complex and deep-rooted and require focus and energy to overcome.

At Cirque Lodge, we strive to create a supportive and caring environment so you can fully engage in your treatment. Our compassionate, medically trained staff provide 24-hour care to ensure your needs are met.

Our luxury facilities provide the highest level of comfort and offer a range of amenities where you can relax and recharge. We create a calm and therapeutic environment so you have the space to recover and heal.

Research by the National Institute on Drug Abuse shows that the most effective drug treatment offers individualized programs that treat the entire person.

At Cirque Lodge, our program combines different evidence-based treatment approaches adapted to suit your needs. Experiential therapies like music therapy are offered in conjunction with cognitive-behavioral therapy, family therapy, dual diagnosis, and support groups. The principles of the 12-steps are the foundation of our program.

Our program begins with an in-depth assessment of the nature of your addiction to gain an insight into the causes of your alcohol or drug substance use disorder. Our expert team combines this insight with their extensive knowledge of scientific addiction research to create an individualized program tailored to meet your specific needs.

At the end of your stay, our continuing care program provides a personalized aftercare plan to guide you through the rest of your recovery journey.

Sometimes the biggest challenges come after you have left the center, and we connect you with local and online support groups to help you overcome the difficulties you may face. You can also join our alumni program to share your knowledge with other clients and stay connected to the place you became sober.