[2020-08-24] Music

I've always loved music.

When I was in high school, I purchased a cassette deck from Sears, in the days when you ordered things from a catalogue and it was delivered to the bus depot in town. I recall listening to a lot of Genesis in those days.

In university, I had a small yellow Sony Sports FM Walkman. It had one function: it played FM radio (I had it permanently set to Chez 106). But it was super portable, and I listened to it all the time.

After I graduated, one of the first things I purchased—once I had paid off my student loan—was a stereo. In fact, that's how I met my husband, who was working at the Audio Centre on Merivale Road where I bought my sound system.

Whether at work or at home, I almost always have music on. One of the best music purchases I've made is a monthly subscription to Spotify. So much music and always something new to discover.

So today I was thrilled to receive an email from Darrin, the director in my office, saying that he and his colleagues had created a Spotify playlist for me. It's called CPAB's Songs for Jen. I'm so honoured. The very first song on the list—The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' groovy)" by Cadence—starts with "Slow down, you move too fast." That perfectly sums up my life right now.

As I head into surgery on Friday, I expect that music will continue to be an important source of inspiration and diversion.

And it's probably what the doctor would order.

I read today in How music can heal you that "A growing body of research attests that music therapy is more than a nice perk. It can improve medical outcomes and quality of life in a variety of ways." Published by the Harvard Medical School, the article notes that "Music therapy can calm anxiety, ease pain, and provide a pleasant diversion during chemotherapy or a hospital stay." OK, I'm in.

The article states that music therapy can help ease anxiety and discomfort during procedures, such as surgery. It can reduce anxiety associated with cancer treatments as well as nausea and vomiting linked to chemotherapy. It can ease pain by decreasing the perception of pain, reduce the amount of pain medication needed, help to relieve depression in patients experiencing pain, and give them a sense of better control over their pain.

So with that in mind, and inspired by my employees, and wanting to give back to all of you, I picked 10 songs that I would include in my healing journey. I've included more in a Spotify playlist called Jenesis. I hope you find something to enjoy.
  • "Let It Rain" Joshua Hyslop
  • "Drift Away" Dobie Gray
  • "Smile" Ikirezi
  • "Lean on Me" Music Travel Love
  • "Spread a Little Happiness" Nathan Angelo
  • "Burden" Foy Vance
  • "Where You're At" Allen Stone
  • "State of Grace" River City Junction
  • "We'll Make It Through" Ray LaMontagne
  • "Spirit" Beyoncé