Music at Heart
Music at Heart is a therapeutic music project for mothers and their babies in recovery from mental illness. It is delivered in partnership with the Perinatal Mental Health team at St Mary's Hospital (Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea) who attend sessions, and refer mothers to it; the group is a safe community where everyone is a patient from the perinatal mental health department,
Music at Heart sessions are delivered by pairs of specialist musicians who provide a safe, friendly and welcoming environment. They offer a peaceful space with other mums, where it is intended that any form of participation in the singing and music can be a healing one, whether it is listening, using their own voices, contributing ideas, or in observing the babies’ reactions to the music.
The sessions provide space at the start and end, and between the songs, for participants to talk about anything that is on their mind or that the songs bring up for them, sharing advice and recommendations or offering a supportive ear. This has been important for mothers as perinatal mental illness can be isolating.
The sessions offer a form of respite and relaxation for mothers. Many of the songs are chosen as they are short, simple and repetitive, providing a meditative quality. Mothers described the project as “great, relaxing sessions” and as a “calm, safe place where both mum and baby can enjoy music and relax”. Mothers can arrive at the sessions feeling stressed or down, but seem uplifted by the session and leave in much better spirits.
The calming properties of music have had impacts beyond the sessions, with one mother reporting that she learnt new songs during the project which she sings to her baby at home when she is crying.
“It has been motivating to get out with my daughter, I saw she enjoys it and I feel happy being there” (mother)
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