If I had but two loaves of bread
I would sell one of them
and buy white hyacinths to feed my soul.

Elbert Hubbard (American publisher, artist, and philosopher)

For young people (21-40) with disabilities who are finding their path and voice as increasingly independent adults, training in life skills and supporting physical health and fitness are essential. Nurturing the soul is equally important, and that is why, at Great Prospects, we offer music therapy, art therapy, and speech therapy, all led by certified and licensed therapists.

Music Therapy

Music therapy has been shown to improve strength, endurance, and motor skills while encouraging self-expression and communication with peers. Gaining these abilities can translate to greater independence and self-confidence in daily living.

With more than 10,000 members worldwide, the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) supports this profession and establishes criteria for the education and clinical training of music therapists. The organization explains the advantages of various components of music therapy for people with disabilities:

Playing an instrument helps to improve fine and gross motor skills and meet social and emotional goals.
Singing encourages vocalization and provides an enjoyable way to achieve some communication goals.
Songwriting and composition encourage and facilitate self-expression.
Musical improvisation offers individuals a chance to express themselves creatively.
Listening to music can decrease agitation and calm someone who is upset.
Analyzing lyrics increases literacy while meeting social and emotional goals.
Guided movement to music increases range of motion, imitation skills, and self-regulation.

In an article about the healing power of music for his live music charity Healing & Harmony, David Victor, formerly of the multi-platinum rock band Boston, writes that “music can reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and even chronic physical pain,” and scientists have found that music helps release endorphins that may aid in the healing process. Victor notes that in therapy sessions, music “helps create an atmosphere and an emotion conducive to stress relief and healing emotional wounds.”

One of the great things about music therapy, according to the Cleveland Clinic, is that you don’t need any musical skills to enjoy it and reap its benefits. Participants can perform or simply learn to appreciate music by listening to tunes and talking about what the lyrics mean to them.

Art Therapy

Providers of art therapy for adults with special needs report wide-ranging benefits that include reducing stress, building self-esteem, providing an emotional outlet, developing fine motor skills, and improving memory, psychological resilience, social skills, and coping mechanisms.

A recent review of developments in art therapy published in The Arts in Psychotherapy states, “Current evidence of art therapy with people with learning disabilities suggests that an intervention which is less reliant on verbal communication supports this population to explore and express their emotional world and leads to positive changes in their lives.”

What happens in art therapy sessions? Any visual medium can be therapeutic. Participants may:

Paint with brushes or their fingers, exploring colors and textures to express feelings
Sketch or create free-flowing doodles and shapes to share their emotions
Make collages combining materials like magazine clippings, fabric, and photographs to tell stories about themselves
Sculpt with clay or carve objects with other materials to enjoy a tactile experience that engages all the senses
Use photography to open up new ways to look at the world and help them share their perspectives and experiences

Covey, a Wisconsin-based nonprofit and United Way partner has been creating opportunities for individuals with disabilities and their families since 1954. They note that art therapy can enrich the lives of individuals with disabilities in ways like these:

Improving mental health by increasing levels of dopamine and serotonin, which improve concentration and reduce stress
Providing an emotional outlet by using visual arts to explore emotions and find new ways of expressing feelings and ideas
Helping to reduce chronic pain by moving the participant’s focus from discomfort and anxiety to the relaxing feeling of creating a work of art
Building self-esteem and confidence with the feeling of accomplishment that comes with completing an art project

Speech Therapy

Speech is an essential means of connecting with our fellow humans, and the world of a young adult with disabilities can broaden or shrink based on how well he or she can communicate and understand speech. Miscommunication can make it hard to interact with others, leading to frustration and anxiety.

The Independent Living Association notes that speech therapy can help with:

Conceptual skills like receptive and expressive language, reading, and writing
Interpersonal skills
Problem-solving
Following directions
Building routines
Using phones and computers
Navigating social media platforms

Raymond Anderson, RN, the association’s nursing coordinator, says, “Speech-language therapy is crucial to caring for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities for many reasons, but especially because it helps give individuals a possible way to express themselves to let their needs be known — no matter how minimal the expression may be.”

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association has developed treatment principles for individuals with intellectual disabilities. They include:

Using family-centered and culturally appropriate practices
Forming collaborative teams
Leading with a strengths-based perspective
Maximizing self-sufficiency
Recognizing individual variability

Speech therapists “address all aspects of communication and swallowing and related areas that impact communication and swallowing: speech production, fluency, language, cognition, voice, resonance, feeding, swallowing, and hearing,” ASHA says.

What Great Prospects Can Offer Your Loved One

At Great Prospects, we empower special people. Our Therapeutic Day Program, which runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, welcomes highly mobile, continent young adults aged 21-40 who do not exhibit violent behaviors. We also offer a Drop-In Program for those who can attend only 1-3 times a week, plus a Summer Friends program for 16-to-21-year-olds with developmental disabilities who are still attending high school.

Our programs allow participants to learn valuable skills, make friends with their peers, have fun, and engage with the wider community while their parents and guardians are at work or taking care of other responsibilities. To find out more, please contact us at (770) 314-4243.

The Joy of Music, Art, and Speech Therapy for Young Adults With Disabilities