Tell Me, Did You Sail Across the Sun?

I am an adventurer - I don't mind the risk. I like taking the initial first step to a different world, a gradual introduction to the unfamiliar, feeling the high of satisfaction, taking the leap of faith... but then there's always the fall of rejection in the end, so far at least. I guess that's problem in adventure stories, somebody's storyline has to be cut short in order for one of the characters to continue moving on. OUCH.

Pain, both the physical and the emotional type, has always been a given when it comes to life and actually living life. It becomes even more unbearable the more you reach out and expect and feel, because with all that investment into your own emotional pool it becomes much easier to drown the moment the dam breaks. Reaching for the stars will give you a much more painful and definitely longer fall. At least you have time to think about where and when it went all wrong, eh?

So why don't we just sing about it then?

Because according to Mitchell, MacDonald and Knussen's study, music [and art] can actually help in managing pain perception (2008). The researchers allowed the participants to bring their own music to the study. They left their participants' dominant hand in a bowl of 32 degrees Centigrade of water and was left there until the discomfort became unbearable. 5 minutes was allotted as the maximum time for the experiment. They were then asked for self-reports using different scales (VAS, PRI, perceived control and anxiety).

The researchers found out that music listening was found to decrease anxiety as compared with the silence condition. It also significantly increases tolerance and perceived control over the painful stimulus and to decrease the perceived pain intensity [as compared with the silence condition].

A possible explanation for this is something we took up in one of our past lessons - attention. It may be that an external distracting stimuli can take over a big part of our limited attentional capacity which leaves less of  our mental facilities in the perception of pain. I guess there must be something with music and our associative memories with them that puts a hold on our dealing with pain as we are reminded of an experience, a feeling, etc.

So here I am right now, listening to music hoping to drown out my own feelings of distress and anxiety for the coming week. Too many exams and too little time. Move the exam, sir?

Mitchell, L., MacDonald, R. & Knussen, C. (2008). An Investigation of the Effects of Music and Art on Pain Perception. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 2(3), 162-170.


Photo sources:
http://kaufmantoldmesettheworldonfire.wordpress.com