Therapeutic Listening

Therapeutic Listening™ is an individualized sound training program that consists of equipment and materials that have been designed to produce specific effects on listening skills. Listening difficulties such as the inability to accurately perceive, process, and respond to sounds are often a part of other sensory, motor, attention, and learning difficulties affecting a large number of children and adults. Occupational therapists trained in working with children with sensory processing disorders have more recently begun incorporating sound-based technologies into their practices in order to approach the vestibular and auditory systems more directly. Listening is a function of the entire brain and thus, Therapeutic Listening™ incorporates whole body treatment in combination with music. Therapeutic Listening™ selectively combines a number of electronically altered compact discs, based on the ideas and technology created by Alfred Tomatis, Guy Berard, and Ingo Steinbech, within a Sensory Integrative frame of reference. Individual listening programs are created and customized by one of our trained occupational therapists, including type of music, length of treatment session, home program and duration of the program. Therapeutic Listening can easily be conducted at home, in school and in the clinic because it does not involve sophisticated equipment.

• Sensory Processing Disorders
• Poor balance or coordination
• ADD/ADHD
• Autism/PDD
• Down Syndrome
• Learing Disabilities
• Perceptual difficulties
• Low muscle tone
• Communication difficulties

The initial therapeutic listening protocol includes an individually selected CD. The length of the modulated music program typically varies from 2 to 12 weeks. The child listens to the recommended CD twice daily for 20-30 minute sessions with a minimum of 3 hours between listening times. Activities that promote improved postural organization and movement are encouraged while listening. The selected CD is changed after 3 weeks of listening to prevent habituation. Listening can be continued as needed following the 12-week period but must continue to be monitored by the child’s therapist.

• Attention
• Organized behavior
• Self-regulation
• Postural control
• Coordination
• Fine-motor control
• Motor planning
• Oral motor skills and articulation
• Social skills and communication
• Visual motor skill development

OR

• Improved self-regulation
• Improvement in sleep/wake cycles
• Reduction of sensory sensitivities
• A “smoothing out” of mood variance
• Toilet training
• Cessation of bed wetting
• Increased regularity of hunger and thirst cycles
• Improved focus and attention

• Establishment of control at the middle of the body
• Ability to sustain control on stable and moving surfaces
• Improved control at the shoulder and hip joints
• Improved body awareness and posture
• Active use of rotation in movement patterns

• Improved coordination
• Improved articulation
• Improved fine-motor skill development

• Improved timing of motor skill execution
• Improved timing of social interactions
• Improved ability to maneuver through space
• Improved handwriting and drawing skills
• Improved discrimination of spatial concepts and directionality

• Greater range of nonverbal communication
• Nonverbal communication matches communicative intent
• Greater emotional expressiveness
• Improved response to speech signal (name, directions)
• Initiation of sound play and speech
• Improved performance in noisy environments
• More consistent performance across all environments
• More confident communicator

• Therapist will select a CD based on knowledge of the child, his or her needs and the CDs
• Music selection will be implemented in each therapy session
• Therapist will recommend purchase of CD/headphones to parent or teacher to be implemented at home and/or school
• Therapist will continue to use listening as an adjunct to current therapy intervention as appropriate
• Additional sessions may be recommended based on the need for additional consultation and re-assessment as needed

• A minimum of six sessions will be required and will be conducted on a consultative basis
• The initial consultations will be comprised of parent interview, review of questionnaires, informal assessment of the child, and review of previous evaluations if available
• After review, the parent will be instructed on implementation of the program and will be provided with specific recommendations for the child’s individualized therapeutic listening program
• A 45-minute session will be conducted every 3 weeks during the 12-week program to reassess the child’s progress and current functioning and to make changes as needed
• Additional therapy sessions may be recommended if needed

Required equipment includes a portable CD player with a numerical volume control which plays music equally to both the left and right ear with good quality sound, Sennheiser headphones, and one to four specifically selected CDs that range in price from $40.00 to $80.00.

It is important to remember that Therapeutic Listening™ is one element in a complete treatment program that includes family and client education, and the implementation of an appropriate sensory diet by a trained occupational therapist. When combined with other therapy treatment approaches can have a significant impact on the client’s functional abilities.