Stress-reduction
Exercise
Self-expression
Camaraderie/Support
Nurturing
Spirituality
Music
Research indicates that group drumming can accelerate physical healing, help control chronic pain, boost the immune system, release negative feelings and emotional trauma, reduce anxiety and stress, and decrease burnout.
Drum circles boost the immune system by increasing the count of cancer killing cells. Bittman, M.D., Barry, “Composite Effects of Group Drumming…,”Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine; Volume 7, No. 1, p 38-47; January 2001.
A brief drumming session is enough to double brainwave alpha activity, and foster calmness and euphoria. Quinn, B., Ph.D in: Friedman, Robert Lawrence, The Healing Power of the Drum. Reno, NV: White Cliffs; 2000.
Drumming helps control chronic pain and promotes the production of endorphins and endogenous opiates. Winkelman, Michael, Shamanism: The Neural Ecology of Consciousness and Healing. Westport, Conn: Bergin & Garvey; 2000.
Drumming circles have important roles as complementary addiction therapy, particularly for repeated relapse and when other counseling modalities have failed. Winkelman, Michael, “Complementary Therapy for Addiction: Drumming Out Drugs,” HW1American Journal of Public Health; Apr 2003, Vol. 93 Issue 4, p 647, p 5
Drumming induces deep relaxation, lowers blood pressure, and reduces stress. Bittman, M.D., Barry, Karl T. Bruhn, Christine Stevens, MSW, MT-BC, James Westengard, Paul O Umbach, MA, “Recreational Music-Making, A Cost-Effective Group Interdisciplinary Strategy for Reducing Burnout and Improving Mood States in Long-Term Care Workers,” Advances in Mind-Body Medicine, Fall/Winter 2003, Vol. 19 No. 3/4.
Group drumming complements traditional talk therapy methods by enabling people to express their feelings with drums, without having to reveal their issues. Friedman, Robert Lawrence, The Healing Power of the Drum. Reno, NV: White Cliffs; 2000.
Low-income children who enrolled in a 12-week group drumming intervention saw multiple domains of social-emotional behavior improve significantly, from anxiety to attention, from oppositional to post-traumatic disorders. Ping Ho, Jennie C I Tsao, Lian Bloch, Lonnie K Zeltzer. The Impact of Group Drumming on Social-emotional Behavior in low income children. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.2011; 2011:250708. Epub 2011 Feb 13. www.drumforchange.com