Thoughts that were evoked by Billboard’s 2016 List Of Top 50 Songs To Feel Good
On 26th June 2016, Billboard.com published an article titled “Top 50 Upbeat Feel Good Songs to Dance to.” I thought that it was a very interesting title because it brings to attention that feeling good is a fundamental human right and desire.
For that matter, God the Creator wants us to feel good. He felt good after sitting back and reviewing the amazing and beautiful creation at the end of each day. The Bible reveals that depression, sorrow, sickness and death were never part of our Father’s plan for the human race and that He is always providing means for us to live healthy, happy lives.
A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit (Proverbs 15: 13).
“All human beings have spontaneous needs for happiness, self-understanding, and love” (Cloninger 2014).
Feeling good is so important that many people in their desperation do things like taking hallucinogenic drugs and alcohol, bungee jumping, having sexual intercourse to name a few. Unfortunately, some of the alleged “feel good” activities lead to destruction and sometimes death.
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Feeling good is the result of harmony between the body, mind, society and spirit
Music artistes particularly need to become aware that there is a science behind feeling good. This knowledge will help you to implement healthy measures for feeling good and prevent the pitfalls related to harmful “feel good” behaviors which produce temporary highs and long lasting ill effects.
According to Robert Cloninger MD, a happy life results from the integration and harmony between the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual processes of living. That is truly my belief and the biblical stance on living. This philosophy explains why fame and wealth cannot make anyone happy and why the rich and famous often become the victims of drug abuse, sexual promiscuity, suicide and other perils.
New research into the science of well being is now able to describe the “principles and mechanisms underlying the path to the good life—that is, a life that is happy, harmonious, virtuous, and wise.” (Cloniinger, 2019).
Dr. Cloninger believes that “feeling good” results from “doing good.” He refers to a philosophy of authentic happiness which results from “coherent way of living, including the human processes that regulate the sexual, material, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual aspects of experience” (Cloninger, 2019).
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Why listening to music makes us feel good
Listening to great music is one of the strategies that can help people to feel good. for feeling good. According to Dr. Kimberly Clarke, the human brain is wired from the beginning to process and understand music. This may explain an Ezekiel 28: 13 statement in which God reproved the King of Tyrus for his pride. God became annoyed because the King usurped his position in spite of the treasures such as music, that had been built into him.
The question is, how is music built into humans?
I believe that this is true for every human being and that every human has the ability to create, express and respond to music.
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Research studies done into the effects of music on human beings
A research study done at McGill University in Canada shows that the brain releases feel good substances when an individual hears music. One of these is called DOPAMINE. Most importantly, the brain scans showed that the dopamine was released when the participants anticipated the musical experience and also when they were in the throes of peak emotional arousal as they listened.
In my mind, this speaks to the importance of pleasure during musical experiences. I believe that listeners should be exposed to music which produces positive thinking and behavior. I also believe that listeners should become active participants in the musical experience in order to enhance the release of dopamine. This is particularly relevant for the church, where the worship experience involves music and other forms of internal and internal expressions to God.
The church should encourage active participation in worship in order to help members to feel good and to prepare them to face the outside world when they leave the walls.
As an aside, it may interest you to know that dopamine also has other effects in the body. It:
– regulates blood pressure
– improves the pumping strength of the heart
– improves blood flow to the kidneys
– produces reward, motivation, memory, attention.
– regulates body movements.
Dopamine creates feelings of pleasure and reward when it’s released in large volumes in the body. Persons with high levels of dopamine are motivated to repeat specific behaviors. However, low levels of dopamine results in decreased motivation and enthusiasm for things that would normally excite most people (Julson, 2018).
Listening to music is also associated with upticks in immunity-boosting antibodies and cells that protect against bacteria and other invaders.
Bring on great, positive music, music artistes!
Source: https://www.ashford.edu
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READINGS
http://psychobiology.wustl.edu/science-of-wellbeing/
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/how-to-increase-dopamine
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-musical-self/201101/why-listening-music-makes-us-feel-good
https://www.billboard.com/photos/7416587/upbeat-feel-good-songs-best-dance-music-2018
https://www.google.com/search?q=music+and+the+brain&oq=music+and+the+brain&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.4639j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
https://impacjazz.org/category/anointed-music/coherent way of living, including the human processes that regulate the sexual, material, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual aspects of experience.