An Open Letter to the Creative, Musical Kid Inside You
An Open Letter to the Creative, Musical Kid Inside You
There was a time when music was everything to you. It kept you company. It helped you cry. It pulled you out of your shell.
You danced on your plush childhood bedroom carpet to NSYNC, The Cranberries, Stevie Wonder.
You hung out in the band room in high school before classes started, on your lunch break, after school. You felt part of the gang there. You were accepted.
You had space to try out your new guitar riff, play triangle on a Joni Mitchell song, or kick ass on your violin solo. You gave yourself permission to do all this. You barely even thought about playing, performing, expressing yourself through music.
People rapturously listened to you sing a solo - which you could do, even if you were always the shyest kid in math class. Whatever you did in those hazy teenage years, your creative self was lit up and you loved it so.
You felt powerful. You felt creative. You felt like yourself.
When high school ended, you weren’t one of the “talented” kids who went on to study music in college. All the same, you said you’d keep playing your flute or writing songs or practicing with your band.
And maybe you did, for a little while. But at some point adult life, “real” life, took over.
And now it’s been years (or decades) since you did anything musical at all. Maybe you feel like you’ve barely tapped into your creativity at all. Deep beneath the work deadlines, the soccer games, and packed Google calendar, you miss it.
But getting back to music and the you that loved all that music offered feels daunting.
You tell yourself it’s cute when little kids hammer out Twinkle Twinkle on the piano, but ridiculous when adults do. Your inner critic has been honed through years of pressure to be “good enough” and perform well at work. You want to do it well, or not do it at all.
So yeah, it might be hard. And it might be messy. It might be scary. It’s almost definitely going to be imperfect.
But still, that little voice inside you persists: “I want to create. I want to sing. I want to feel differently than I do now.”
Getting back to that creative kid self would mean reclaiming a really important part of you. A part that’s just as (or more) important than the sensible adult part, the hard worker part, the good thinker part.
Returning to that lost part of yourself can help you reconnect to your feelings in a way that thinking and talking cannot. Music can hold space for your excitement, rage, fear, and hope. Music can help you express all the feelings that deserve space and to be heard.
Maybe it feels like music used to be your escape. What if returning to music actually could actually help you check in rather than check out? Music can give you a direct line back into yourself. To your hopes, your dreams, your feelings, your body, your breath.
Doesn’t that creative, musical kid and the capable, stressed out adult in you deserve that?
Warmly,
Maya
a fellow musical kid
PS. There’s a Way for Music to Help You Connect to Your Adult Self, Too
Now that you’ve given yourself permission to remember all that you loved and all that was possible when music was at the heart of your life, I would love to offer you a quick music listening exercise that will reconnect with that creative kid inside you.
Find a song you loved when you were a kid and listen to it. Let yourself be really present. See if you can listen without also checking your email or loading the dishwasher.
Let yourself be moved by the music. Sing along, dance badly, whatever helps you connect.
Pause. Notice any feelings that may have come up for you.
If it felt weird in any way, that’s good! Though it’s potentially uncomfortable, a “weird feeling” is a sign that something different happened – and that’s where change and reclaiming can begin.
So, What’s Next? How We Can Work Together
You’ve let yourself remember how music shaped your identity. You’ve given yourself a chance to feel the power of music now, in the moment. So, what else might be possible?
I love helping my clients reconnect to the creative kid inside as a way to feel more connected and show up in confident ways in this world.
Music therapy can help you understand your feelings more deeply, learn how to express your emotions without getting overwhelmed, and discover how to calm your nervous system in simple, gentle, effective ways. Often taking you further than talk therapy alone, music therapy can help you connect with your body and your feelings and open the way to heal past emotional trauma. It’s a way to revive the creativity that has always been inside of you, while you heal the sense of disconnection and anxiety that keep you feeling stuck.
The musical kid in me would love a chance to meet the musical kid in you. If you’re interested in how music therapy can help you reconnect to yourself and navigate the stress of daily life, I invite you to schedule a free phone consultation now.
About the Author
Maya is a music therapist and psychotherapist in NYC and online throughout New York State.
She deeply enjoys working with people who would like to reconnect with their inner creative, musical kid as a way to work through anxiety, childhood trauma, and high sensitivity (HSP).
As a very shy kid, music was a source of comfort and confidence for her, and she loves helping people reclaim their own connection to music and harness it for powerful growth.
If you’re interested in working with Maya, you can learn more here or schedule your free phone consultation here.
You don’t have to stay stuck - it’s time to reclaim your rhythm.