Using Music With Emotions- Another Inside Out Intervention

If I haven't said this before I LOVE Pixar's Inside Out movie. I think it is a brilliant way to approach emotional expression and recognition with all individuals, especially children.

Frequently individuals with ASD have a hard time recognizing not only the emotions of others but of themselves as well. This can be very frustrating and could lead to behaviors because they are feeling something but do not know what it is or how to express it.

My younger brother has been dancing ballet since he was six years old. Despite some of the familiar music, I hated being drug to his performances. My mom asked me why I didn't like it and I told her, "There aren't any words, why can't there be words." Her explanation was that ballet didn't have words. In retrospect I realize that I did not like going because despite the obvious emotional changes in the music, I didn't understand that the dancers were communicating through their body language and facial expressions.

I recently came across an Inside Out board game of emotions and adapted it to use in music therapy sessions. Thus far, all of the clients have loved playing it to learn about the different emotions and has also helped teach good sportsmanship.

The game itself is very similar to "Candy Land" but with some twists. You can download the templates below.

Board Game & Cards

I created my own rules (see below) to adapt for music therapy, however you can play it however you want to. To create "wild cards" I used the PDF reader  on my mac (preview), created white squares to go over the original pictures on the cards and typed "Move to closest wild spot" on the white squares. I printed one sheet of "wild cards" in addition to the suggested amount to print out.

I do recommend printing on card stock if you have it available otherwise you will be able to see through. If you do not have card stock (like myself), you can glue an additional piece of paper on the back of the cards before cutting out and laminating.

Adapted Rules, Game Pieces, and Emotion Cards (PDF file)
Adapted Rules, Game Pieces, and Emotion Cards (Microsoft Word)

My rules are quite similar to the original with only a few modifications, I added a black spot and a "wild spot" (gray square) to help address multiple areas of emotion recognition and expression. You could also change I colored the cards to correspond with the colors on the game board and made two "wild" emotion cards. For the wild emotion cards, I used all the colors I had used for the other cards combined.

In the rules I created I have the next player guess what emotion is being displayed before receiving a turn. However, I have found the groups I've used this with will all guess out loud. If they are unable to guess the emotion, have the person displaying the emotion provide a hint (I usually have them say what the first letter of the word is). Additionally, you do not have to use an instrument for the client to portray the emotion, it could be an excellent way to facilitate reading non-verbal communication and body language.

 

Yellow Emotions- Happy, Energetic, Excited 

Purple Emotions- Nervous, Upset, Scared

Red Emotions- Frustrated, Angry, Mad

Blue Emotions- Lonely, Sad, Tired

Pink Emotions- Silly, Goofy, Funny

Green Emotions- Disgusted, Jealous, Sick

For the wild emotion card, I created a playlist of instrumental music so lyrics would not interfere with the groups interpretation of the emotion. You can create the playlist through any song playing system, but I used Apple Music. I will insert a shameless plug for Apple Music as I have used it frequently in my practice. If you do not like the playlist I have created you can by all means create your own, these were the pieces I felt were quite obvious to figure out as well as my interpretations of what a potential emotion a person could experience while listening to it.

My Playlist for Emotions

-The Typewriter, Leroy Anderson (happy, energetic)

-Bugler's Holiday, United States Air Force Band (happy, energetic)

-Shark Attack, John Williams (scared)

-Adagio for Strings, Samuel Barber (sad)

-Ride of the Valkyries, Richard Wagner (scared) 

-Nocturne No. 2 in E-Flat Major, Op. 9, Frederic Chopin (calm, sad)

-Carmina Burana: O Fortuna, Carl Orff (scared, mad)

-The Planets, Op. 32: Jupiter, The Bringer of Jollity, Gustav Holst (excited, happy)

-Hungarian Dance No. 5 in G minor, Johannes Brahms (excited, scared, anxious)

-Swan Lake Suite, Op. 20: Scéne, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (sad, scared, tired)

-Overture to Candide, Leonard Bernstein (excited, happy)

-Surprise Symphony, Franz Joseph Haydn (calm, surprised)

-Prelude 7, Op. 28, Frederic Chopin (calm, tired)

-Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, Johann Sebastian Bach (scared, nervous)

-The Batman Theme, Danny Elfman (scared, brave, tired)

-Vespertilio, Hans Zimmer (scared, tired)

-E.T. Flying Theme, John Williams (happy, excited, energetic)

-Piano Sonata No. 11 in A, 1.Tema (Andante Grazioso), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (calm, sad, happy, tired)

-Piano Sonata No. 11. in A, Rondo: Alla Turca, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (energetic, happy, sad, calm)

-Main Title from Game of Thrones, Ramin Djawadi (brave, scared)

-Part 1 (Adoration of the Earth): II. The Augurs of Spring/Dances of the Young Girls, Igor Stravinsky (scared, energetic)

-Gymnopédie No. 1, Erik Satie (calm, sad, tired)

-Le Carnaval Des Animaux: Aquarium, Camille Saint-Saëns (calm, happy, relaxed, sad, tired)

-The Moldau, Bedrich Smetana (calm, dizzy, sad)

-Thunder and Blazes, Julius Fucik, (happy, excited, silly)

-March Op. 99, Sergei Prokofiev (happy, excited)

-The Stars and Stripes Forever, John Phillip Sousa (brave, excited, happy, patriotic)

-Colonel Bogey, Kenneth J. Alford (happy)

-Country Gardens, Percy Aldridge Grainger (happy, calm)

Have fun! I'd love to hear if you try it in the comments! 

"Where words fail, music speaks."-Hans Christian Anderson 

Rock Brain vs. Flexibrain- Dealing with the Unknown and "Rolling with the Punches"

One of the defining characteristics of an individual with an ASD is their ability to flourish in a structured and predictable setting. This could be considered their biggest strength as well as a major weakness. Individuals with ASD appreciate routine and knowing what to expect next. Speaking from experience, not knowing what will or may happen may cause anxiety that interferes with social skills that may have been developed with years of therapy.

I know that for me, the social skills groups I went to focused on what I could say in conversation, conversation starters, keeping a conversation going, and creating scenarios to practice in. I am also an avid fan of playing the Sims and think that it helped me practice those skills, albeit with a computer, when I was not at school or in a social environment. As I've aged, I will still go over and over different ways things may play out depending on what I say, how another person responds, or what the environment will be like.

Neurotypicals may have some of that playing in their heads or a little anxiety about the unknown as well but I believe that for the ASD individual it can be intensified to a whole different level. In order for anyone to feel safe there must be trust. Trust of others and the environment itself. Spiritual individuals sometimes trust that a higher being is in control and everything will end positively if they believe. For a concrete and logical thinker on the spectrum this could be very challenging to picture.

There are two types of ways for anyone to react to the unpredictable. You can have a "rock brain" towards a situation where you want to be in control regardless of how others are feeling about it or you can have a "flexibrain." Flexibrain is, simply put, being okay with others thoughts and ideas and working together to get a job done.

While those examples are more towards social interactions and group work, the same can be applied to any situation. If your routine is off because your friend couldn't come over, the cafeteria changed taco Tuesday to Thursday, or you're running late because of traffic. It is important to help your child/client/self to think "is this a big deal or a little deal."

Most of the time, it is a little deal and we just make it into a big deal by over analyzing all the potential outcomes, most of which (at least for me) end up with someone being mad at me or getting me into trouble. I work really hard to help myself and the individuals I work with plan with a positive outlook towards an outcome. It is helpful for us to predict what will happen, however it should not be getting in the way of social interactions.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/aspergers-diary/201403/using-structure-help-autistic-kids-build-flexibility

An activity you can try is to have different squishy fidgets (like water balls, putty, etc.) and some harder items or rocks. Identify which item is more enjoyable to play with. What item would hurt the most if someone threw it? What can you do to be more flexible like the fidgets?