Family Music-Based Activities: Relaxation

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by Heather Dean, MT-BC

The World’s Most Relaxing Film:


You know what? I think it might be! At the end check your pulse and be mindful of your breathing. I did and it turned out my heart rate had synchronized with the beat of the music. This is called entrainment — it is a biological phenomenon when our heart rate synchronizes with music. It is a great way to unwind or even energize yourself when trying to get motivated with more up tempo music.


Soooo many beautiful sea creatures. There are many videos on YouTube like these.

Disclaimer: I am not endorsing any of these videos that make claims of guaranteed relaxation or binaural beats as the answer to relaxation — so much of this is subjective and not grounded in research. It entirely has to do with what you enjoy and find peaceful. 

Music Guided Relaxation:
These are short but sweet videos. I am in no way a meditation expert, but I do love these videos. I'm not endorsing any of these videos as a prescription, just thought they might be worthwhile to try.

For any age:


For the littles:


SOOO cute! I think this is sweet for any age though. Do what monkey does:


You could also try listening to music your family finds relaxing and each take a feather and blow up one side and down the other, trying to follow the tempo of the music while focusing on the feather movement. Or blowing bubbles is nice too sometimes.

This is just a starter for YouTube ideas. There are TONS of videos on YouTube that could be beneficial.


Stay tuned for more ideas from Heather's Family Music-Based Activities series.

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