Frequently Asked Questions...
What are your qualifications?
Certified Therapeutic Harp Practitioner, Sept. 2013 International Harp Therapy Program*
Virboacoustic Harp Therapy Practitioner, June 2021 Vibroacoustic Harp Therapy Training Program**
Harp Therapy and Guided Imagery Online Course - Level 1, July 2021, Arpamagica
VAHT Representative Council - NSBTM, National Standards Board of Therapeutic Musicians
*Accredited Program **Affiliate Program
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How long in business?
A Touch Of My Harp was formed in 2013.
Are walk-ins and same-day appointments available?
In order to provide each client with their very best experience, walk-in appointments are not available.
Same day appointments may be available by call or text.
What are your Rates?
$45 VAHT Session
$120 Triplet VAHT Package
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What forms of payment do you accept?
Cash or Check. Credit Card
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Are these services covered by health insurance?
Unfortunately, health insurance does not cover a VAHT session.
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How long is a session?
45 minute personalized session to meet your specific needs.
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Do you offer couples sessions?
Couples may schedule back-to-back appointments.
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What are your appointment hours?
Tuesday 3 – 6
Thursday 10 – 5
Friday 10 – 5
If you need to schedule outside of these times, please call 810-841-0375. I am happy to accommodate when possible. Questions, concerns etc. may be addressed by phone
Monday - Friday, 9 am - 5 pm
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What is the cancellation policy?
Cancellations must be made no less than 24 hrs. prior to appointment.
Please call or text, we would be happy to reschedule at your convenience.
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What if I am late arriving to my appointment?
Clients arriving no more than 15 minutes late will be seen, however, the session may need to be limited to ensure the practitioner ample time to prepare for the next appointment.
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How does vibroacoustic harp therapy work?
During a VAHT session, live harp music is amplified through a sound table, chair, or vibrotactile device. Clients are asked to focus on areas of tension/pain in the body, while specific tones that resonate in those areas are identified. Each client experiences the musical tones in different ways at different times; therefore the therapy is a very dynamic process and is tailored to the unique individual. Appropriate music is improvised or selected, based on the client's needs. When the client is relaxed, abstract thinking slows and awareness expands. VAHT often produces responses such as deep relaxation, dream-like imagery, pain, and tension reduction, increased energy, increased body awareness, and feelings of being nurtured. Imagery often provides new awareness, positive reframing, and/or processing and integration of psychological material. The client/therapist interaction allows for immediate responses in the course of the session.
A client’s response to VAHT could also include:
1. Coherence (resonance and entrainment/synchronization among diverse physiological systems in the body)
2. Absorption of energy
3. Stimulation/balancing of ch’i energy
4. Lymphatic stimulation
5. Pain and stress reduction (from near-endocrine changes; interrupted impulse transmission along pain pathways; increase in low alpha brainwave activity; muscular relaxation; decreased blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate)
6. Perceptual changes (I.E. synaesthesia)
7. Mood elevation
VAHT is a non-pharmacological approach to treating pain, stress, and anxiety, and it has virtually no side effects. The level of receptivity of the client can affect the outcome of the session, as is the case with most interventions. During the usual 30 to 60-minute sessions, clients generally note significant symptom reduction within the first 20 minutes of the session.
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Why is Live Music Preferred?
There are many benefits from a live person interacting with the patient and live music is preferred for several reasons:
o There is no substitute for personal attention.
o Music can be immediately altered to best meet the patient’s needs.
o Because acoustic (live) music is not compressed and digitized like recorded music is, it contains a much richer spectrum of vibrations and harmonics.
What is the difference between a Therapeutic Musician and a Music Therapist?
The music therapist uses musical instruments and music-making as therapeutic tools to promote measurable changes in quality of life. The therapeutic harp practitioner uses live music to provide an environment conducive to the human healing process.
What is Therapeutic Music?
Therapeutic music is live acoustic music, played or sung, and specifically tailored to the patient’s immediate need. It is an art based on the science of sound. A therapeutic musician uses the inherent healing elements of live music and sound to enhance the environment for patients in healthcare settings, making it more conducive to the human healing process.
Where would a Therapeutic Musician work?
Therapeutic musicians work in a wide variety of healthcare settings, but primarily at the bedside of patients in clinical environments including hospitals, highly skilled nursing, treatment centers, nursing homes and hospice (palliative care) facilities. In the hospital, they may work in areas that include pre-op, recovery, ambulatory care, extended care, emergency room, surgical intensive care, intensive care, neonatal intensive care, pediatric, psychiatric, dialysis and cancer treatment units. Therapeutic musicians may also work in massage and physical therapy, educational institutions, chiropractic and dental offices.
How is a Recipient’s Environment Enhanced?
A therapeutic musician enhances the environment by applying therapeutic music.
The purpose is not to entertain or to give a performance.
The intention is to promote healing – as opposed to curing – by bringing the body, mind, and spirit into balance. Healing is a holistic view of human health pertaining to all aspects of the human being – mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wholeness – not just the physical aspect. Curing is done by doctors and mainstream, or allopathic medicine.
The music affects the whole person because the effects are four-fold: Physical • Emotional • Mental • Spiritual
Music is often provided one-on-one in practice.
Who Benefits from Therapeutic Music?
Those who commonly greatly benefit are persons experiencing life’s transitions, such as birthing and dying, and those experiencing a terminal illness, injury, chronic illness, and/or disease. This may include babies in NICU, patients in Hospice care, people recovering from strokes and other TBI, and children coping with life-threatening or emotional crises. Facility staff and family members accompanying the patient also benefit from the music.
What are the Benefits of Therapeutic Music?
Benefits can include, but are not limited to:
o Distraction
o Disassociation from the present situation
o Refocus of attention
o Reprieve from the present situation
o Bridge for communication between loved ones
o Relieving anxiety of the critically ill
o Augmenting pain management
o Reducing stress and blood pressure of the chronically ill
o Altering the sense of time
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More detailed information on Therapeutic Music and Accredited Programs
can be found at nsbtm.org
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