Music is an essential part of our lives. We may each like different types of music, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find a person that does not like music at all. And music is all around us every day, whether it’s the ringtone on your cell phone, the jingles playing in the store, or on the radio while you drive.
Music has baffled scientists and philosophers alike. How did humans come to make it? Why does it have such an effect on us? These are difficult questions to answer. All we know is that our brains respond in a unique way to the repetition of sounds and melodies that make up a song. It can set your mood or even change your perspective.
Why then, would we not use music to start our day off in a better way? Listening to music when you wake up has many benefits, so much so that scientists have even experimented with it. Here’s what listening to music the second you wake up could do for you.
It improves your mood
If you have a buzzing and blaring alarm, it’s no wonder why you feel a bit annoyed when it pulls you out of the bliss of sleep or wakes you up from that wonderful dream. Changing your alarm tone to a song you enjoy could have you waking up tapping your feet or dancing right out of bed. If the kind of music you like is a bit soft (like classical) and you worry it won’t wake you up, then you can just set an emergency buzzer for 5 or 10 minutes later.
You may also have to change the song regularly because eventually your brain will begin to associate the song with sleep deprivation and it may begin to irritate you once again.
It gets your brain working
The rhythms and patterns in music activate a certain part of the brain that is very important in cognitive function. Think about it, how much of your day is pattern recognition? When driving, you recognize whether it is safe to proceed based on patterns – if the light is green, if there are no cars approaching, e.t.c. Even hearing and understanding someone’s speech is recognizing a pattern.
So if you wake up this part of your brain earlier, using music, it’ll be ready to face the more difficult tasks of the day sooner, leaving you feeling more mentally sharp.
It boosts your creativity
Not only does music wake up the analytical part of your brain, but it also activates the creative part. While your brain is working on recognizing patterns it is also working on making its own new patterns. It has been proven that people who listen to music report far more creative inspiration than those that don’t. So have that music running while you’re in the shower or as you go about your routine and it might just unlock the ideas you need for work that day.
It’s good for your health
One other rather remarkable finding with regard to people who often listen to music is that these people tend to, on average, have lower levels of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone that is released during stress and causes very harmful side effects if levels are too high, such as suppressing the immune system and raising blood pressure. So listen to music in the morning to reduce the effects of cortisol and have a healthier and happier life.
