Using Music to Connect with Emotion
A doorway to feeling when you’re stuck in numbness.
If you’ve been living with chronic illness, you may already know how hard it is to connect and really feel. Not because you don’t want to — but because your system has been overwhelmed for so long. Many people live in what’s called functional freeze, where you might feel numb, foggy, flat, or disconnected— you may feel depression, frustration or anxiety, but it can be very difficult to locate or feel your deeper emotions.
This isn’t something you chose. It’s something your mindbody system did for you.
But when you’re ready, one of the gentlest ways to begin reconnecting with your emotions is through music.
Why Music Can Help
Music bypasses the thinking mind. It can reach places that words can’t. While journaling or talking can sometimes feel too hard, simply listening to a song can awaken emotion in a way that feels safer and softer… and is possible for many who are chronically ill, even if your condition is severe right now.
You don’t have to try to feel.
You don’t have to name what you’re feeling.
You just allow the music to meet you where you are.
A Soft Invitation: Listening to Feel
This isn’t about cheer-up playlists or forced positivity. Instead, we begin with music that honours where you are.
Start with slower pieces, perhaps evoking sadness, longing, or nostalgia. These sounds can gently invite grief or emotion to rise — like a hand reaching toward you when you didn’t realise you needed one.
You might cry. You might not. You might feel something stirring, or simply notice a sense of being seen. You might feel nothing. Any response is valid. The key is not to analyse — only to be present with yourself.
I suggest starting with “In Dreams” by Jai-Jagdeesh. This song is a quiet, tender invitation to reconnect with your heart. Its lyrics — “Know you are loved, rest in peace, dream your sweet dreams” — offer a sense of comfort and release. The song has been described as a lullaby for the soul, providing solace and a gentle space for emotions to surface.
Find a quiet space where you feel safe. Sit or lie down, close your eyes if it feels right, and play the song softly.
Start by finding a quiet space where you feel safe. Sit or lie down, close your eyes if it feels right, and play the song softly.
Allow the song to carry you into a moment of presence, emotion, or stillness. There is no right outcome — just the invitation to begin.
A Note for Those in Deep Freeze
If you feel absolutely nothing when listening — that’s okay. That’s usual. Let the music play anyway. The goal is not to achieve a feeling, but to create a safe space where feelings might arrive.
Some people listen to sad music for weeks before a single tear comes. Others feel waves of sensation right away. There’s no right way — just your way.
Integration & Where to Go Next
Music can be a gentle bridge back to yourself — especially when the deeper emotions feel buried or hard to access. Let this be a doorway, not a demand.
💗 Ready to go deeper?
Visit the Resources Section: Healing Meditations, Somatic Tools, and Articles →
Or book a session: Work with Me →
Take your time.
You don’t have to “get it right.” You don’t have to cry on cue.
You are simply invited to begin. With music. With feeling. With presence.
With love,
Amari 💗
