Hip hop therapy can emotionally rebuild mentally ill children

Self-confidence and self-confidence through your own rap music

The University Hospital Dresden is currently organizing a summer workshop for mentally ill children from the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. The bi-weekly workshop aims to create creative rap videos that are an important part of the therapy. The goal is to create something special that children and young people can be proud of in order to strengthen their self-confidence and self-confidence.

Pupsende unicorns, a toast-bread song, lyrics about paralyzing vicious circles - here is the creativity of mentally ill children from the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden no limits. The patients work together with professionals for two weeks on their musical hip hop works. In doing so, the children should realize that more is in them than their environment expects.

The good experiences with the workshops suggest that creative work with hip-hop music is suitable for dealing with emotional problems as well as for increasing self-confidence and self-confidence. (Image: Rawpixel / fotolia.com)

Create something that others dream of

"By working creatively with professionals, children and adolescents create something special that many healthy peers only dream about," explains Professor Veit Rößner, director of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, in a press release at the start of the workshop. This creates self-confidence and self-confidence. The children are supported by three experienced musicians from the Dresden Rap scene known as "KapuDDniks".

Forget illness and worries

Try two weeks, write and make music. The workshop aims to put the disease in the background. Ten children and adolescents between the ages of twelve and eighteen should be able to do this. In the lyrics, the aspiring rapper should also incorporate his own experiences and initiate a processing process. During the work the children should also learn not to be reduced to their illness.

Work at eye level

According to the rap trio, working with children and young people is very important for them to work on an equal footing. A typical therapist-patient relationship should not arise. The workshop has been held once a year since 2012 and has already shown positive resonance.

Therapeutic added value

"Working with the children and adolescents in the workshop has great added therapeutic value," says Professor Rößner. In the two weeks develop a strong group dynamics, new friendship, new self-confidence and great enthusiasm.

The workshops are funded by donations

Rößner and the clinic management see the hip-hop workshop and also the circus workshop taking place in the fall as an important element of the therapy. "Nevertheless, such offers are not funded by health insurance," criticize the experts. The workshops are supported by donations, without which such workshops would not be possible. (Vb)