Lullaby Project helps parents work through trauma
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Trying to remember the words to a lullaby and just making up a song to calm down your fussy baby is something every parent can relate to.
But the act of singing can help parents feel better too. That's why Allegheny Health Network teamed up with Carnegie Mellon University to bring healing through music.
New mom Amy Walsh can finally give her feelings a voice.
"I think one of the biggest things I've felt through going through my experience with birth trauma is that so many more people experience it and it's such a hidden thing," she said.
She's not just talking about her birth trauma. She's writing and singing about it with Project Lullaby.
"I think that's the unique thing about the Lullaby Project, that we're transitioning and creating something beautiful."
It's a perfect harmony between new parents, Carnegie Mellon musicians and AHN's Perinatal Trauma-Informed Care Clinic.
"I think this project offers an opportunity to use music to allow parents to tell their stories about their traumatic births and to reframe and reprocess how they see it in a way that brings joy growth and even healing," said Dr. Tracey Vogel, Perinatal Trauma-Informed Care Clinic director.
That's why Carnegie Mellon trained its musicians to not just strike the right chord but create a safe space.
"I just hope that I was able to connect with the mother and that I had even a small part in helping to convey the message that they want to convey to their child," said CMU student musician Beleyou Kebede.
"We thrive on human connection and so when you're holding a child, not only are they hearing the voice they heard in the womb, but they're feeling the vibration of your chest as your singing and that vibration calms them down," said Monique Mead, Carnegie Mellon's director of music entrepreneurship.
And for new moms like Walsh, it's a story her baby needs to hear.
Since the Lullaby Project started at Carnegie Hall in New York back in 2011, more than 3,000 families have joined in the singing. This is the second project done here in Pennsylvania. You can listen to some of the completed past lullabies on the project's website.
