Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Whyte.
Hi Mary, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
When looking at degree options for college, I knew that I liked the medical field but didn’t want to be a nurse or doctor, and I also knew I liked the musical field, but didn’t want to teach music so I was thrilled when I happened upon music therapy!
Once I finished my degree and clinical hours there weren’t any music therapist job openings so I immediately started my private practice and now am hitting 10 years this month! It’s been amazing to see the growth and help we’ve been able to provide to many across Utah in those years.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Not a smooth road. Even though music therapy has been around for quite some time (Started after WWII in helping veterans with trauma), it isn’t well known.
So it is a lot of advocacy and answering questions and working hard to get music therapy implemented in facilities, hospitals, schools, etc.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Music therapists can work with a variety of populations. Some are children with special needs, adults in memory care, and medical and hospital settings, and I found my niche working with adolescents. Most of these teens are dealing with mental health struggles including anxiety, depression, self-harm, substance use, and more. I love working with teens because music is their life!
They are already using music to cope and so why not add a therapeutic component to it and address their needs? We work on trauma, self-esteem, mood regulation, social skills, and more. We do this through songwriting, music improvisation, talking about lyrics, making playlists, and more. It is so fulfilling to see these challenges and be able to provide validation, support, understanding, and change through music therapy interventions.
As a private practice, I am very proud of our brand recognition and name in the music therapy field in Utah and mental health facilities. We have grown from just me to now having 12 music therapists and an executive director. We also provide music therapy work for new music therapists and help students in the field complete their practicum and internship hours.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
People can spread the word about music therapy by telling their family, friends, employers, etc.
We share quite a bit on several social media avenues and people can share our stories and posts there. We love offering consultations to parents and families, services to professionals, and trial sessions to new facilities.
Contact Info:
- Website: PureProgressionMT.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pureprogressionmusictherapy/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pureprogressionmusictherapy
Image Credits
Heather Waegner Photography https://heatherwaegner.com/
