About Heartbeat Lullabies

Since 1985, my research backed arrangements of traditional nursery songs with a human heartbeat rhythm have comforted millions of infants, children, adults and dogs in hospitals, care centers, and homes around the world.

A Heartbeat Lullaby Can Calm a Crying Child in Just a Few Seconds

See the therapeutic music comfort infants and children in hospitals across America.

To learn more about Heartbeat Lullabies comforting infants and children:

A Heartbeat Lullaby Quickly Comforts Barking Dogs

See 50 anxious barking dogs in a Colorado humane society calm to a Heartbeat Lullaby in less than two minutes.

To learn more about Heartbeat Lullabies comforting animals:

The same Heartbeat Lullabies Quickly Comfort Adults, Here's My Theory:

By 1997, I had received over 35,000 positive testimonies from parents who played my Heartbeat Lullabies to calm their baby to sleep. A frequent comment was, “It even calms me and my husband to sleep.” But their comments were not enough for me to claim the same nursery song recordings comforts adults to sleep. I knew it would sound condescending and infantile to suggest an adult listen to children’s nursey songs with a human heartbeat rhythm to reduce their anxiety and help them sleep. However, once I was convinced that the same Heartbeat Lullabies really do dramatically comfort stressed adults, I knew my challenge would be how to persuade people to mentally get past the age appropriate obstacle and try listening to at least one song. My wish is that skeptics will give it a try once they read the following explanation as to why they work.

Music can be as powerful as drugs to motivate, stimulate, relax, and alter your mood. Songs can evoke all kinds of feelings, emotions, memories, and mental images. Have you had an experience where you heard a favorite record from your past that you had not heard in a while? Did your thoughts flash back to circumstances or events you had earlier in your life? Did you remember where you were, who you were with, and what you were doing at the time? Did you experience the same feelings you got when you listened to the record back then? Whether your flash back experience was positive or negative, it was a powerful distraction from thoughts and feelings you were having before your heard it.

Song lyrics and melodies can help us express not so easily expressed thoughts and emotions. Whether the message in a song speaks to you, or for you, can depend on your musical taste. The instrumentation, arrangement and singing style used to the sell the song’s emotion and message has to appeal to you for you to engage.

There are certain songs that are so powerful that they affect a majority of people in the same way regardless of their differing musical taste. When the “Star Spangled Banner” is performed, most Americans experience many of the same feelings and emotions. Marches, fight songs, drum cadences, and dance music can energize us and increase our physical stamina. However, compiling a playlist of songs that will affect everyone in the same way is almost impossible. What genre of music might be enjoyable or relaxing for some will be very annoying to others, even when played at low volumes.

Sherry Caine, Ph.D., an adventuresome Clinical Psychologist in Austin, Texas was the first to encourage me to pursue the adult applications for the Heartbeat Lullabies. She had given a copy of the Heartbeat Lullabies CD to her patients to play when they were in pain, anxious or needed sleep. Caine discovered that those who suffered from either Insomnia, Anxiety, PTSD, Dementia, Alzheimer’s or Chronic pain were comforted by the power of the Heartbeat Lullabies to distract them from whatever was bothering them. Playing the Heartbeat Lullabies dramatically reduced their anxiety, fear, stress, tension, anger and emotional and/or physical pain. Many of her patients were happy to have an alternative to adding something else for sleep to their already long list of meds.

Heartbeat Lullabies Evoke a Positive Flash Back to Feeling Safe.

Most of the traditional nursery songs used as music tracks on “The Comforter” music videos on this website have been passed down for hundreds of years to comfort generations of infants and children. Usually these classic hit melodies are compassionately sung a cappella or hummed by care providers as a part of a nurturing bedtime or naptime routine. Early exposure to hearing these non-romantic love songs, makes a powerful, positive imprint on our memory. No matter what age, we don’t forget them and don’t seem to mind hearing them over and over again. We have learned to associate traditional nursey song melodies and lyrics with compassion and innocence. When you hear a Heartbeat Lullaby for the first time, you might flashback to pleasant memories of that same familiar song being sung to you to help you feel, safe, secure, wanted, valuable, nurtured, and loved. You can even feel that same compassion and comfort again. You might flashback to times when you were singing it to help comfort a loved one. It may be the first time you heard that song, but you will feel the musically reinforced compassion in the singer’s voice and find it easy to be distracted from what is bothering you by focusing on the soothing simple repetitive melody.

Another Possible Reason Heartbeat Lullabies Perform Like a Musical Hypnotic: "The Relaxation Response"

Heartbeat Lullabies are therapeutic music tools that can elicit what is called the "Relaxation Response.” Dr. Herbert Benson, professor, author, cardiologist, and founder of Harvard’s Mind/Body Medical Institute defines his term, "Relaxation Response,” as your personal ability to encourage your body to release chemicals and brain signals that make your muscles and organs slow down and increase blood flow to the brain. The Relaxation Response is essentially the opposite reaction to the “fight or flight” response. According to Benson, using the "Relaxation Response" is beneficial as it counteracts the physiological effects of stress and the fight or flight response. Benson can be largely credited for demystifying meditation and helping to bring it into the mainstream, by renaming meditation the “Relaxation Response.”

A Heartbeat Lullaby is a Meditation Tool

If you have not tried meditation or prayer as a way to deal with your symptoms, or even if you have, focusing on the Heartbeat Lullabies is a method that makes it easier for you to quickly do both. These repetitive melodies, simple stories and lyrical messages can distract you from unwanted thoughts much like a mantra or chant does in other methods used to elicit mediation. If you practice controlled breathing as a meditation or relaxation technique, try breathing in tempo with the heartbeat rhythm of the songs. Playing the therapeutic music all night, at a low volume, will also help you achieve restorative sleep.

Heartbeat Lullabies Can Bring Peace That Passes All Understanding

Although I think my explanation of why it works is rational, it does not explain how these sound recordings have brought peace to infants, children, adults and dogs who were extremely stressed, in just a few seconds. In 1985, I saw London Bridge calm an agitated baby in a Cardiac recovery unit, in less than 15 seconds.

See 1985 testimonies from the cardiac intensive care unit nurses:
The Cardiac Intensive Care nurses encouraged me to get the Heartbeat Lullabies to Neonatal Intensive Care Units, and I did.

See short excerpts from TV health news stories about Heartbeat Lullabies comforting sick infants and children in hospitals across America.

Since then, I have witnessed and heard enough to conclude that the calming and healing effect of the Heartbeat Lullabies is a miraculous gift from God and not from my own intention, inspiration or design. Hearing it can bring a peace that passes all understanding no matter what your age or circumstances. I have always believed this music is a gift that needs to be shared with all who can benefit. The positive feedback and heartwarming stories I receive from care providers and people who have tried it or seen it work is very gratifying, exciting and motivating.

Being an impatient man, in my encore years, and feeling called to make the adult benefits of this listening to these recordings known, I have set up “The Comforter” web site as a way anyone can hear and feel the power of this therapeutic music without having to identify who they are. When you are having problems and need distraction from what is bothering you, you can listen Free to eight songs, on your smart phone, computer, and tablet. You can watch the thought provoking quotes and/or listen to the Heartbeat Lullabies anywhere, anytime, for as long as you like.

For Christians

Unlike the nursery songs on the traditional version, the hymns on the Christian version have potent messages that can have more meaning to you now than they did when you may have heard or memorized the songs as a child. Let these compassionately sung familiar melodies and messages intercede for you and be your voice to express your thoughts, feelings and prayers. It’s a tool to help you praise, worship, and affirm your faith. The recording serves as a reminder that you are not alone and that God remembers you, hears you, knows you, loves you and has prepared a place for you in glory land. Listen to the Christian version for hope, to be nurtured and to receive a peace that passes all understanding.

If you think you might have early stage Alzheimer’s or are caring for someone with Alzheimer’s I recommend the book “Second Forgetting,” Remembering the Power of the Gospel During Alzheimer’s Disease by Dr. Benjamin Mast, Published by Zondervan

Watch a presentation by Dr. Mast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_n6hJb4dl7M

Terry Woodford
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