EASe Listening Therapy CD #1 was created in 1995 by William P Mueller, as a way to bring Electronic Auditory Stimulation technology to the general public. EASe CD #1 is easy to use in the home by parents, employing the simplest of tools such as a portable compact disc player and high quality headphones. It is also a technology that benefits from the professional guidance of a trained therapist.
All EASe CDs contain music that has been modulated by a filtering system that removes the upper frequencies for the majority of the listening time, (creating a soft, somewhat muted sound) and then randomly and transiently boosts the high frequencies to much higher than normal levels. This transient auditory stimulation has the effect of stimulating and challenging the auditory areas of the brain, but because it is short in duration, does not elicit a flight or fight response. The listener is trained to habituate to the presence of random and distracting noise and is able to perceive natural sound with less stress.
The afffects of EASe Listening Therapy go well beyond the basic habituation response. Because normal auditory response affects balance, proprioception, occupational performance and emotional responses to stress, we frequently see improvements in a child such as improved language, eye contact, affection, balance, etc. These effects from EASe are a result of the child's ability to experience the world through their now uncluttered senses and the resulting neurological growth.
Ease Disc (CD) 1 and 2:
are an appropriate initial choice in many Therapeutic Listening programs due to the high contrast between auditory foreground and background (higher and lower frequencies) provided by the modulation of the music. This music is suitable for younger listeners. EASe 1 or 2 are often an appropriate starting place for individuals with sensory modulation difficulties including hypersensitivity to sound, movement and/or touch or defensive responses to sensory input in general. EASe 1 or 2 is also often the most appropriate starting place for the child with many disruptions in homeostatic functions (i.e. sleep/wake cycles, appetite cycles, bowel/bladder control).
From "Listening With the Whole Body", Sheila M Frick OTR with Colleen Hacker, MS, OTR.
