What is Sound Healing Therapy
Sound healing therapy uses aspects of music to improve your physical and emotional health and well-being. The person being treated partakes in the experience with a trained sound healing practitioner.
Sound healing may involve:
listening to music
singing along to music
moving to the beat of the music
meditating
​
There are different types of sound therapy, including vibrational sound therapy, which uses special sounds that produce vibrations thought to improve brain waves.
Healing with sound is believed to date back to ancient Greece, when music was used in an attempt to cure mental disorders. Throughout history, music has been used to boost morale in military troops, help people work faster and more productively, and even ward off evil spirits by chanting. More recently, research has linked music to a number of health benefits, from boosting immune function and lowering stress levels to improving the health of premature babies.
There are a few different types of sound therapy, each with different benefits, though not all have been proven.
Vibroacoustic therapy
Vibration is believed to affect your body’s functions, such as blood pressure and breathing. Vibroacoustic therapy uses audible sound vibrations to improve health and reduce stress. This type of sound therapy involves using speakers embedded in recliners, mattresses, and special mats to transmit music and sound vibrations directly to the body. There’s some evidence to support its benefits, specifically its ability to promote relaxation and reduce pain and symptoms in people with cancer and those recovering from surgery.
Guided Meditation
Guided meditation is a form of sound healing in which you meditate to voiced instruction, either in a session or class, or using a video or app. Meditation can involve chanting or repeating mantras or prayers.
Research has found that meditation offers a number of health benefits, including:
stress reduction
decreased anxiety and depression
improved memory
reduced blood pressure
pain reduction
lower cholesterol
decreased risk for heart disease and stroke
Singing Bowl Therapy
Singing bowl therapy dates back to the 12th century and has been used for meditation and rituals in Tibetan culture. Metal bowls produce a deep, penetrating sound that’s used to relax and repair the mind. A 2016 study found that singing bowl meditation reduced stress, anger, depression, and fatigue. All of these things are known to impact physical health and raise the risk for disease, suggesting that singing bowl therapy may be good for your physical, as well as emotional, well-being.
Tuning Fork Therapy
Tuning fork therapy uses calibrated metal tuning forks to apply specific vibrations to different parts of the body. This can help release tension and energy and promote emotional balance. It works similarly to acupuncture, using sound frequencies for point stimulation instead of needles. There is some research suggesting that tuning fork therapy may help relieve muscle and bone pain.
Brainwave Entrainment
Also known as binaural beats, this method stimulates the brain into a specific state using pulsing sound to encourage your brain waves to align to the frequency of the beat. It helps induce enhanced focus, entranced state, relaxation, or sleep. Though more research is needed, there’s some evidence that audible brainwave entrainment reduces anxiety, pain, symptoms of premenstrual syndrome, and improves behavioral problems in children.
Improving Symptoms with Sound Therapy
Sound healing is used to treat symptoms of a number of conditions, including:
anxiety disorders
depression
post-traumatic stress disorder
dementia
autism and learning difficulties
behavioral and psychiatric disorders
cancer
Some of the supposed benefits of sound healing include:
lowers stress
decreases mood swings
lowers blood pressure
lowers cholesterol levels
teaches pain management
lowers risk for coronary artery disease and stroke
improves sleep
How Does it Work?
Sound healing uses different aspects of sound to improve your emotional and physical well-being. How it works depends on the method of sound healing therapy being used. Most sound healing sessions are experienced one-on-one with a specially trained practitioner.
A session may involve sitting or lying down while listening to music or sounds from a speaker or instruments, or having vibrations applied using a special tool, such as a tuning fork. You may be encouraged to participate by singing, moving, even using a musical instrument, or remain still and quiet to let the sounds take effect, depending on the method.
Sound healing instruments
Along with voice, the following are some of the different instruments used in sound healing:
singing bowls
tuning forks
pan flute
harp
drums
Some methods use a variety of instruments in one session, which can include a guitar, piano, or other instrument.