The Power of Sound Healing and How It Can Change Your Life | By Jojo Struys


Sound has the power to relax, heal and restore our mental well-being in ways most of us don't appreciate.
I remember the first time I ever heard a crystal bowl being played. It gave me goosebumps.
I realised that “other world” is always right under our noses. It was actually the beauty of the present moment.
When we feel present, we feel ‘alive’ and it’s not something that can be conceptualised or thought of.
It needs to be experienced but we get so caught up in our minds and the rush of our own thoughts that we sometimes just need to come back to ourselves.
From that moment on, I was hooked. I even invested in my own set of crystal bowls years ago and was surprised to discover how sound was able to ease someone’s physical pain or tension, or help them ‘feel’ emotions or sadness that were trapped within them.
This eventually led to me opening OhanaJo Studio where we now serve yoga, mindfulness, and sound healing sessions every day.
History of sound
Sound is as old as time itself. Healing with sound dates back as far as ancient Greece, where music was used to help cure mental illnesses.
It was believed that many mental dysfunctions were caused by disturbance and musical rhythms could potentially help restore harmony to the body while bringing it back into its natural balanced state.
From Native American shamans using their voices and their drums as a tool for healing, sound as a form of therapy has spanned across a multitude of cultures.
Sound instruments such as Himalayan or Tibetan singing bowls, crystal bowls, gongs and the power of our own voice have long been used for the purposes of healing the mind, body & spirit.
This is based on the principle of ‘sympathetic resonance’. Sympathetic resonance is when one vibration or object causes another to vibrate in harmony with it or match its rate of vibration.
Sound waves from different sound instruments vibrate at certain frequencies that can trigger theta brainwave states associated with deep states of relaxation.
Theta brainwave states that are associated with sound baths really allow the mind to relax and heal itself by slowing down our brainwaves.
Theta brainwaves are pronounced during times of prayer, internal focused states like meditation, spiritual awareness, heightened intuition or simply a relaxed state of flow.
This is why many people who experience deeply rejuvenating sound bath sessions describe the sensation of being carried or immersed by the sound waves, as though they are floating.
Sound healing has been used to improve or help aid various conditions, including:
· Stress
· General anxiety
· Autism
· Learning disabilities
· Dementia
· Post-traumatic stress disorders
· Behavioural disorders
Sound is also very beneficial for:
· Lowering blood pressure
· Decreasing mood swings
· Alleviating pain and tension
· Building up a stronger immune system
· Improving the quality of sleep