What Doctors Don’t Tell You Australia-NZ – July 22, 2019

FACEBOOK.COM/WDDTYAUNZ ISSUE 01 | AUG/SEP 2019 | WDDTY 73

ALTERNATIVES

SOUND

HEALING

THERAPIES

There are literally dozens

of different kinds of sound

healing therapies currently

in use. Here is a list of the

most common available

today.

Music therapy

Music can help reduce pain,

improve sleep, offer relaxation

and stress relief, as well as

positively affect productivity and

accelerate learning. Remember

the Mozart effect? Classical

music in particular has been

shown to reduce heart rate

variability and decrease stress

hormone levels and blood

pressure.^1

Vibroacoustic therapy

This type of sound therapy

involves delivering vibrational

frequencies through speakers

directly to the body. It is used

to reduce pain and increase

relaxation, among other

effects.^2

Neurologic music

therapy (NMT)

NMT focuses specifically on

the physical effects of music

and rhythm on the brain‘s

signaling pathways. NMT is

used by people suffering from

a wide variety of neurologic

disorders including autism,

cerebral palsy, traumatic brain

injury, Parkinson’s disease,

Down syndrome and sensory

integration disorder.

BioAcoustics

The study of sound vibrations

emitted by living organisms,

bioacoustics as taught by Sharry

Edwards, M.Ed., mainly focuses

on the sounds of the human

voice. She claims that voice

analysis can reveal abnormal or

missing vibrations indicative of

disease in the human structure,

which can be normalized by

the presentation of the missing

sound frequencies.

Singing bowl / crystal

bowl therapy

This method dates back

to twelfth-century Tibet or

earlier and has been used

to augment meditation and

rituals. Studies show it is an

effective intervention for

reducing tension, anxiety and

depression. It also has been

shown to increase spiritual and

emotional wellbeing.^3

HydroAcoustic Therapy

Music and/or tones are emitted

through speakers into a deep

tub of soothing water where the

patient can recline, submersed

up to the chin, absorbing the

acoustic waves conducted by

the water.

Acutonics

This modality combines the use

of tuning forks with Oriental

medicine. Tuning forks are

placed on acupuncture points,

supposedly activating the

meridians to induce a healing

and balancing response in the

body. It’s said to be an excellent

approach for patients who are

afraid of needles or too frail to

tolerate them.

Gong therapy

Metal gongs of various sizes

have been used in sound

meditation and vibrational

therapy for calming, energizing

and transformation since the

Bronze Age.

Binaural beats

and brainwave

entrainment

Binaural beats are created

when tones of different

frequencies are sent to each

of the two ears. The theory is

that the brain then ‘entrains,’

or produces brainwaves, at a

third frequency—the difference

between the first two—which

matches one of the natural

brainwave frequencies

associated with different

behavioral states. It’s claimed

that this process can induce

relaxation, sleep and enhanced

focus. Studies have shown that

entrainment is effective for

improving sleep quality and

reducing pain perception.^4

Neurophone therapy is

another type of brainwave

entrainment. The device

encodes sound and

converts it into

ultrasonic signals

at 40,000 cps

(40 kHz) that

are said to

open up brain

pathways,

apparently

balancing

the left

and right

hemispheres

of the brain

and increasing

wellbeing.

Vocal sound

healing

Chanting, toning and

singing have been used to

induce relaxation and regulate

mood for thousands of years.

Chanting and toning vibrate

different areas of the body, and

the vibrations can be directed

through intention.

Humming therapy

You don’t even have to be

able to carry a tune to hum.

According to Jonathan Goldman,

founder and director of the

Sound Healers Association

and author of the book The

Humming Effect, humming is

the simplest way to create the

inner vibrations that can lead to

calmness and wellbeing in the

body.

Tuning fork therapy

This therapy uses calibrated

metal tuning forks applied to

different parts of the body to

help release stress, increase

energy and promote wellbeing.

Tuning forks are often used on

trigger points, with the aim to

reduce pain and affect healing

responses.

REFERENCES

1 Dtsch Arztebl Int, 2016; 113: 347–52

2 Altern Complement Ther, 2003; 9: 257–63

3 J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med,

2017; 22: 401–6

4 Eur J Sport Sci, 2014; 14: 393–402; Eur J

Pain, 2017; 21: 562–72