Call it sound healing, sound therapy, or rhythmic meditation, the use of low-frequency sounds has been used in various cultures for thousands of years as a tool for healing nonetheless. Sound helps facilitate shifts in our brainwave state. For example, indigenous people believed that using sounds at different frequencies could force our brain to return to a state of balance, enhancing our connection with our environment.
Today, sonic experiences are part of modern wellness techniques and approaches that combine the basics of sound healing with new technology.
What is Sound Frequency Healing?
Sound healing is the idea that even inaudible frequencies can affect the human brain and our overall health. These frequencies can help ease physical and mental issues like depression, anxiety, and chronic pain.
Also known as infrasound, low-frequency sounds are sound waves with a frequency below the lower limit of audibility, meaning we can’t hear them. While natural low-frequency sounds can be harmful when manipulated, studies show that they can help treat various pain conditions.
Examples of low-frequency sounds include:
- Extreme weather
- Waves
- Earthquakes
- Wales
- Elephants
- Giraffes
- Hippopotamuses
The average young adult can hear frequencies between 20 and 20.000 hertz (Hz) to give you an idea. These low-frequency sounds are between 0.5 to 20 Hz. A human’s voice is between 85 to 180 Hz. Because low-frequency sounds are inaudible, the only way to use them healthily is by manipulating them to offer health benefits.
How Sound Affects Stress
Do you ever feel more relaxed or at ease after listening to your favorite song? Do you have a couple of tunes you can turn to when you feel overwhelmed or stressed? There’s a reason for that.
We know that noise pollution caused by airplanes, traffic, and workplace noise can increase stress. But sound healing focuses on understanding the different frequency components of the music and how these affect our brain and consequently our stress levels.
A comprehensive study found that women listening to low-frequency music noticed more stress-relief feelings than those listening to other noises. Thus, changing the frequency of music can enhance the stress recovery effects and have some clinical applications to manage chronic stress.
Different studies are looking at the benefits of changing the frequency contents of music to enhance the stress recovery effects. Scientists believe that by adjusting sound frequencies in white noise machines or therapeutic music experiences, they can provide additional support to various clinical applications.
Best Breathing Exercises to Calm Stress
Along with sound healing, breathwork is often a combined therapy that boosts the benefits of this therapeutic practice. Deep breathing is one of the quickest ways to lower stress in the body. Deep breaths send messages to the brain to calm down and relax, sending messages to the body to relax. This practice helps balance your heart rate, lowers blood pressure, and relieves stress.
While more research is still needed, there seems to be potential use for breathing exercises to optimize physiological factors associated with health and longevity.
To practice deep breathing, try:
- Belly breathing: while seated in a comfortable position, place a hand on your belly and the other on your chest. Take a deep breath through the nose until the abdomen rises and pushes your hand away from your body. The chest should now move. Next, breathe out through pursed lips. Repeat this breathing at least five times.
- 4-7-8 breathing: while seated in a comfortable position, take a deep, slow breath from your belly, count to 4 as you breathe in. hold the breath for seven counts. Then, breathe out completely as you empty your lungs counting until 8. Repeat this breathing at least five times.
- Lion’s breath: start in a comfortable seated position, pressing your palms against your knees. Inhale deeply through the nose and open your eyes wide. Then, open your mouth wide and stick out your tongue (like a lion). Contract the muscles at the front of your throat as you exhale through the mouth, making a long “ha” sound, very similar to the sound a lion makes. Repeat this breath two or three times.
Why Sound Therapy and Breathwork Go Together
Sound healing can help with sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, trauma, and stress management. In addition, some believe that our bodies hold different imbalances and past traumas that can manifest in our physical self, causing chronic pain and other ailments. The merge of sound healing and breathwork can unblock these negative energy traumas and promote healing and balance from a mind, body, and spirit perspective.
Rhythmic breathwork is particularly helpful for beginners who might have difficulties focusing or relaxing through traditional silent meditation. In addition, multi-sensory immersive wellness experiences like BassBath use low-frequency sounds to promote overall health and wellness. This unique full-body experience can change the way we treat physical ailments and stress-related conditions.
Geraldine Orentas is a writer for BassBath, a new sound healing experience from SUBPAC based on zero-gravity, low-frequency audio technology for peak performance and mental wellness. She frequently covers topics related to music’s effects on cognitive functioning, physical well-being, and emotional expression.