Sound Bathing (No Water Required)

Nothing has the ability to transport us to another time and place quite like the resonance of pure sound. From Aboriginal tribes who used the didgeridoo as a sound healing instrument to ancient Tibetan singing bowl ceremonies, for centuries people have used sacred vibrational sounds to quiet the mind and heal the body. Today the use of sound has evolved into Sound Therapy, a form of Vibrational Medicine, and with it comes one of the most profound ways to find deep relaxation, restore balance, and promote healing. The sound bath!

A sound bath has nothing to do with water. Instead, it utilizes the otherworldly, vibrational sounds of ancient instruments, plus new instruments like pure crystal quartz singing bowls that activate your alpha and theta brainwaves and trigger your body’s natural healing system. You not only hear the sounds, but you feel “bathed” in sonic vibrations pulsating to the core of your body. These visceral sounds have the power to wash out the static of the world around you and transport you to a relaxed, meditative state of consciousness that’s ideal for healing.

Lucky for us, in our midst we have an amazing certified Sound Alchemist/Healer and Reiki Master, 20-year Montecito resident Kate Coppola, who leads Reiki-infused, crystal alchemy sound healing sessions that leave you blissed out and energized at the same time. Kate first turned to sound baths to help heal her own health issues, and now she leads and teaches Sound Healing for hundreds of clients across the country. In private and group sessions, she uses a variety of healing instruments, including gongs, Tibetan healing bowls, Native Indian drums, bells, and crystal quartz singing bowls, to take you on vibratory acoustical healing journey that brings your body into a complete state of harmony.

Sound Healing is based on the idea that everything, including our bodies, is in a state of vibration, and your cells vibrate to a precise frequency when healthy and a dissonant frequency when in dis-ease. The deep-vibrational instruments used in a sound bath can help balance dissonant frequencies in your body. According to Kate, “The crystal quartz singing bowls along with other instruments are tuned to 432hz, the same frequency that is in nature and that resonates with us on a cellular level. The bowls are also tuned to the scale and each note resonates with certain energy centers in our body, aka ‘chakras.’ When played they assist with opening up and clearing these energy centers where you might be feeling blocked or holding stagnant energy. The frequency and vibration help to balance you on a cellular level.”

Kate is an intuitive healer who creates the most peaceful and restorative setting. In her candle-lit sessions you lie on a comfy mat, covered with a blanket, surrounded by healing crystals. While everyone experiences it differently, she explains, “You will go into this state where you feel as though you are sleeping but you aren’t, you are kind of in this peaceful state of complete relaxation, allowing your body to rest, repair, balance and heal.” In my experience, as I tuned into the powerful sounds my body vibrated from head to toe and I drifted off into a dream-like state. At the end I felt like I’d slept for a week. And there’s nothing better than that!

In addition to major stress relief, sound baths can aid sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and pain management. Kate says, “I have had numerous responses to the effects of sound alchemy, from people telling me that I have completely changed their life, to so many people who suffered from chronic pain in the past and are now pain free. I truly believe that everyone has the ability to heal themselves by way of sound and frequency. Believe me, it is the new medicine.”

I’m a big believer in Sound Healing after I first experienced it in the mid-‘90s from a nurse who was practicing it with the hope that she could bring it to patients one day. I was thrilled to learn that Kate recently led a sound bath at City of Hope National Medical Center in Los Angeles. Sound Healing is making its way into mainstream healthcare and I highly suggest you give it a try!

Kate Coppola is available for private and group sound bath, Reiki, and Health Coaching sessions. She will be leading Sound Healing events in Montecito on March 7 and 14. For more information, visit: www.houseofprofound.com.