Sonic instruments of wellness

Sound healing has long been a part of spa treatment menus, but recent events have seen a sharp growth in this due to its ability to calm and relax guests.

“Spas can be very clinical and sound healing brings in more holistic aspects.” says Jill Russell, who was drawn from a career in spa operations to become a full-time sound healer two years ago.

“Sound therapy is essentially a massage of sound,” she says. “We are all energy, we are all sound. When you get into the quantum physics of it all, matter doesn’t exist, we are all singing our own song in our own individual frequencies.”

Also known as ‘the Gong Whisperer’, Russell is a devotee of what the instrument can offer. “Gongs are so powerful and all encompassing – your brain cannot fight the vibrations they create,” she says. “You may have your ‘monkey mind’ for a while, and everybody struggles a little, but the next moment their chests are moving differently and I can see they are in a nice relaxed state.”

“Sound healing can also be used within other treatments, especially through the use of Tibetan bowls,” she adds.

Tibetan singing bowls are something of a traditional sight in spas and are used as part of the Sensory Journey offered at Ragdale Hall Spa in Leicestershire, UK; the bowl’s vibrations flow into the body to cause the emission of alpha and theta brain waves which help to restore, optimise and balance the flow of the client’s energy.

Mark Smith, founder of immersive wellbeing brand Kalm Horizons, is another advocate. His ocean-based meditations culminate in the use of a Full Moon Tibetan Singing Bowl, hand made in Nepal, to bring an extra vibrational element to the practice. “The ‘singing’ sensations have a mesmerising effect on participants.,” he adds.