Has anyone had a sound bath? Something weird happened to me …

[Mintakan]

And I want to see if it’s normal.

On Saturday I went to my first sound bath. I had a burn out in 2021 (run my own business) so I’m working on finding activities that help relaxation. A friend who is a yoga teacher suggested a sound bath with Himalayan and crystal singing bowls.

The whole setting was fabulous. Everyone has a personal sheepskin rug, we had blankets, eye masks and cushions for head and knees. She gave us all a hot cup of herbal tea when we arrived.

She explained the process and that we might experience some physical reactions, goosebumps, pins and needles etc.

About halfway through when she starts on the lower note bowls I had a visceral reaction. All the hair on my body stood on end and my fight or flight response was triggered. I started to panic and wanted to run out of the room.

I suffered with crippling panic attacks as a teenager and recognised it immediately and was able to do my breathing exercises to bring myself back down.

I was really enjoying it up to that point. I have no idea what happened. The rest of the session passed without incident. I’m hoping that someone else has experienced similar? I’d like to go back again but would like to avoid a repeat!

I have had this! I felt too embarrassed to tell the teacher but now I wish I had. Literally wanted to run out of the room.
If you can bear to discuss it with her, I’d love to hear what she says!

Need less to say I never went to another sound bath again lol

@anotherscroller oh I suppose that’s good that you experienced it too!

I was too embarrassed too. All the other women were chatting and stretching after the session like it was the most relaxing thing. I was sure it was just me not being able to relax.

Well done for breathing your way back down!

Vibrations, energy etc fascinate me.

Am interested to hear what the lady says. The set up sounds lovely.

Me too! I burst into tears and felt like I was hollowing out from the inside when all around me the others were super calm and chilled. Really disconcerting and not relaxing in the slightest. Haven't been since.

Wow this sounds really strange.

@RSintes goodness yes, hollow is the right word. It was like something was being pulled out of me and that is what I think triggered the flight or flight. Maybe I got a fright because of the physical sensation. It all happened really quickly.

I wonder then, if we are the ones who really need to go back 😂

I was treated to a sound bath and found it incredibly relaxing and rather like a good session of mindfulness meditation. It was an unexpected treat.

Part way though I had an almost overwhelming urge to laugh. I diverted it through similar techniques to what you describe. I thought that allowing the urge to laugh would disturb the other participants and could cause offence to the practitioner.

I'm pretty sure that this urge to laugh was my relaxation allowing emotions to come forward. Not sure I'm expressing myself well. I was suddenly happy and enjoying myself during a period of stress. I was aware of the stress and accepted it (hence the mindfulness meditation).

Perhaps you have had a similar experience, in that your relaxation allowed some unexpressed emotions to be released?

I had a very weird reaction to singing bowls once. I initially started crying then got a really sharp stomach pain and my stomach twisted like I had food poisoning and I started sweating, then it went away and I felt calm and relaxed. I spoke to the teacher and she said it sounds like something released in your solar plexus chakra…: have you been in a situation recently where you have given away your power?
I had just got out of an abusive relationship…….

I’ve never doubted the power of this stuff since. Definitely ask the teacher and see what she says….. and let us know!!

That reminds me of this- how we can react to low vibrations:
https://higgs.ph.ed.ac.uk/outreach/higgshalloween-2021/haunted-frequency

I wonder if a private repeat visit may be beneficial.

I've been to a gong bath a couple of times. First time I wanted to cry in the middle of it. Second time nothing, though the second time I just couldn't get comfortable enough to properly relax

I've been to a couple of sound baths and agree they can create some odd physical reactions. Apparently it has to do with the different sound frequencies of the bowls. Where you sit/lie is supposed to be important. The lady who ran the sessions I went to said that those lying immediately in front of the bowls would feel stronger reactions than those who lay to the side or at the back of the room.

I know that sound creates vibration that affects matter. There’s loads of videos on YouTube showing it, it’s called cymatics. I don’t doubt that it does something.

A release of emotions makes sense. I had a very traumatic childhood with a narc mother and I’ve spent the last 5 years working on that. I would say I have a lot of repressed emotions.

Ill send her a message and explain what happened and see what she says.

I wonder if anyone has ever analysed the sound that is produced. Could be there are infra sound frequencies involved. I think they start at 19 MHz.

Something similar has happened to me, along with some weird imagery - definitely not relaxing. But I think it's clearing stuff that's stuck in your body. All those other people might have had weird stuff going on too, you just can't see it. I found I slept well afterwards, and felt clearer and that I had learned something about myself. That's the idea, I think.

Have you ever read The Body Keeps the Score? I would recommend it.

Yes I have and it’s one of the reasons I was looking for a way to relax and release. It’s an excellent book.

Really interesting to read. I had a complete and utter meltdown the first time I went, totally unexpected and really embarrassing. But everyone was really caring and supportive and the instructor said it was perfectly normal. As people have said it's about releasing pent up emotions or deep rooted feelings. Get in touch with them and yes, do go back if you can face it. X

The one I went to did ask in a pre-session questionnaire if anyone had severe anxiety or depression, maybe that's why?

There was an art installation in my bus station a few years ago that played different sounds. They had to turn the sound off because people were complaining it was making them feel sick. My friend (who experiences regular bouts of depression) said it was very triggering and made her feel like how she feels when she is ill. It was to the point where she stopped using the station for a long time because she associated those feelings with the station for a while.

Apparently it's to do with the vibrations of certain sounds.

@WashAsDelicates

Laughing is called a displacement in meditation and can often happen during psychotherapy when people are opening up about their trauma. It sounds bizarre but it’s actually a sign that you’ve suddenly had quite a big emotion, you did become aware quite briefly but perhaps didn’t want to express the real emotion so it came out as laughter! It is definitely a sign of more work needs to be done but I’ve done it myself so I can relate.

Give yourself permission to do as feels right. Trying again or not are valid. It’s a niche experience. My friend swears by them but some of the sounds hurt my ears when I tried it. I thought the whole thing was a waste of time for me.

That's great you are already familiar with trauma and trauma responses. I'm guessing you have also thought about what lay behind your teenage panic attacks.

This isn't uncommon and there is some research suggesting the use of mindfulness techniques can actually backfire with trauma. I used to have panic attacks at the end of my yoga class, during the relaxation bit and I once panicked my way through much of a meditation course. I can meditate alone, for me there is something about being vulnerable in a group that triggers me.

I would consider trying it again alone, if you feel comfortable with the practitioner. Or practice meditating at home (Insight Timer is a great free app) before trying the class again. Would it help to ask the practitioner what the protocol for needing to leave the room is? Perhaps if you understood you could leave, your body would be content to stay.

I would say that the vibrations drew out bad energy, blocking your chakras. This is what you felt leaving your body.