New: Mindful Moment – Sound healing

The Tibetan singing bowls session is deeply relaxing. That’s because you don’t just listen with your ears. Your whole body picks up the sounds and vibrations produced by the bowls. These sounds and vibrations are intense and have a naturally balancing and cleansing effect on your body and mind.

Tibetan singing bowls have been used for centuries. They are round, made of a mixture of metals. Every Tibetan singing bowl is unique and produces a different sound. There are two ways to create sound with a singing bowl. Either by gently striking the edge of the bowl with a mallet or striker (a stick that can be made of different materials) or by rubbing the striker around the rim of the bowl. The latter produces a singing sound, hence the name singing bowls. In Buddhist parts of the Himalaya region, Tibetan singing bowls have been used for many centuries as a meditation aid and people there strongly believe in the singing bowls’ healing power. In Asian countries, it is said that your body can only be healthy when all cells and organs resonate in harmony. There, sound healing is known as Nada Yoga, the yoga of sound or yoga of listening, so yoga that calms your mind.

How can a Tibetan singing bowl have such a profound effect on your body? Our bodies are made up mostly of water, a fantastic conductor for the vibrations. You can compare it to when you throw a pebble in water and the ripple effect this creates. Every sound frequency has a different effect, with low tones promoting calm and relaxation, while higher tones boost your energy.

Benefits of sound healing?

-          It helps you release negative emotions more easily and helps clear blockages in your body.

-          It helps you achieve a deep state of relaxation.

-          It improves your sleep.

-          It boosts your body’s self-healing ability.

-          It helps restore the mind-body balance.

-          It gives you an energy boost.

Suitable for?

Generally, most people can take part in a Tibetan singing bowls session, but if you have a pacemaker, suffer from psychosis, blood clots, epilepsy, varicose veins or high blood pressure, or if you are pregnant, please consult your GP before participating in our Mindful Moment: Sound Healing.

We advise you to attend the session in your bathrobe. Wrap yourself in a blanket. This not only feels lovely and warm, but cocooning yourself in a blanket will also make you feel safe and protected. Close your eyes and listen, feel the sounds. Don’t try to analyse them. Instead, let go of everything and feel the sound vibrations travel through your body.

Make sure to also have a little rest before attending the session because if you head straight into a sound healing session from the sauna or Aufguss session, your body temperature will be higher, your circulation will be faster and your breathing will be more shallow. It’s important that your breathing is nice and calm when taking part in this sound healing experience.

After the session, you will feel totally re-energised! What’s more, the vibrations will continue to work after the Mindful Moment. With the effect often lasting for several days, giving your body plenty of time to restore balance. By the way, did you know that your body produces oxytocin as a result of the sounds produced by the Tibetan singing bowls? Oxytocin is a hormone – also known as the love or cuddle hormone – that helps decrease cortisol (the stress hormone) levels, so you are able to relax more easily.

Make sure to give yourself time to let everything sink in and savour the after-effects of the experience after the session. Have a stroll around the garden, drink plenty of water and only head back into the sauna after a fifteen-minute break.

When?

Thermae Grimbergen: every Wednesday (from June 2023) at 14:00 in the relaxation area next to the Wood-fired sauna and the swimming lake or, weather permitting, in the garden.