As some of you will know, I wear many "hats", and two of them are a trauma psychotherapist and a sound healer.
After having caught the "gong bug" in 2016 I began to immerse myself in the world of gong playing and sound meditation in earnest. As I studied with a number of teachers over the years and met many gong practitioners as well as gong bath attendees, I began to pick up on some worrying themes - time and time again I would hear from people that they had a bad experience during a gong bath, sometimes because the practitioner "crashed and bashed" their instruments, with the volume becoming unbearably loud, and sometimes for other, more subtle reasons. And I also heard concerns from sound practitioners that they were not sure how to best support their clients if they got distressed during a session, or had a reaction different from the supposed "norm" - a relaxed, blissful state.
I have since taught a number of workshops on Trauma Awareness for Sound Healers, which were very well received, and would like to offer some practical tips for those of you who would like to enhance your knowledge and ability to create a safe and supportive space for the people you work with, many of whom are likely to have experienced trauma.
I have written these tips largely with the gong practitioners in mind, in particular those who offer group gong baths, however much of the information is also applicable to sound healers using other instruments, and to those who offer individual sessions. In fact nowadays it is my preference to offer one-to-one gong baths and those for couples - so that I can give my full attention to my clients and take the best possible care of their needs and ensure their wellbeing.
You are welcome to adjust the following information to your own needs and your own practice, but I invite you to keep the wellbeing and safety of your sound session participants/clients at the forefront of your mind at all times. Some of these safety tips may be already familiar to you, and others you may not have considered - I hope at least few of these suggestions will be of use to you...READ ON
