Vibroacoustic therapy is the use of low frequency sound waves and therapeutic music to support and bring relief to people from pain, addiction, and other medical issues. Not many people have heard of vibroacoustic therapy or are aware that it exists, but we all know how music makes us feel.
Research on vibroacoustic therapy, conducted by Olav Skille and Tony Wigram in the mid 20th century, was found to benefit patients with cerebral palsy, insomnia, pain and Parkinson’s disease. It wasn’t until the ‘90s that Wigram discovered that sound and vibration could be used to heal cognitive disabilities, such as anxiety and self-harming behaviors like addiction.
Music’s healing power has been well-documented. While vibroacoustic therapy has been around for decades, it has only more recently become an accepted modern approach to healing pain, practicing meditation, and improving mindfulness for those in addiction recovery.
Music as a Healing Power
The primitive aboriginals were the first to use the sound from the didgeridoo to heal people, but Pythagoras was the first to prescribe music as medicine in 500 BC. Pythagoras’ discovery of music intervals allowed him to use the harmonic frequencies as a medicinal healing power to soothe animals and people.
From there, every genre from the Gregorian Chants to classical music to hip-hop to electronic dance music continues to inspire and heal people in one way or another. However, vibroacoustic therapy often uses more subtle sounds of nature and soothing instrumentals without lyrics.
Read more “Benefits of Vibroacoustic Therapy for Addiction Recovery”