Creating a Sound Therapy Environment
There are 4 considerations when creating a sound therapy environment which I feel are important:
- Massage Table
- Room Acoustics
- Light
- Noise
Massage Table
It is better for someone to receive a sound therapy session in the most comfortable position they can be in and for most people, that is on a massage table. No need to spend a lot of time on this. Tables range from $150 to $1,000+. Just make sure it has enough padding, is wide and sturdy enough to fit most people but not so wide that you can't reach over to the other side. I know from experience that if you plan on traveling with your table, even just to the other side of town, keep it light.
Room Acoustics
I like a room with few or no angles but unless you work in a yurt, that's not likely to happen. Try to limit the number of objects sound can bounce off of, as few angles a possible in the room. For example, I do not have ceiling high furniture or lots of objects extending from the walls. For the floor, I prefer an area rug under the table rather than wall to wall carpeting. I want the area rug to absorb my footsteps as I walk around the table but have most of the flooring exposed so that the sound and vibration reflect off the floor.
Light
I prefer to have room lights off and use natural lighting from windows. Of course if the sun is shining through, then you'll want to drop a shade. I never have a completely dark room. If you close your eyes during the day, you still see a little light through your eye lids. That's what I look for. I am not sure why but having a little light vs complete darkness seems to make it easier to slip in to a place of silence. Perhaps it has to with being in a deep meditation vs falling asleep.
Noise
This is the aspect of my room I am most careful about and I will cover it in depth in my next article.