Why Deep Relaxation Is So Important For Our Health and Wellbeing

The human body is fascinating. It has so many intricate systems that keep us functioning healthily. That being said, the world around us is changing rapidly. This is inevitably having an impact on how our bodies respond to and cope with everyday life. One of the areas I have seen significantly impacted by modern life as a sound practitioner is our stress and relaxation response. 

Many of us spend a lot of time in a stressed state and struggle to reach relaxation. That’s why people come to sound baths and learn to play crystal singing bowls. Sound healing supports stress management by initiating deep relaxation. This is something that is so important for us to experience on a regular basis because it helps our bodies regulate and restore. 

What is deep relaxation?

Deep relaxation is a state our body reaches when it can genuinely rest and redirect energy to restorative processes including cellular repair. This isn’t a state we go into just because we are chilling on the sofa or even lying in bed. It’s a state the body reaches when it feels safe to switch from the sympathetic nervous system (fight-or-flight mode) to the parasympathetic nervous system (rest-and-digest mode). If we are thinking about things we’re worried about, our body is going to stay prepared to deal with the danger through fight-or-flight, meaning we never switch off properly and don’t fully rest or restore. 

How does deep relaxation help with stress?

I’m sure you’ve heard before that stress is a natural response but it’s true. We feel stressed because we have recognised an issue we need to deal with and the body prepares us to take on the stressor. The only problem is our stress response is wired for physical danger like running away from lions, tigers and bears. Most of our daily stress doesn’t pose a physical danger. It’s things like not getting to work on time, figuring out how to reply to a difficult email or even hypothetical scenarios we make up in our heads. It’s harder for the body to tell when it’s safe to switch off fight-or-flight so we get stuck in it. On the other hand, when we reach deep rest, the physical sensations of stress melt away and even our minds are quieter. Knowing how to move into deep relaxation gives us a way to calm down the stress response.

Why is central nervous system regulation so important?

A lot of people in the wellness space are talking about central nervous system regulation at the moment. There is good reason for that. Spending too much time with the sympathetic nervous system (fight-or-flight mode) switched on isn’t good for us. When our body is in a state ready to fight or flee at any moment, our heart rate, blood pressure and other functions are accelerated while less urgent processes are postponed until the danger is averted. We need to move into rest-and-digest to rebalance our bodily functions and initiate important processes such as healthy digestion, as the name suggests. Plenty of studies have shown that chronic stress takes a toll on us mentally and physically. So if our central nervous system doesn’t know when to switch into rest-and-digest mode, we need techniques to help it.

How do crystal singing bowls affect our central nervous system?

One way we can signal to the central nervous system that it’s safe to switch from fight-or-flight to rest-and-digest is through crystal singing bowls. The vibrations of these instruments have a powerful effect on the body. 

Considering the body is made of about 60% water, we are attuned to sound waves. As the singing bowls are made of quartz and human cells have the same crystalline structure, when we are in their presence and absorb them, they initiate the cellular repair of deep rest.

As well as the vibrations affecting our physical body, calming the central nervous system, they impact our brains too. One way to measure the brain is through brainwaves. Just like sound waves, these can be shorter or longer, representing faster or slower brain activity. The slower the brainwaves, the more relaxed we are. 

We spend most of our day in beta brainwave frequencies. This is when we are active and alert. Sometimes, we want to be in alpha. This is when we are calm but focused. We can reach the creative zone because it’s a bridge between consciousness (which we need to work on something) and unconsciousness (which is when our brain is free to explore new ideas).

For deep relaxation, we want to be in theta or delta brainwaves. The first is when we are meditative or daydreaming so we are just about conscious but have shut out the outside world. The second is the sleep state. In both of these, we are relaxed enough to direct energy toward restorative processes. The vibrations of crystal singing bowls can guide the brain into slower frequencies through brainwave entrainment. This is when our brainwaves synchronise with the sound waves in the surrounding environment. 

As our brain relaxes, so does our body and so does our central nervous system.

How to use sound healing as a deep relaxation technique

So how do you experience the amazing vibrations of crystal singing bowls? The first thing I’d recommend is going to a sound bath. This is when a practitioner will play a set of crystal singing bowls for you. You can lie back and relax as the sound waves wash over you. Find out more about what happens in a sound bath HERE.

You can also play crystal singing bowls yourself if you would like to experience their therapeutic effects at home. You can get started with 1-3 singing bowls and guidance from a foundation workshop. If you would like to play for others, you need to complete a certification course. 

Deep rest is something we all need but struggle to achieve in the modern world which makes it harder to switch off from the stressors in our lives. We need to be more intentional about when and how we rest to ensure the body reaches restorative relaxation, re-energising us and maintaining healthy functioning. Crystal singing bowls are brilliant at soothing our central nervous system and easing the stress response. 

Explore sound baths from me and our community or start your crystal singing bowl collection by browsing the shop and reading our free guide to choosing crystal singing bowls.