Brazil Sounds Calm the Mind

A writer recently took an online Sound as Medicine workshop led by Phyllicia Victoria through the Omega Institute. She described it as a beautiful experience.

For the past 18 months, the writer has been going through what she called the hardest time in her adult life. She traveled across the country many times to support her father through brain cancer treatment. At the same time, she homeschooled her oldest son, dealt with changes in her industry, and in recent months faced estrangement from someone close to her.

She said life felt heavy, overwhelming, and relentless. She depended on self-care routines such as walking in nature and reading in the bath to keep her sense of balance. After taking the workshop, she said sound baths should be a regular part of that routine.

Phyllicia Victoria is an artist, yoga teacher, reiki practitioner, and sound healer. On her website, she wrote that she grew up feeling broken, lonely, and unworthy, with trust issues. The writer said she felt a connection because she could relate. Victoria started leading sound baths because she found that the sounds helped quiet the chatter in her head.

The writer said the workshop did the same for her. She described the combination of Victoria’s soothing voice, uplifting words, and resonant, hypnotic sounds as a transcendent experience. After the practice, Victoria led gentle movements and stretches and invited participants to journal about what came up during meditation.

The writer started by writing words that came to mind: release, peace, spaciousness, ease, clarity, calmness, gratitude. Then she wrote about feeling deep relief from stressful thoughts. The sound transported her in a way words alone could not. She felt vibrations deep in her body, and it felt like they were cleansing the noise of her mind and creating space to just be without judgment.

When she heard other sounds, such as her father moving around or turning on a faucet, she reminded herself, “No judgment—just new sounds.” She simply heard them mixed with the more calming sounds of singing bowls and chimes, then released them without thinking they should not have been part of the experience.

She thought this was a good practice for life. Often people hear more dissonance than harmony in their days, but sometimes it is the other way around. She said it is a gift to train the mind to hear dissonance without getting lost in its story, so one can shift focus back to what is beautiful and healing.

After journaling, the writer decided not to listen to the Q&A portion so she could stay in the space she created within herself. She has read that sound baths can calm the nervous system, reduce stress, and help relieve tension and physical pain. Her session left her deeply relaxed, physically and mentally, and better equipped to handle the day ahead.

The writer said she has been grateful for her partnership with Omega, which she truly loves. She noted that Omega put together a page of free resources for the Tiny Buddha community. She also mentioned several workshops that caught her eye for this summer at the Omega campus in New York: Get Healthy with Sound: Tuning Forks & Voice for Vibrant Health; The Journey Inward: Frequency, Neuroscience & Longevity; and Holotropic Breathwork: Sacred Geometry & the Healing Nature of Mandalas.

She also reshared programs from a previous email, including Omega’s emotional resilience workshops, which focus on training the mind for a best possible life, healing from betrayal and toxic relationships, and more. She also mentioned Omega’s nervous system regulation workshops, with programs on accessing neuroplasticity and healing the nervous system.

The writer said if she could take an in-person workshop at this time in her life, she would go in a heartbeat. She described Omega’s campus as a true sanctuary for meaningful connection and deep healing. She encouraged others who feel the way she has been feeling to explore the free resources and share their experience if they take a workshop.