Ever wonder how sound can heal you from the inside out? 🎶 Join us as we dive into the world of sound healing with Susan Sophia James, and discover how simple sounds can transform your health and happiness.

Listen Here: Spotify | Apple | Amazon Music | Castbox | iHeartRadio | Pocket Casts | RadioPublic

Show Notes

• Introduction to the episode and guest, Susan Sophia James

• Susan’s background: author, artist, producer, and sound healing expert

• Overview of sound healing and its benefits for mental health, trauma, addiction, and more

• Explanation of how sound affects brainwaves, heart rate, and breathing

• The role of sound in stress reduction and inflammation management

• Detailed discussion on using sound and music for calming the nervous system

• Susan’s specific sound healing programs and their applications

• Personal experiences and feedback from Susan’s work with sound healing

• How listeners can start using sound healing and access Susan’s resources

• Information about future podcast episodes

Key Takeaways

• Sound Healing Basics: Certain sounds can shift our consciousness into a relaxed state, affecting brainwaves, heart rate, and breathing.

• Stress and Inflammation: Sound healing can help reduce stress and inflammation, which are underlying causes of many health issues.

• Specific Programs: Susan offers programs tailored for sleep, pain management, challenging times, and spiritual awakening.

• Practical Use: Consistent use of sound healing can lead to significant improvements in pain perception, emotional stability, and overall well-being.

• Personal Empowerment: Sound healing empowers individuals to manage their stress and health proactively.

Transcript:

 Welcome back to Better Than A Pill. Today, I'm so excited to have Susan Sophia James on as a guest. Susan is an author and artist, a producer and program creative, and she's been using sound healing patterns for over 25 years. With mental health diagnosis, trauma, recovery, addiction, cancer, immune issues, internal medicine patients,  and so on.

So there's just a lot here to discuss. Susan is a Doctor of behavioral health. She's a medical hypnotherapist and sound healing program CEO. And today we are going to be talking about sound and music and how they can be helpful. healing. So welcome Susan.  

Thank you for having me on Carrie. It's great to be here. 

I am super excited to learn more today. And I know everybody is listening too. I mean, so let's dive into this. So what is going on? Tell us about how Sound can be helpful when it comes to our healing. Just, you know, a brief overview. Well, basically, when we listen to certain sounds and their patterns, they help us move out of our normal, quote, normal state of consciousness into a relaxed state, and that relaxed state affects our brainwaves, our heart rate, and our breathing.

And you do this in an intentional way, I'm going to guess. And so like, if you're working with someone, let's just look at how we can use sound and music or both to, to help with, let's say, I know you just, you know, explained that, but dive a little bit more into how that can help, particularly with stress.

What do we need to be listening to? Is there something you recommend music wise or sound wise? Like how do we do this?  Okay. So yeah, there's a couple of questions in there. So, Basically, we know not all sound affects us the same way, so it's specific kinds of sound.  And stress is, stress and the production of cortisol, which is what causes us to have inflammation in our body and leads to many, um, are almost all of physical health and  a lot of mental health conditions.

Inflammation and stress are the underlying causes. So they're kind of like eroding our system and then they're different triggers depending on, I guess, us as individuals. So  when we listen to certain kinds of sound for usually about when we first begin, about 20 minutes, there's a actual shift in our being that becomes very discernible where you kind of feel yourself  change over and release Um, and go into a brainwave state that's receptive and restorative. 

Okay, so break us down even a little bit more so it's, so we're understanding a little bit clearer. When you are working with somebody, Do you have something specific, like recordings that you're using or is it a bowl that you're, you know, like a gong? I've seen those kinds of things before. Yeah. So what you're referring to is kind of like people see sound baths and, uh, things like that.

And so what I do is a program where people go through a sequence of experiences.  You could say the background or the foreground, however you want to look at it, is the sounds. So certain kinds of repetitive sounds. And then there are exercises that are biological, social kinds of  psychotherapeutic exercises that people are using.

And then there's also components where  people are just listening because just listening. starts to change our responses in our bodies. So we've been taught to think that this state of consciousness is normal and ordinary when the truth is, it is not ordinary for us to stay here all the time. And it, in fact, is just kind of destructive for us not to utilize those other states because they've always been used when.

We gather together with other groups of people in, in more ancient times, people always had a sound background, certain kinds of tones that people came together with and they relaxed and became in tune or resonant with them. So it's, playing a consistent sound like a rhythm that has certain spaces between the rhythm that we, when we hear it, we connect to it.

And then it's called entertainment where we respond by resonating with that. And that resonance is calming and That's when there's all these very positive, uh, restorative hormones that are released in our system that actually boost our immune system and regulate mental and emotional stability. So instead of being depressed or anxious, it helps to lift our mood too.

And it also helps with  resilience, developing resilience and problem solving and developing insight, but also at the same time. So it's not just mental, emotional and physical. It also deepens our inner spiritual connection, which has nothing to do with our personal relationship with our religion, Or however, it's just our inner, deeper, personal relationship. 

In, you know, this kind of my own practice with listening to music, I know  that they have different types of music, even on, let's say Spotify, right? Or something for healing. And I'll like, if we pull it up, there'll be certain types of music that are healing to calm the nervous system or you know, to, to promote, um, getting rid of negative energy.

So there, so, so those types of things. are triggering or the sounds you're using or the music that you're using are triggering in our body is what I heard and emitting different types of brainwaves. Could you explain that a little bit more?  They're not emitting brainwaves. We're relaxing into a different brainwave state.

So yes, some of the stuff that you might find on Spotify has  I don't, you know, I don't know what you're using, but it can have those effects. There's a structure or a format that is useful to use because the way that it's being distributed right now, it's just like you can, you can grab it, but there's no structure for how to apply it.

use  it and how to incorporate it into your life so that you can apply it for different circumstances. So, I have programs that are specific to getting good sleep or pain management. A healing program, a Mastering Challenging Times program, and then another one that's a spiritual awakening and transformative experience program.

So each of those have specific content related to that area. to help the person  integrate the sound listening to affect the changes that they're looking for. So, for example, in the Mastering Challenging Times program, if you know that you're gonna Do a presentation or you have, or you're going to a doctor's appointment or, or for most people, including myself, going to a dentist appointment is not the most pleasant thing.

So when you can listen to certain sounds and relax yourself, instead of being tense like that, you know, when your hands are tense and you're, you're maybe even clenching your shoulders or your neck and you don't even know it, you're relaxed. And that allows. For example, the dentist actually does their work easier and to get a better outcome for himself. 

So it sounds like the calming of the nervous system  through the sounds is what is really, I guess, what the root effect is going on here is calming you down, right?  And you're exactly right. So the nervous system is really important because in stress, the nervous system modifies. So when we kind of change that and allow the nervous system to have restoration,  it is healing for trauma and other situations.

So it gives us a tool to unravel or unwind that. Mm hmm. That makes sense. And  Well, tell us a little bit about brainwaves. What are beta brainwaves? Tell us about how this plays a part in the healing from sound and music. Beta is where we are right now, and it's the hypervigilant state. So that's where you're, you're alert and you're, you know, you're ready to do whatever it is that you have to do. 

And alpha is where we go into a relaxed state and  where the actual term for it is called the relaxation response where your heart  Your heart beat slows down, your pulse slows down, your breathing slows down, and that's part of, that's what's affecting your neurological system. So when you stay over there, it starts to build.

that relationship so you, you actually know what that feels like. It's easier for you to connect to it. And as you continue to use it, the thing about using sound of music, it's not like today, I'm going to use it for a week or two. And then I'm out. It's really a,  Something that you use throughout your life, because we have been trained to stay in a state of consciousness that is really not healthy for us all the time.

So this is a way to, I look at it actually as an evolutionary change, because if we gain our own empowerment to change how our cells are responding from stress,  To an unstressed state where we are happy and where we are not getting triggered for disease,  then we have changed significantly. Mm hmm. Yeah, no, that all makes sense to me.

And I'm a big fan of ways that we can calm our nervous systems down, whether it's through breathing or other things that relax us. Um, you know, proprioceptive, fast release, stretching, whatever it might be sound. is obviously, you know, a big piece too. And it sounds like, I'm just going to guess that you mentioned beta is where we are now, which is we're active.

Our brains are active. It sounds like we're, what you said, hypervigilant, but then if we're listening to sounds or music, the goal for that and whoever creates the sounds or music that we listen to is to, in order to calm the nervous system would be to get us into a relaxed state, which you call an alpha state, right?

So that we can be in a state.  And then to me, that just makes sense because then that clears up everything. Our minds are settled and we can, you know, hear, uh, for me, for example, I'm a Christian and I read in the morning, actually experimented with this one time, listening, you know, to calm myself down, listening to calm music.

But, you know, clearing that path so that you can hear God, for example, right?  Speaking or whatever it might be for somebody, because you had mentioned spirituality and I'm thinking, well, yeah, that could make sense in that realm. But you know, also, I'd be curious to know a little bit about your experience, working with people directly.

listening to specific sounds and what you've learned  as it relates to healing from different things. I did research in internal medicine with pain patients. So the physician that I was working with specialized in working with people with pain and the research I did, we looked at how the person perceived their pain, like how big their pain was and continued to be, how much pain controlled their life and also their depression.

So from listening to the specific music, the people had an overall,  their depression diminished. And then they, a lot of people feel like pain controls their life and they had to  kind of plan their day around how their pain was going to be and what they could do. And the, um, research showed that they gained control over their life.

And it's kind of like they, they moved pain way down the ladder so that they felt like they could conduct their life and, and manage their pain. And then the other part was that we measured their pain before the research, before they started using the sound of music, and then during and after, and they found what they noticed was that their pain levels went way down.

So, and that was not, that was for six weeks, so it wasn't like, I mean, I was imagining what if they did this for two months or three months? Or what if they did this every day for the rest of their life? Because all it is, is listening. It's just, it's not like you're a lot of people that I found who would try to do, quote, kind of meditation.

They feel very frustrated because there's silence and they hear all these thoughts and the thoughts are saying, Oh, I don't want to do that. I got to go to the store. I got to do this. I got to do that. And there, or they remember something. So they're very disruptive. So the difference with the sound is, uh, sound and music is that you're focusing on listening and there's a movement to it.

And we just, we just simply resonate with it. And it kind of holds us in that space  of That restoration until the music's over, you know, you have to listen for a certain amount of time. I mean, you can train yourself to get the benefits to shift over into a relaxed state more quickly, but that takes a little bit of practice.

So, for example, I mean, I've gone and had like outpatient surgery or been with someone else. That's having outpatient surgery. And sometimes that can be nerve wracking to be waiting. And so having something to listen to can just really take your levels way down. And so when you use it regularly, you just can hear the first  opening notes or pieces or sounds, and you automatically go. 

take a deep breath and your body is cued into going, Oh, this is where I'm going. And you get there much quicker.  Hmm. Interesting. If somebody is listening today and they just, you know, want to begin listening to something, what would you recommend and  would be the length of time to start? Well, I have free samples on my website that they can check out if they want.

And I think, you know, some people, what I've noticed is that some people like something, one thing, and  other people don't like it. So part of the process of enjoying it is to feel like you have a choice over it. So to get a couple that are curated and then choose the one that you feel the most connected to.

Because when we listen to the same piece over and over, that's how we cue into it. It's just kind of like training ourselves and going, Oh, okay. I'm hearing that piece now. I'm, I'm relaxing.  Well, that's awesome. So yeah, we'll definitely be, you know, including the links to your website in this episode so that people can experiment with the sounds, but tell us a little bit about some of the programs you've created using sound and what they're for.

Well, the Getting Good Sleep program is for getting good sleep, and  all the programs have integrative content in them, so it's not just a sound program. It also gives you support in taking care of yourself, or, uh, Nutrition and habits and other things, exercise, that support that particular area so that it's more comprehensive and they also, all the programs also have charts and journals and logs so that people can record and see changes, maybe see patterns because that can be helpful if it's Always on the weekend or a bigger pattern that has related to season or another, sometimes people have a death that triggers issues for them and they may not even be aware of those issues.

But when we record stuff, it helps us to notice. So there's the Mastering Challenging Times program that's for people who. have anxiety, who have something that they're going to do that might bring them anxiousness or they're concerned about. Sometimes it's going to court, it can be litigation, it can be going to surgery, it can be meeting someone or giving a presentation or a lot of people don't like to fly.

So it can be carried with you when you're going to fly. So there's different applications. for using that and then the healing program is for addictions, recovery, trauma, and different mental health issues and then let's see that's for and I said I mentioned the managing pain program and then the spiritual awakening and transformative experience program is for people who have dreams or other kinds of experiences.

Some, it's very common for people to have an interaction or a memory or with someone who's already passed. So it's for people who are kind of on that path or journey.  Okay. Well, you have a lot of different things to offer. That is great. Sleep, anxiety, depression, and so forth. So let me ask you, like you've been doing this work with sound.

For like over 25 years, what  got you into it?  You know, I've thought a lot about it. Like, how did this all happen? I was studying hypnotherapy at the time. And then I am also kind of a musical person, although I don't consider myself a performer or anything. And it just, I started applying. ideas in different, those different places I was working.

And then I developed programs and that was kind of how it unfolded. And I did, I had a really great response from the people who I worked for and also the people who are receiving it. I remember being somewhere a few years later, after I was, I had been working at an inpatient residential for addiction.

trauma, mental health issues place and I was at a graduation and one of the people who had been in that center who you people come from all over the world and and mostly in the U. S. and so I never expected to see anyone again but this person was at a graduation and she came in sat next to me and said I just want you to know you saved my life. 

So I have a lot of those different kinds of feedback. And so that's pretty inspiring. Yeah, absolutely. I would say so. And you personally, have you had any benefit yourself from using sound? And if so, how? Well, definitely when I had a root canal.  Okay, there we go. No, I use it, I use it all the time as my inner, my way to do inner connection with myself.

So like you were saying, it helps you tune in to your own inner self and to be able to listen.  And that's really important for us too,  for our own kind of direction and how we feel inside. All  That's nice. Lovely. Well, thank you so much for coming on today, Susan, and everybody who's listening will definitely be including the link to Susan's website so you can find out more about her work and the links that she mentioned as well.

So I just wanted to remind everybody that we will be doing episodes every other week on Wednesday, and I look forward to having you join me then.