The author recently participated in an online workshop called “Sound as Medicine,” led by Phyllicia Victoria through the Omega Institute. The individual described the experience as beautiful.
For the past 18 months, the author has been facing what they called the hardest time in their adult life. They traveled across the country several times to support a father undergoing brain cancer treatment. At the same time, they homeschooled their oldest son, adapted to changes in their industry, and dealt with estrangement from a close person.
The author said life felt heavy, overwhelming, and relentless. They relied on self-care routines like walking in nature and reading in the tub to keep a sense of balance. After the workshop, they said sound baths should become a regular part of that routine.
Phyllicia Victoria is an artist, yoga teacher, reiki practitioner, and sound healer. The author read on her website that she grew up feeling broken, lonely, and unworthy, with trust issues. The author felt a connection because they could relate. Victoria started facilitating sound baths because she noticed how sound helped settle her thoughts and quiet the chatter in her head.
The workshop did the same for the author. They said the combination of Victoria’s soothing voice, uplifting words, and the resonant, hypnotic sounds created a transcendent experience. After the practice, Victoria led gentle movements and stretches, then invited participants to journal about what came up during meditation.
The author wrote down words that came to mind: Release, Peace, Spaciousness, Ease, Clarity, Calmness, Gratitude. Then they wrote that they felt a deep sense of relief from stressful thoughts. The sound transported them in a way words alone could not. They felt vibrations deep in their body, as if cleansing the noise of their mind and creating space to just be, without judgment.
When other sounds occurred, such as their father moving around or turning on a faucet in the kitchen, the author reminded themselves to simply hear them, mixed with the calming sounds of singing bowls and chimes, and release them without thinking they should not have been part of the experience. They reflected that this is a wonderful practice for life. Often people hear more dissonance than harmony in their days, but sometimes it is the other way around. They said it is a gift to train the mind to hear dissonance without getting lost in the story, so focus can shift back to what is beautiful and healing.
The author decided not to listen to the Q&A at the end of the workshop to remain in the space they had created within themselves. They have read that sound baths can calm the nervous system, reduce stress, and help relieve tension and physical pain. After the session, they felt deeply relaxed, physically and mentally, and better equipped to handle whatever might come in the day ahead.
The author expressed gratitude for a recent partnership with Omega because they love what the institute offers. They noted that Omega put together a page of free resources for the Tiny Buddha community. They also listed summer workshops that caught their eye, including one on getting healthy with sound using tuning forks and voice, another on frequency and neuroscience, and one on holotropic breathwork and sacred geometry. They also reshared programs from a previous email, such as emotional resilience workshops and nervous system regulation workshops.
The author included a picture of the Omega campus and said if they could take an in-person workshop at this time in their life, they would be there in a heartbeat, knowing it is a sanctuary for meaningful connection and deep healing. They encouraged others feeling the same way to explore the free resources and to share their experience if they take a workshop.
