Music as Medicine: A Guide to Sonic Self-Care

Elijah Morin | Wellness Within | November 3, 2025

If you’ve ever been near the speakers at a concert, you know that music and sound are not just an auditory experience, but rather a full-body tactile experience. Sound isn’t just something we hear, it’s something our brains and bodies experience on a physiological level. Whether it’s the calming chatter of birds in the backyard or your favorite song playing on repeat, sound can profoundly affect our mood, stress levels, and even our brain function.

Sound and music have long been intertwined with human emotion, behavior, and healing traditions. Now, recent advancements in neuroscience confirm what ancient cultures and civilizations knew - sound has the power to support mental health and wellbeing. Long before music became a source of entertainment, it was a cornerstone of ceremony, storytelling, and healing. Indigenous drumming circles, Tibetan singing bowls, chanting ceremonies, and other traditions demonstrate how sound has long been used to alter consciousness, mark transitions, and foster community bonds. Anthropologists even believe rhythmic sound and song may have predated spoken language as a main form of human communication and expression.

Have you ever gotten into your car after a bad day at work and blasted your favorite song, then immediately started to feel better? When music plays, regions of our brain such as the auditory cortex, limbic system, and prefrontal cortex work together like instruments in an orchestra to release a cocktail of neurochemicals such as dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins. Ever notice you’re your best self at concerts - there’s a reason for that too. Community events such as concerts, drum circles, and sound baths don’t just entertain, they also trigger the release of another important neurotransmitter called oxytocin, which is our “bonding and social connection hormone”. This is the hormone responsible for fostering a sense of connection and belonging, which is extremely important in determining whether we feel safe, trusting, and socially bonded to those around us. Singing, moving, or breathing in unison with others can actually amplify these effects, reinforcing the evolutionary role of music in social connection. (Schulkin, Raglan, 2014) 

Fast forward to today, if you’ve been on TikTok in the last couple years, you may have come across a relatively newer sound phenomenon being used for mental health and wellbeing called binaural beats. Binaural beats are an audio technique that involves using headphones to play two slightly different frequencies in each ear, which produces a perceived third frequency that our brain follows, the “binaural beat”. For example a 200 Hz tone playing in the left ear and a 210 Hz tone in the right ear would result in your brain interpreting the difference (10 Hz in this example) as a single beat, which can “entrain” your brainwaves to that frequency. 

This audio technique can actually be used to shift brainwave activity into desired states. What do you mean by brainwave states, you ask? As depicted in the chart below, throughout the day and night, our brains alternate between different brainwave states depending on what task we are doing at the moment. The main brainwave states are: Delta (such as when we are in deep sleep), Theta (when we are very relaxed, meditating, etc.), Alpha (when we are calm but alert), Beta (when we are focused or excited), and Gamma (when we are doing tasks that require a lot of cognition, such as taking a test or problem-solving). Using Delta, Theta, or Alpha binaural beats can be a great way to help your brain “slow down”, enhance focus, and promote relaxation. Research has shown that binaural beats are a useful technique for reducing anxiety, improving sleep, and enhancing meditation practices. Binaural beats are even being used in hospitals to combat preoperative anxiety in surgery patients. (Padmanabhan, Hildreth, & Laws, 2005)

Music has also been shown to have a direct influence on the nervous system. Slow, predictable rhythms and harmonic tones can actually stimulate our nervous system’s parasympathetic response, reducing heart rate and lowering cortisol (our body’s stress hormone). Genres such as lofi (more on that later), ambient, and jazz that naturally have a slower BPM (beats per minute) typically around 60-85, can actually induce something called entrainment. Entrainment is what happens when our brains and bodies naturally synchronize with external stimuli and rhythms in our environment. Just as you might tap your foot to a beat, our heartbeat, breathing rate, and even our brain’s neural firing patterns can align with music. Slow tempoed music can even encourage our nervous system to relax by mimicking a resting heart rate, which on average also tends to be between 60-85 beats per minute. On the flip side, stimulating music, such as fast-paced dance music that is 125 beats per minute, can increase alertness and motivation by eliciting a sympathetic response, as this speed is our body’s natural rhythm when we are in the middle of doing something physically taxing or stimulating that requires alertness and action. Knowing how our bodies naturally react and entrain to different rhythms, we can be more mindful about genre selection based on what type of physiological response we are looking for (not listening to techno in the middle of a panic attack).

Speaking of lofi, there is a good reason that this specific genre exploded in popularity in recent years and is now one of the most popular genres for studying, relaxation, and meditation. Lofi incorporates gentle ambient textures, soft percussion, and nature recordings (such as soft rain, ocean waves, or birdsong), all at a tempo that matches the average resting heart rate. Though it may seem weird to listen to nature sounds in music, studies have actually shown that listening to bird calls can boost mood and reduce stress, likely because our brains evolved to associate these sounds with safe, resource-rich and predator-free environments. (Stobbe, Sundermann, Ascone, & Kühn, 2022)

Music also has a unique ability to help us process emotions. Whether we’re using upbeat songs to lift our mood, or slower, melancholic tracks to validate and work through feelings, neuroscientists suggest that music provides a safe “container” for emotions, allowing us to explore them without becoming overwhelmed. This is one reason music therapy is often used with trauma survivors, as it offers a nonverbal way to process deep emotional experiences.

As science and technology advance, another audio technique that is being used for therapeutic purposes is Bilateral Stimulation, a core component of EMDR Therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Bilateral stimulation music and sounds are a sensory technique where the sound alternates, gently panning between the left and the right ear, encouraging both hemispheres of the brain to work together through something called neural integration, which can calm the nervous system and help with the processing of distressing memories and emotions.

Another therapeutic practice that is gaining popularity in Western medicine is Sound Therapy, which uses instruments like crystal singing bowls, gongs, tuning forks, and chimes to create vibrations and sonic soundscapes that can influence brainwave activity and physiological states. Singing bowls in particular, (as demonstrated in the study Goldsby et al, 2017), have been shown to decrease anxiety, depression, anger, and fatigue, while also increasing feelings of general wellbeing. Group sound meditation events called sound baths are becoming more popular as they combine elements of relaxation, community, nervous system co-regulation, and often incorporate other healing modalities such as reiki and restorative yoga.

For people with sensory processing difficulties, something common in the neurodivergent population, sound can be both healing and overwhelming. This understanding of personal sensory thresholds is key for us at Wellness Within, and is why our thoughtfully designed and gentle sound environments support nervous system regulation. As a neurodivergent musician myself, I bring this awareness and training to every session, knowing that some sounds and frequencies can cause sensory overload. As a former DJ and live sound engineer for music venues, I have experience managing both the immersive power and delicateness of sound, and use that experience to craft every sound therapy session to be a calming and restorative experience that brings the brain and body into rebalance.

At Wellness Within, we are excited to now offer private sound therapy sessions as part of our holistic approach to mental health and wellbeing. A typical session involves lying comfortably on a padded massage table while being immersed in the soothing vibrations of crystal singing bowls, chimes, tuning forks, Tibetan singing bowls, and other therapeutic instruments, all with the natural sounds of birdsong playing in the background. The room is set up to be as calming as possible with soft lighting, salt lamps, and nature-themed incense (can be omitted if you have sensitivity to scents). Sessions are always tailored with care and sensitivity, especially for those who may be more sound-sensitive, ensuring the experience is both safe and restorative. Whether you’re seeking relaxation, emotional processing, or a new tool for nervous system regulation, sound therapy can be a powerful and accessible way to reconnect with your body and mind.

If you’re interested in learning more about Wellness Within’s Sound Therapy sessions or are looking to book a session for yourself, check out this page.

You don’t have to wait until a session to start your sound journey though, we wouldn’t leave you hanging like that! 

Here are 3 practical ways you can use music and sound to support your mental health and wellbeing right now:

1. Create your own mood-based playlists - Pick quick-paced, energizing songs for mornings when you need some motivation, and slower, calming tracks for evening wind down. You can also use playlists as an emotional regulation tool, starting with music that matches your current mood, then slowly transitioning to tracks that shift you toward your desired emotional state. Regularly using specific songs or genres to start your workday (and others to slow down before bed) can help signal to the brain that it’s time to shift gears.

   
   

2. Drop that (binaural) beat - If you’re curious about binaural beats and brainwave states, you can try our newest guided meditation for anxiety and stress relief here, which features a 5Hz Theta binaural beat in the background to get you in your zen zone.

3. Move it out and shake it off - Dance, walk, or stretch to your favorite tunes for a boost of endorphins and feel good hormones. If you can get a friend or group together, even better! If you have the time and funds, try to pencil in a concert, sound bath, or even a drumming circle if you’re feeling adventurous, as community-based music and sound events are one of the best ways to foster social connection and a sense of belonging.

References 

Goldsby, T. L., Goldsby, M. E., McWalters, M., & Mills, P. J. (2017, July). Effects of singing bowl sound meditation on mood, tension, and well-being: An observational study. Journal of evidence-based complementary & alternative medicine. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5871151/

Padmanabhan, Hildreth, A., & Laws, D. (n.d.). A prospective, randomised, Controlled Study Examining Binaural Beat Audio and pre‐operative anxiety in patients undergoing general anaesthesia for day case surgery* - padmanabhan - 2005 - anaesthesia - wiley online library. https://associationofanaesthetists-publications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2044.2005.04287.x

Schulkin, J., & Raglan, G. B. (2014, September 17). The Evolution of Music and Human Social Capability. Frontiers in neuroscience. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4166316/ 

Stobbe, E., Sundermann, J., Ascone, L., & Kühn, S. (2022, October 13). Birdsongs alleviate anxiety and paranoia in healthy participants. Nature News. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-20841-0