How sound therapy melts away stress: Hong Kong business owner describes a session; two therapists discuss its benefits

‘Clients feel a sense of peace and ease. Depression, anxiety, fear and disengagement evaporate,’ Hong Kong therapist Martha Collard says of sound therapy

Sukhjit Kang understands the scepticism surrounding such therapies, but urges others with emotional health issues to try an ‘instantly relaxing’ gong bath

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Melisa Fu O’Connor shows how she beats a gong ahead of a gong bath session in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong. She, a fellow therapist and a client extol the benefits of sound therapy. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Sasha Gonzales

Published: 11:15am, 4 May 2024Updated: 11:34am, 4 May 2024

After Sukhjit Kang attended his first sound healing session in 2019, he left feeling like a new man.

A friend had recommended it because Kang was anxious, had insomnia, and led a stressful life raising two young children and running his own product-sourcing business in Hong Kong.

While he did not know what to expect and was sceptical, he is glad he decided to try the gong bath. The session worked wonders.

“As I lay on my mat, the sound therapist … put everyone at the session at ease. Then she used a gong to create these amazing sounds that bounced off the walls and which I found instantly relaxing,” says the 47-year-old.

Sound healing proved effective in helping Sukhjit Kang overcome insomnia and anxiety. Photo: Sukhjit Kang

Up to that point, Kang had tried other relaxation techniques, such as breathwork, but nothing quite relaxed him in the same way as sound healing did.

“My stress melted away and I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders,” he says. “I felt so safe and calm in that space.”