Autism & Sound Therapy
at
I have been working with some children on the autism spectrum for 3 years now. It all started when one of my clients, a stressed-out mother of a 16 year old hyperactive boy on the autism spectrum, pleaded with me to try sound therapy on her son. She had been feeling so much better herself after my sessions, that she felt sure it would help him also. He had been having frequent anger outbursts for several months, quite uncharacteristic behaviour for him before then. She guessed it might be due to puberty.
Not making any promises, I offered to experiment with him and see what would happen. During my training, we had learned that sound therapy can be beneficial for children on the spectrum, however, we had not been taught any specific methods for working with them. So when they arrived, I was quite nervous, especially when he proceeded to pace around the room constantly, drumming with his fingers on any free surface he could find. The mother explained that this was he usual behaviour and he could never sit still for long.
I began making several different sounds with my crystal singing bowls and other sound tools, but it was only when I started playing my set of Elfen Chakra Chimes (http://elfenharmonics.com/ ) that he began to slow down his pacing and eventually he decided to lay on my massage table. Feeling encouraged, I began to play the chimes over his body and surprisingly, within a short time, he was fast asleep! His mother was in shock. She told me that he never fell asleep in the daytime and so this was like a miracle.
We allowed him to sleep for a while, then he awoke and got off the table, choosing instead to sit on the floor. Unlike his usual sitting where he would move constantly and drum his fingers, he sat perfectly still, almost like he was in a trance state. During this time, I taught her some visualization techniques she could use with him at home, to help him stay calm and sent them both home.
Next morning I received an email:
I have wonderful news about my son. This morning I imagined what you told me to do and it worked! I usually need to open the door in his room once I get up. If I don’t leave the door open, he’ll jump up (literally) from his bed and anxiously open the door. He’ll then open my room door and switch on the light. Then only he’ll go back to his room attempting to go back to sleep. Usually after that he can’t sleep. So he gets up very early. BUT….. this morning I didn’t leave his room door open and he slept right through until I woke him up to go to school!
Thank you, Elizabeth for your help. You are truly our angel on earth!
~Fern., Ipoh, Malaysia, September 2014
A few days later, the mother called to say that he had had another anger outburst and immediately, he said to her, “Take me back to Elizabeth!”. Then, he called his grandmother to tell her he was not coming to visit her that evening (a ritual he followed every Wednesday evening, without fail), because he was coming to see me instead.
Fortunately, I was free that evening and we had similar success with his second session. After several sessions, I taught his mother how to use the chakra chimes and she purchased a set, using them every night before his bedtime.
I now have an album of relaxing sounds, with one track specially for autistic and hyperactive children, where I play the chakra chimes for nine minutes. His mother reported that the recording was about 70% as effective as the actual chimes but, but great for when she didn’t have time to play the chimes for him. She also said that it was handy to be able to play it in the car if they were traveling to a new location and he was becoming anxious.
Since that time, I have worked with many autistic children who are almost always very anxious. I have found that most of them respond very positively to sound therapy, especially the chimes, and the added bonus is that it helps to calm the parents also!
One family was desperate when their 5 year old daughter on the spectrum had not slept for 72 hours and was being very aggressive, which was unusual for her. The whole family was exhausted and distressed. They all turned up for the appointment, both parents, 2 siblings and 2 maids! As I played the chimes, the girl kept pacing around the room in agitation, but one by one, the rest of the family were nodding their heads and either falling asleep or struggling to keep their eyes open. Finally, she also responded to the calming sounds and everyone relaxed. They reported that everyone slept well that night and she was back to her affectionate self the next day.
Sound therapy is not a “stand alone” therapy for autism. These children still need several other therapies in order to reach their full potential, but I see sound therapy as a powerful tool to calm the nervous systems of these children. This, in turn, increases the effectiveness of other therapies and helps reduce stress and anxiety for the whole family.
To listen to my calming album, Celestial Garden, go to: https://elizabethhuxtable.bandcamp.com/album/celestial-garden
The particular track for autistic and hyperactive children is #9, Sunlight Sparkles on the Lake.
Not making any promises, I offered to experiment with him and see what would happen. During my training, we had learned that sound therapy can be beneficial for children on the spectrum, however, we had not been taught any specific methods for working with them. So when they arrived, I was quite nervous, especially when he proceeded to pace around the room constantly, drumming with his fingers on any free surface he could find. The mother explained that this was he usual behaviour and he could never sit still for long.
I began making several different sounds with my crystal singing bowls and other sound tools, but it was only when I started playing my set of Elfen Chakra Chimes (http://elfenharmonics.com/ ) that he began to slow down his pacing and eventually he decided to lay on my massage table. Feeling encouraged, I began to play the chimes over his body and surprisingly, within a short time, he was fast asleep! His mother was in shock. She told me that he never fell asleep in the daytime and so this was like a miracle.
We allowed him to sleep for a while, then he awoke and got off the table, choosing instead to sit on the floor. Unlike his usual sitting where he would move constantly and drum his fingers, he sat perfectly still, almost like he was in a trance state. During this time, I taught her some visualization techniques she could use with him at home, to help him stay calm and sent them both home.
Next morning I received an email:
I have wonderful news about my son. This morning I imagined what you told me to do and it worked! I usually need to open the door in his room once I get up. If I don’t leave the door open, he’ll jump up (literally) from his bed and anxiously open the door. He’ll then open my room door and switch on the light. Then only he’ll go back to his room attempting to go back to sleep. Usually after that he can’t sleep. So he gets up very early. BUT….. this morning I didn’t leave his room door open and he slept right through until I woke him up to go to school!
Thank you, Elizabeth for your help. You are truly our angel on earth!
~Fern., Ipoh, Malaysia, September 2014
A few days later, the mother called to say that he had had another anger outburst and immediately, he said to her, “Take me back to Elizabeth!”. Then, he called his grandmother to tell her he was not coming to visit her that evening (a ritual he followed every Wednesday evening, without fail), because he was coming to see me instead.
Fortunately, I was free that evening and we had similar success with his second session. After several sessions, I taught his mother how to use the chakra chimes and she purchased a set, using them every night before his bedtime.
I now have an album of relaxing sounds, with one track specially for autistic and hyperactive children, where I play the chakra chimes for nine minutes. His mother reported that the recording was about 70% as effective as the actual chimes but, but great for when she didn’t have time to play the chimes for him. She also said that it was handy to be able to play it in the car if they were traveling to a new location and he was becoming anxious.
Since that time, I have worked with many autistic children who are almost always very anxious. I have found that most of them respond very positively to sound therapy, especially the chimes, and the added bonus is that it helps to calm the parents also!
One family was desperate when their 5 year old daughter on the spectrum had not slept for 72 hours and was being very aggressive, which was unusual for her. The whole family was exhausted and distressed. They all turned up for the appointment, both parents, 2 siblings and 2 maids! As I played the chimes, the girl kept pacing around the room in agitation, but one by one, the rest of the family were nodding their heads and either falling asleep or struggling to keep their eyes open. Finally, she also responded to the calming sounds and everyone relaxed. They reported that everyone slept well that night and she was back to her affectionate self the next day.
Sound therapy is not a “stand alone” therapy for autism. These children still need several other therapies in order to reach their full potential, but I see sound therapy as a powerful tool to calm the nervous systems of these children. This, in turn, increases the effectiveness of other therapies and helps reduce stress and anxiety for the whole family.
To listen to my calming album, Celestial Garden, go to: https://elizabethhuxtable.bandcamp.com/album/celestial-garden
The particular track for autistic and hyperactive children is #9, Sunlight Sparkles on the Lake.
