This is a guest post written by Kathy Dickson. Kathy and I are having fun developing guided meditations that feature the healing vibrations of her gong. To listen or download the audio, go to Resources: Free Meditations.

This is Kathy’s story…

The first time I experienced the gong, I was hooked. A friend had invited me to a Gong Bath. I agreed to attend without any idea of what to expect. That session was profound. I can remember to this day, hearing the surprising sounds, and feeling the powerful sensations move throughout my body. I could hear the gong.

A few years before, I had started experiencing periods of devastating hearing loss. After countless western medical tests and protocols, my favorite ENT doctor told me I would go completely deaf within about 10 years. They had no successful treatments for me, and I had to prematurely end my teaching career. That was a tough time.

I began to explore alternative healing modalities. In a Reiki session with the friend of a friend (Paula), I actually felt the movement of my body’s energy. Another friend (Marina) introduced me to an energy healing therapy called QEST - Quantum Energetics Structured Therapy. With QEST, I got relief from my unpredictable and sometimes debilitating vertigo attacks. The next thing I knew, I was a student, studying QEST and other energy healing modalities, captivated by their potential.

And then, I discovered the gong. For the next five years, I attended the 3-4 yearly gong sessions offered in my town by a traveling Gong Master. Then a musician friend, who agreed to accompany me once, had the audacity to ask the Gong Master how HE could get himself a gong! Of course, I apologized for the inappropriate question. After all, my friend had never been to Tibet, didn’t know a single monk, and wasn’t even a Buddhist! I was astonished when the Master waved off my concern and nonchalantly said, “It’s easy. Just go online to Gongs Unlimited to order one. They’re in Lincoln, Nebraska.”

What?!!! HE can buy a gong? That means that I can have my own gong!!! There was no going back. I HAD to have one. Non-negotiable. I explored the website, found my gong (Chiron), ordered it Monday, and was playing it in my house Wednesday.

That was March 2015. For the next three years, I played every single day, unless I was out of town. (I continue to play most days.) As I got more and more familiar with my gong, I grew to appreciate its ability to imbue me with a deep sense of wellness and optimism. And as friends and strangers gave me remarkable feedback about their physical, mental or spiritual experiences listening to and absorbing the vibrations, I knew this was really a THING!

Six months after getting my own gong, I had back surgery to relieve sciatica. Unexpectedly, that procedure brought back and stabilized my hearing. My loss was now clinically labelled “Mild”. The neurosurgeon declared that the surgery had nothing to do with the return of my hearing. He was not seemingly interested in the fact that I was all but deaf when I was put under, and woke up hearing. I’ll never know the reason, but my life changed for the better in a big way!

Three weeks post-surgery I was off to Gong Camp. I began studying sound healing and attended another Gong Camp. I was trained in Reiki I and II from Paula, and experienced workshops with her, learning the indigenous Peruvian Munay-Ki healing traditions. I also studied sound healing via online classes and by reading related books. I learned about and experienced so many amazing things with gongs and sound.

For instance, our bodies are mostly water, and since sounds travels around four times faster in water than in the air, our bodies are excellent receptors and conductors of sound and vibration. Sound is also capable of affecting us on a cellular level. Of course we already knew that ultrasound (which we can't hear) is used by doctors to speed up the healing of broken bones. It only makes sense that sounds we can hear would have the power to affect us. The following is just a small sample of the list of benefits folks attribute to sound healing:

• Reduction of stress and stimulation of deep relaxation

• Lower blood pressure

• Relief from numerous types of chronic pain

• Re-balancing of hormones and improvement of mood and focus

• Relief from headaches and sore throats

• Correction of nervous system imbalances

• Passive initiation of a state of meditation

• Increase in mindfulness and awareness

• Increase in energy

• Shift and change of consciousness

• Achieving a sense of balance and harmony

Over the years I’ve developed a relationship with the gong that integrates Reiki and indigenous traditional energies as I play for individuals or groups of people. Everyone has their own unique experience during a session, and it is not the same one they previously had or what they will experience the next time. The feedback I receive is often astonishing and sometimes utterly profound. When I play the gong, I sense the immensity and the mystery of the Universe. I can say that the gong gives me a sense, over and over, that everything is OK. I’ve learned to trust its healing powers. The irony of a formerly profoundly hearing impaired person discovering and embracing sound healing is not lost on me.

I’m grateful for the curiosity and sense of wonder that has been cultivated on my gong path. I’m grateful for the collaborative work I’ve been afforded. I’m also grateful for the opportunity to share the magic of the gong’s vibrations with others.

Email Kathy at ks.dickson@comcast.net to inquire about setting up a gong voyage for your or your group. As a retired teacher, Kathy especially loves to share her gong with school staff and even high school students.