vibration.” ~Nikola Tesla

Cathy Whelehan, her son and her daughter all suffered with symptoms of Lyme disease for years. They sought help from conventional medical providers and medication, and worked with a naturopath to supplement with dietary changes and herbs. For Whelehan's daughter, the Lyme disease attacked her brain—so badly that often she couldn’t get out of bed, and sometimes couldn’t remember her own name. Eventually, Whelehan flew with her to a clinic in Switzerland that specialized in stem cell and other invasive treatments. But the most dramatic changes occurred when they returned from Switzerland on Christmas Eve and found the gift of an AmpCoil waiting under the decorated tree. 

By the following fall, Whelehan's daughter’s brain function had rallied, allowing her to take the ACT and apply to college. Before flying off to her freshman year in Hawaii last month, she traveled solo throughout Southeast Asia—a scenario that seemed impossible less than six months earlier. Her AmpCoil was stowed safely in her suitcase. 

“I didn’t know about frequency healing before, but I will continue coiling because I feel better, and my kids feel better,” says Whelehan, co-creator of Open Sky Yoga Barn in Redding, which has offered yoga, dance and spiritual counseling for years, and more recently began offering AmpCoil sessions. 

What Is Frequency Healing?

All matter vibrates at a certain frequency. Many energetic healing modalities are based on the concept that when those frequencies are out-of-tune, our bodies respond by exhibiting symptoms of injury, disease or negative emotion. Frequency healing entrains cells to match the frequency emitted by an instrument or device, putting the body back in harmony. 

The ancient, old-school methods for doing this include drum circles, Tibetan singing bowls, crystal bowls, gongs and many other sound- and vibration-making instruments. More modern takes on this methodology, however, are based on the “new-fangled” research of Nikola Tesla, Royal Rife and Georges Lakhovsky, early 20th-century scientists who experimented with frequencies to observe how they affected the human body. In today’s high-tech world, many healers have rediscovered their findings, incorporating them into devices that bring a tech-centric approach to sound and vibrational healing. 

“Rife showed a long time ago that you can vibrate frequencies that will destroy a bacteria or virus,” says Dr. Adam Breiner, a naturopathic doctor at the Breiner Whole-Body Health Center in Fairfield. Breiner uses a variety of frequency healing therapies in his practice, including BEMER, BioCharger and Pulsed Electromagnetic Field (PEMF) therapy. “We’ve found it helpful with Lyme patients, with people who are fatigued, those who have injuries they want to recover from. We’ve had instances of people with arthritis immediately being able to move their hands more easily, as they stand in front of the BioCharger.”

Breiner says frequency healing technologies have a profound effect across the body and the more a person uses them, the more “charged up” their cells will be, as the treatments have a cumulative effect. 

“Obviously, our cells recharge on their own and you don’t need [these technologies] for that, but at the same time, the sicker you are, the more toxins you have in your environment, the more you burn the candle at both ends, the weaker your cells become,” he says. “Cells that have a lower electric potential tend to be unhealthy cells and that’s when we see symptoms of disease in our bodies.”

AmpCoil

The AmpCoil, the wellness tool which yielded such powerful results for the Whelehans, utilizes sound transmission technology to listen to the messages from your body through voice stress analysis. Its BetterGuide App then uses extensive mathematical algorithms to play back your chosen frequency tunes through a PEMF process and a modified Tesla coil. The manufacturers stress that the technology is meant to help uncover and address the causative influences that detract from overall well-being. 

“Each time you come into it and the more entrained you get, the more in balance your whole bioterrain becomes,” says Whelehan. “It can take several months, depending on how sick you’ve been, but I’ve seen miracles happen all the time.” 

The device looks like a giant donut and its frequencies reach a four-foot radius, so it is most often placed on the lower belly during a session, although it can be placed on specific body parts depending on the issue being addressed. The process is best known for easing symptoms of chronic illness, including Lyme disease and psoriasis, but the PEMF process has been approved by the FDA to help with fractured bones, depression and anxiety. 

“I had a college student come in this summer with Bartonella Lyme, the full gamut, even intermittent blindness,” says Whelehan. “She had about five symptoms and in 10 sessions, she was down to zero. It’s rare, but she was down to no symptoms. For some people it can be quick. For people who have been sick a long time, it takes a bit longer.” 

BEMER

Also based on PEMF, BEMER (Bio-Electric Magnetic Energy Regulation) therapy targets the body’s circulatory system. The device is a mat that can be used to treat the whole body or wrapped around specific body parts for spot treatments. BEMER uses patented frequency protocols to optimize the body’s blood flow by boosting the microcirculation of capillaries, the smallest blood vessels in the body. The technology is used in more than 4,000 medical clinics, hospitals and universities in Europe and has become more common in the U.S. over the past few years. BEMER also was chosen as a cooperative partner for NASA. 

“By integrating BEMER technology into human space flight and assisting in the development of next-generation spacesuits, BEMER will promote healthy circulation both on Earth and in space,” says Tracey Scalzi, a licensed BEMER distributor based in Stamford.

BEMER therapy is recommended to be used daily for optimum results, but many people feel a difference after just one session, according to Scalzi. She notes that some of the results of BEMER therapy are improved blood flow, nutrition and oxygen supply, cellular waste disposal, improved physical fitness, strength, energy, endurance, sleep management, concentration and relaxation, among others. 

BEMER therapy aims to improve circulation, nourishing cells, tissues and organs by boosting their oxygen supply and more efficiently removing metabolic waste. Scalzi experienced the benefits first-hand when she fell during a snowstorm and ripped all the ligaments in her leg: “I used the mat twice a day, along with 20+ spot treatments by wrapping the BEMER pad around my leg. The inflammation came to a head in three days and I was black and blue, then three days later I was completely healed and walking like a champ!”

BEMER is easy to use, as individuals just lie or sit on the mat for eight minutes, twice a day. The manufacturer even makes veterinary kits for use on pets and horses, to alleviate many conditions similar to those it addresses in humans. 

Scalzi, who has seen the technology help clients with fibromyalgia, Lyme disease, ADHD, joint discomforts, open wounds and overall detox, has made it her mission to get the word out about BEMER and is particularly interested in its potential for healthcare and assisted living facilities. “I really want to help some of these people,” she said. “If I had the mat when my grandmother was alive, I’m sure she would have lived at least a few more years.” 

BioCharger

Looking like a cross between a disco ball and a blender, the BioCharger is a software-based, mobile- and cloud-compatible, high-voltage, multi-frequency resonant transformer (actually a modified Tesla coil) that transmits pulsed waves of electromagnetic, electrodynamic and photonic energy. In short, it’s a precise, radiant energy field that delivers energy wirelessly to restore balance in the body.

The device uses hybrid subtle energy to improve health, wellness and athletic performance by restoring strength, stamina, coordination and mental clarity in a 15-minute, non-invasive session.

“When a cell is sick, or not performing well, we know its electrical charge is diminished,” says Breiner. “The BioCharger sends charge through the air to help energize cells and renew their electrical potential. It’s not specifically treating a disease, but rather supplies needed energy to the cells.”

The technology targets the subtle energy field found around all living organisms, similar to the energy field recorded using thermal imaging technology. The BioCharger NG produces a customizable sweep of digitally pulsed electromagnetic fields that bathes the body in a field of bio-compatible frequencies, generating bio-photon light via plasma gas spectrum tubes. The body has the inherent ability to selectively absorb the needed frequencies through each cell of the skin, nerves, muscle connective tissues and organs. The patient simply stands in front of the BioCharger for 15 minutes and often feels changes almost immediately. 

Breiner has observed healing in patients suffering from Lyme disease, other viruses and bacteria, inflammation and autoimmune issues. Additionally, athletes use the device to help muscles and tissues recover faster and some patients use it as an ongoing boost for their cells to maintain energy levels and overall wellness.

“When you combine it with some of the other therapies that we do, such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, altitude contrast training or an IV nutrient drip, it’s just tremendous. When all the cells are working better, they are more receptive to other modalities,” he says.

FSM

Frequency-specific microcurrent (FSM) was developed by Dr. Carolyn McMakin in 1995, based on frequencies developed by an osteopath in Canada who was using a machine built in the 1920s. The frequencies used in FSM are electromagnetic pulses run on two channels at the same time. The frequency addressing the condition is put on channel A and the frequency addressing the particular body tissue runs on channel B. There are frequencies that address more than 200 conditions including inflammation, scar tissue, mineral deposits, toxicity, congestion, trauma and many more.

“It sounds a little out there,” says Lisa Singley, ND, a naturopathic physician at Natural Health and Wellness in Stratford, who uses FSM to enhance other modalities she offers. “When I first tried it, I had a shoulder injury and my shoulder was like concrete; it was hard as a rock. And 45 minutes later, not only were my shoulder muscles completely relaxed—like I had had a massage—but my whole body was relaxed. I remember thinking, I haven’t been this relaxed in five years.” 

Singley says that’s the most common reaction from her clients—that they immediately feel calmer and more relaxed. Like all the devices mentioned here, what a patient actually “feels” during a session varies from individual to individual. Some have no physical sensations, whereas others feel a bit of tingling or heat, which indicates the frequencies have identified an area of blockage.

“Some people feel more than others, but the feeling is very subtle,” says Singley. “Because it’s microcurrent, it’s below the pain threshold of your nervous system, so many times people think nothing’s happening; then, after a while, they’ll feel heavy and relaxed. And if you have the correct frequency, shortly after starting, they’ll say the pain feels better.”

The More the Merrier

Frequency healing technologies often work best in concert with other therapies. Scalzi says she uses the BEMER mat in combination with all her other services, including body contouring, Reiki and massage, because it often deepens the effects of the other modalities: “I combine just about everything I do with BEMER therapy because the increased circulation helps clients open up and relax, and I can go in and really work their muscles.” 

Breiner also notes that, in addition to complementing other therapies, these technologies also work well as a general “tune-up,” to maintain energy and keep bodies in balance. “Anything we’re doing—nutrients, herbs—the body is going to be more accepting of it if the cells have their charge.”

Perhaps most importantly, these practitioners all noted that frequency healing technologies are meant to be one tool in an overall wellness routine—they are not substitutes for smart decisions about diet, activity levels and self-care.

“You do have to do other things…you have to be very mindful of what you’re eating, and make sure you’re hydrated,” says Whelehan. “It’s not like you just put the Coil on and everything’s going to be okay. But it helps you start paying more attention to what’s going on in your body, because you become more sensitized.

“At the end of the day, these devices are the medicine of the future because they allow people to take their well-being into their own hands and be empowered.”

Patricia Staino is a freelance writer and editor living in North Carolina, who is also the managing editor of Natural Awakenings’ Fairfield County/Housatonic Valley and Greater Hartford editions.

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