Vibroacoustic therapy
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JIM MEANS POSES next to Echoasis Healing, which opened this week. Photo by Ben Crane.
Echoasis Healing in Tuscola combining frequency, energy, and emotional wellness
By Ben Crane
In a softly lit room filled with subtle vibrations and the hum of ambient frequencies, clients at Echoasis Healing are discovering a new way to relieve anxiety, improve sleep, and reconnect with themselves.
Echoasis, a wellness business newly opened in Tuscola by retired pipefitter Jim Means, specializes in vibroacoustic therapy — a method of holistic healing that blends sound frequency, vibration, and meditation to help balance both body and mind. But for Means, the path to opening Echoasis wasn’t exactly straight.
“This was kind of a weird transition,” he said. “I come from the piping trades industry. I’m a retired union pipefitter. But I’ve always read a lot — self-improvement books, spiritual texts — and that slowly got me into the world of quantum healing.”
That world, Means explained, is grounded in the idea that all matter — including the human body — is essentially energy held together by frequency. Through vibroacoustic therapy, he seeks to harness those frequencies to affect not only the physical body but the subconscious mind.
“When you look at an atom under a microscope, it doesn’t behave like we thought it did,” he said. “There’s this ‘observation effect’ — the act of observing it changes how it behaves. That blew my mind.”
A strong influence on Means’ understanding of the connection between energy, thought, and healing has been Dr. Joe Dispenza, author of Becoming Supernatural and Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself. Means said these concepts helped him shift his own thinking from one of anxiety to one of anticipation — and eventually pushed him toward entrepreneurship.
He also credits personal tragedy with shaping his perspective. His son died by suicide more than a decade ago, a moment that Means said changed everything.
“It’s hard to remember anything else about someone after something like that happens, because that one traumatic event becomes the emotional attachment,” Means said. “So I started looking for a way to remember the full person again — the good, the bad, all of it.”
At Echoasis, clients recline on a sound lounger covered with a weighted blanket, a sash over their eyes, and soft vibrations pulsing through their body. Each session is customized based on the individual’s needs, which can range from insomnia and chronic pain to emotional trauma and stress. Means consults a “frequency menu” to match the right hertz to each person’s symptoms or goals.
While he avoids making medical claims, Means said the physical effects of vibroacoustic therapy are well documented: improved circulation, lymphatic drainage, lower blood pressure, and even relief from symptoms of COPD and cystic fibrosis when the vibrations help loosen congestion.
On the mental and emotional side, the results can be even more profound.
“Some people come out of it and say they saw colors, or they felt like they were floating in water. Others experience something deeply personal — like reconnecting with a loved one they’ve lost,” Means said. “It’s all subjective. Everyone’s experience is different.”
Clients are asked to fill out an intake form before their session, where they note any health issues and areas of concern. Means keeps a detailed log of every session — the frequency used, the client’s reported experience, and any reactions afterward. Since opening in early March, he’s already completed more than 120 sessions.
“Most people are looking for help with sleep, anxiety, or pain,” he said. “But ultimately, I think what we’re offering is something even more basic: time. A moment to disconnect from the outside world and reconnect with yourself.”
Means sees vibroacoustic therapy as a catalyst for achieving what he calls “mind-body coherence.” That harmony, he believes, helps align the body’s natural healing abilities and may even prevent more serious health issues tied to chronic stress and trauma.
“Animals go into fight-or-flight when there’s danger, but as soon as the threat’s gone, they go right back to grazing,” Means said. “Humans — we stay in fight-or-flight. We hold onto our trauma, our stress. We never come back to that homeostasis. That’s what I think this therapy helps with.”
And while Means remains grounded in the science of energy and vibration, he acknowledges there’s something spiritual about the experience too.
“I’ve had religious leaders in here who loved it,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what you believe — God, Buddha, the universe. What connects us all is that belief in something greater. And this, in its own way, connects us to that.”
For Means, vibroacoustic therapy is more than just relaxation — it’s transformation.
“Manifestation isn’t about wishing,” he said. “It’s about believing so fully in something that you create it. This space, this business, this healing — I manifested this. And I want to help other people realize they can do the same.”
