What is Biofield Tuning?
Biofield Tuning is a sound-based therapeutic modality that uses calibrated tuning forks to identify and address energetic disturbances in the human biofield—the electromagnetic field that surrounds and permeates the physical body. Practitioners use precisely calibrated tuning forks to identify and clear disturbances in the human biofield, working from several inches to six feet off the body. The practice operates on the premise that the biofield stores information about life experiences, including trauma, stress, and emotional patterns, and that coherent sound frequencies can help resolve energetic dissonance, supporting the body’s natural capacity for self-regulation.
Origins & Lineage
Biofield Tuning was developed by researcher Eileen Day McKusick beginning in the early 1990s. McKusick has been studying the effects of sound on the human body and its electromagnetic system since 1996, when she began experimenting with tuning forks in her massage practice. She mapped the biofield from 2006-2010 and proposed in her 2012 Masters Thesis that memories and energetic blueprints are encoded in biomagnetic fields. McKusick holds an MA in Integrative Education from Northern Vermont University, where she completed her master’s thesis, Exploring the Effects of Audible Sound on the Human Body.
Her many hours spent listening deeply to the sonic interactions of tuning forks with the body led to her uncovering the anatomy and physiology of the human energy field and the creation of the Biofield Anatomy Map. Through systematic exploration and documentation, McKusick discovered that different areas of the field correlate with different time periods in a person’s life, and that these areas respond distinctly to the introduction of coherent sound frequencies.
McKusick began teaching Biofield Tuning in 2010, and has trained over 2,000 students worldwide. She founded the Biofield Tuning Institute, which conducts grant-funded, peer-reviewed and published research on the human biofield in partnership with other research organizations. Her work is documented in two books: Tuning the Human Biofield: Healing with Vibrational Sound Therapy (2014) and Electric Body, Electric Health (2021).
How It’s Practiced
A typical Biofield Tuning session involves a client lying on a massage table while a practitioner uses weighted and unweighted tuning forks both on the body and in the surrounding energy field. Three of the weighted forks are based on the frequency of 7.83 Hz, the baseline background electromagnetic pulse within the earth’s atmosphere, called the Schumann Resonance. The non-weighted forks include 174Hz and 528Hz (Solfeggio frequencies), used predominately in the biofield as the practitioner “combs and columns” stuck energies and emotions.
The basic session begins with the client lying face up on a massage table, with the practitioner adopting what is called “Hollow Bone” to eliminate any personal influence over perception—a grounding technique intended to settle the practitioners own emotional state and neutralize personal energy. The practitioner scans the biofield by moving a tuning fork slowly through the energy field surrounding the body, with distorted or “stuck” areas identified as changes in tone, vibration, or resonance, holding the tuning fork in these areas until the energy shifts.
Weighted forks are used both by placing the handles of the vibrating forks on the body and for combing through the field. The process helps get the noise and resistance out of the body’s electrical system, which in turn relaxes muscles and the vascular and lymph systems; using the handles of weighted forks in a sliding motion helps improve muscle tone and release fascia restriction, and as patterns of tension are released, previously frozen energy returns to circulation.
Biofield Tuning Today
McKusick began teaching Biofield Tuning in 2010 and has since trained over 2,000 students, with the organization now having a team of 15 teachers and hundreds of certified practitioners worldwide. The modality is offered through a four-level training structure: Level 1 teaches fundamentals, Level 2 provides certification training, both available in-person or online, with Level 2 preparing students to work with clients and open their own practice.
Practitioners integrate Biofield Tuning into various healing contexts. Many practitioners use Biofield Tuning as an adjunct with other modalities such as massage, Reiki, acupuncture, yoga and craniosacral therapy. Sessions are available both in-person and remotely via video platforms. A minimum of three sessions is recommended to begin, with presenting symptoms often cleared within three sessions.
Research on the modality is ongoing. In December 2020, the Biofield Tuning Institute partnered with the Consciousness and Healing Initiative to enroll 15 volunteers with clinical anxiety in a feasibility study to receive 3 distance Biofield Tuning sessions, one hour a week for 3 weeks. The feasibility study demonstrated the power of Biofield Tuning to profoundly reduce anxiety in just three sessions, and at a distance. However, research specifically on Biofield Tuning is still developing, and the practice is considered complementary to, not a replacement for, evidence-based medical care.
Common Misconceptions
Biofield Tuning is not a substitute for conventional medical treatment or psychotherapy. While practitioners and clients report various subjective benefits, the scientific evidence base remains preliminary. While anecdotal evidence and individual testimonials have long supported the efficacy of Biofield Tuning, case studies and preliminary clinical research reporting positive outcomes are often preliminary and highlight the need for more rigorous, controlled studies.
The practice should not be confused with other tuning fork therapies that assign specific frequencies to particular chakras or body points. Biofield Tuning doesn’t hold to the belief that only one frequency can relate to one zone on the body; rather, the modality teaches that any coherent frequency will support and help regulate areas of disharmony on any part of the body, allowing practitioners to work more efficiently with fewer tools.
Biofield Tuning is distinct from passive sound bath experiences. It involves active assessment and intervention in the energy field, and sometimes people experience detox-like symptoms 24-48 hours post-session, though the opposite may also occur shortly after a session, where clients experience more energy, vitality, and clarity of mind. There are no age limits, however less is more with both seniors (over age 65) and children; children between ages 2-6 can become very hyperactive after sessions, and 30-minute sessions are offered for seniors and children 13 and under.
How to Begin
Those interested in experiencing Biofield Tuning can seek certified practitioners through the Biofield Tuning Institute directory at biofieldtuning.com. Sessions are available both in-person and remotely. For self-practice, McKusick’s book Tuning the Human Biofield: Healing with Vibrational Sound Therapy provides the foundational framework, while Electric Body, Electric Health explores the broader context of biofield science and electromagnetic health.
For those wishing to train as practitioners, the Level 1 Fundamentals course offers an accessible entry point, available both online and in-person. The training requires specific tuning forks—weighted forks based on Schumann Resonance frequencies and unweighted Solfeggio forks—which are available through the Biofield Tuning store. Self-guided audio sessions created by McKusick offer another way to explore the modality from home before committing to practitioner training or private sessions.