By: GoodpalStress is unfortunately more common than it should be. No one likes it but no one can avoid it either. In excessive amounts, it can lead to several life threatening diseases and conditions. Stress is not something that happens to you, it results from the psycho-physiological reaction of your brain to what is happening in and around you. Your brain talks to you through the brain waves, reflecting its current status.
Beta brain waves (13 - 30 Hz) accompany your normal activities during the day. There is nothing inherently wrong with them. However, at high beta frequencies you are in mental states associated with anxiety, stress, and general sense of unease and tension. At still higher frequencies, you will have difficulty to think and focus clearly and you are likely to make bad decisions. This is how stress can "burn-out" people alive.
At higher frequencies the brain cells and neurons begin to fire wildly and chaotically, leading to a highly disorganized and unfocused state of mind. If the brain wave frequencies go up any further, you are running the risk of nervous breakdown. Furthermore, at the high beta frequencies, the brain waves from the two brain hemispheres get increasingly out of phase.
Your Anti-Stress Brain Waves - Alpha Waves
Alpha waves vibrate in the range, 7 - 13 Hz. These are present when you are alert and relaxed, and not actively thinking. These waves are mentally integrative. They are often thought to provide the bridge between the conscious and subconscious parts of your mind.
Alpha waves rise from the white matter of your brain and are related to the highly desirable experience of "whole brain thinking". You can deliberately boost alpha waves by closing your eyes or deep breathing.
At lower brain wave frequencies both sides of the brain start to work in sync and communicate better with each other. The neurons and the brain cells begin to operate harmoniously in a coordinated manner. When this happens, you feel a sense of calm; the situation appears more manageable and you begin to feel in control.
How to Strengthen Alpha Waves
We all know very well know how relaxing it feels when we are near a waterfall or at a beach, because the natural sounds have a relaxing effect on the brain. So many people hear recordings of natural sounds - jungle, flowing river, ocean waves, waterfall, gongs - and find that relaxing.
Now neuro-acoustic technology has taken this observation a step further and has come up with recordings that offer you an amazingly simpler way to relax. The natural sounds are embedded with special sub-audio frequencies, known as binaural beats, monaural beats, or isochronic. These beats or tones have a direct effect on the brain waves, although they are not perceptible to your ears.
So, what happens when you hear such music? Your brain waves tend to resonate at the frequency of the beats - this is called brain wave entrainment. If you change the frequency of the beats, the brain wave frequencies shift towards it in response. In simple terms, the brain waves obediently follow the beat frequency. This is no mean achievement; it gives you the "remote" to control your brain waves!
For instance, a 10 Hz beat will help shift your brain waves to 10 Hz which is in the alpha brain wave region, 7 - 13 Hz. This happens automatically, all you have to do is to play the music and let yourself go with it. Within minutes you will be in the company of alpha wave - and relaxing effortlessly.
Music created by brain wave entrainment technology is also helping people in a variety of manner besides instant stress reduction, such as meditation, lucid dreaming, enhanced memory and creativity, and even higher states of consciousness.
No comments:
Post a Comment