Your brainwaves are crucial to your performance and wellbeing
"I was learning that brain waves relate to everything, and that control of brain waves had life and death implications...implications for the quality of life. Any experience you can have has a specific underlying brain activity associated with it. If you can control your brain activity, then you can control your life and your experiences in life."
Dr. James Hardt, summarising his 25 years of neurological research
While NeuroSonica helps promote better brain fitness and function using a variety of scientific audio technologies, one of its primary aims is to safely encourage beneficial brainwave patterns. Brainwaves are basically waves of electrical impulses continually in motion throughout your brain. Your main brainwave types in descending order - fastest to slowest - are: gamma, beta, sensory motor rhythms (SMR), alpha, theta, delta and sub-delta. Each pulsates within a particular range of frequencies measured in Hz or cycles per second. An EEG (electroencephalograph) measures these frequencies within the brain and records them as brainwave patterns. An EEG 'brain map' from one of our sessions is on our home page..
• Your dominant brainwave patterns determine your overall state of mind/consciousness
"Brain waves symbolize various dimensions of our consciousness...". Eric R. Braverman, M.D.
Like an orchestra, your brain is constantly producing a suite of various rhythmic brainwave frequencies. At any given time, depending on what you're doing mentally, emotionally or physically , you will always be more dominant in some brainwave patterns than others. These different combinations of brainwaves will influence your state of mind and emotions, making you alert or sleepy ,determine whether you are producing calming neurochemicals or stressful ones and so on.
• Your brainwaves can get ‘Out of Balance’
A major key to healthy and optimal brain functioning is the brains ability to access appropriate brainwave activity for any given task. For example, if you are wide awake but want to sleep your brain will need to start increasing its slower brainwave frequencies of alpha, theta and delta. On the other hand, if you need to be alert and focused but are feeling sleepy, it will need to 'shift gear' up and away from these slow waves into the faster brainwave patterns of beta.
Unfortunately, for many of us, changing ' gear' into brainwave patterns more suited to any given task or function is not always easy or automatic. In fact many of our common problems and conditions occur because we habitually overproduce some brainwave patterns while under-producing others that may be more suitable - whether that be for sleep or concentration for an exam!
Not surprisingly any brainwave imbalance can greatly affect our day to day well being and performance levels. Fortunately, brainwave balance can be restored using technologies like NeuroSonica.
For example, clinical research shows that those with clinical depression (a so called ‘slow wave’ condition) typically produce too much of the slow wave Theta (especially during the day - which makes them tired and sluggish) and can be assisted by training their brain to produce more of the faster brainwave Beta. People with insomnia need brain wave training in the slower frequencies and so on.
• Many of us are "Alpha Challenged" - too low in alpha waves
Another common imbalance, especially amongst those who do shift work or have very stressful lives is a lack of alpha. Normally, a period of soothing alpha precedes and follows sleep - that very pleasant half-awake half-asleep state where things forgotten are often remembered, new insights and ideas arise and so on. Those who wake to alarm clocks (aptly named) rather than slowly and naturally awaking are often deprived of this important frequency as they are 'rocketed' from deep theta/delta sleep states into high beta - bypassing the highly beneficial alpha frequencies. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, mid - high beta is typically associated with high anxiety and stress states (and always avoided in our sessions)!
The other side of this common scenario is that come time to sleep, people in this situation often 'crash out' (sometimes in front of a TV) into deep sleep - once again bypassing most of this important and beneficial frequency. Hence it is safe to say that a great many of us in today's stressful and demanding life are "alpha challenged"!
All NeuroSonica suites include significant amounts of alpha.
• The key to healthy brainwave functioning is range, balance and flexibility
As you now know, all our brainwave frequencies have an important role to play, and a broad range of available frequencies, balance, and flexibility are important for overall brain fitness.
Ideally we need to be able to freely switch between brainwaves in order to access the frequencies best suited to the requirements of any given situation.
Problems ensue when any one frequency becomes 'fixed' as the predominant wave regardless of the task or functions at hand. For example, if you have insomnia and your mind is racing , you are probably dominant in a fast, alert beta brainwave frequency when what you need for sleep is to be producing the slower, more relaxing alpha or theta waves.
Research consistently suggests those individuals capable of altering their brainwave patterns accordingly to engage in a given task i.e. being able to easily 'slip into' a state of heightened concentration or deep relaxation as needed, will enjoy significant control over their mental, emotional and physiological functioning.
And, fortunately...
