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BRAIN IMPROVEMENT REQUIRES FOCUS. TO OBTAIN ABSOLUTE FOCUS, YOU MUST USE MEDITATION!
Meditation is a key component for developing our goal of a healthy, focused, and intelligent brain. We’ve touched on the benefits of soundwave CDs and some aspects of meditation. Now let’s look at a combination of the two. Deep relaxation and focus can stop the stress response and slow your heart rate, calm your breathing and reduce cortisol (the "stress hormone") levels. It will improve your thought control. Many people find meditating difficult to grasp at first, perhaps because our minds aren't used to being completely quiet. Further, it does take some practice to stop thinking about the future, the past, our to-do lists, that jerk at the office, and all of the other things we need to think about in our daily lives. So, is there another way? Studies at the Menninger Clinic determined that brain wave patterns of deep meditative states, especially theta and delta waves, may be experienced by anyone. A researcher at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York discovered a property of the brain that allowed the artificial input of these waves through three-dimensional sound patterns to obtain the meditative states, once only seen in the most experienced monks. The first thing you need to know is that during all 24 hours a day, nerve cells in your brain are generating electrical impulses that fluctuate rhythmically in distinct patterns called brain wave patterns. These patterns closely correlate with your thoughts, your emotions, your state of being, and the functioning of the various systems of your body. Four categories of brain wave patterns are well known. The most rapid is a beta brain wave pattern, the pattern of normal waking consciousness. Beta is associated with concentration, arousal, alertness, and cognition. At their highest,however, most rapid beta levels are associated with anxiety, disharmony, and unease. Thus, the ability to slow yourself down from those levels are beneficial. As you become more relaxed, your brain wave activity slows into what is called an alpha brain wave pattern. Alpha patterns vary from deep alpha, a state of deep relaxation often referred to as the twilight state between sleep and waking, to the higher end of alpha which is a more focused yet still very relaxed state. When you are absorbed in a good book (or a television program) you are probably in alpha, which is often associated with what is known as "superlearning"—the ability to learn, process, store, and recall large amounts of information quickly and efficiently. The next deeper level is the theta wave. Theta is best known as the brain wave state of dreaming sleep. It is also associated with a number of other beneficial states, including increased creativity, increased memory abilities, and what are called integrative experiences (in which we make broadly-based positive changes in the way we see ourselves, others, or a certain life situation). Out-of-the-blue sky experiences, where you suddenly understand something, have an insight, or a great idea comes to you, are almost always accompanied by bursts of theta waves in your brain. Theta is also a state of tremendous stress relief. In the slower theta brain wave pattern, the brain makes lots of relaxing endorphins that really do—as you will see (or rather, feel) when you try it for yourself—melt your stress away. The slowest brain wave pattern is delta, the brain wave pattern of dreamless sleep. Generally, people are asleep in delta, but there is evidence that it is possible to remain alert in this state—a very deep, trance-like, non-physical state that you will have to experience to appreciate. In certain delta frequencies the brain releases many highly beneficial substances, including human growth hormone, which we ordinarily make in decreasing quantities as we get older. That decreasing production may lead to many aging symptoms, including loss of muscle tone, increased weight gain, loss of stamina, and many diseases associated with aging. So, how are we able to use three-dimensional CDs to help us reach these relaxed brain wave patterns? One option is an audio program named Holosync from Centerpointe, Inc. In theory as we slow the brain waves from beta to alpha to theta to delta using Holosync, there is a corresponding increase in balance between the two hemispheres of the brain. This increased balanced brain state is called brain synchrony, or brain synchronization. As the brain waves slow and the brain balances, you tap into what scientists’ call "whole-brain thinking", or whole-brain functioning. Whole-brain thinking occurs when we are using both sides of the brain to think, instead of using one side at a time, as we usually do. It is like thinking in stereo and is associated with increased creativity, insight, learning ability and problem solving ability. Holosync works by providing a combination of certain tones at precise frequencies, set beneath calming music, and environmental sounds. Listened to with quality headphones, these sounds help you experience the brain wave patterns of deep meditation. You simply buy the CDs and listen to the three-dimensional binaural beats, using a good set of headphones to block out all external noise and increase the soundwave impulse reception. You start your meditation with Holosync's Awakening Prologue CD for a half hour per day, then after a couple weeks you increase to an hour a day. As you progress into higher levels of meditation practice, Holosync offers a more intensive program that moves you to such a deep meditative state that your left and right brain hemispheres will equalize causing whole brain thought in your everyday lives. Usually, it takes 20 to 30 years to obtain this state through traditional meditation methods. Now you able to accomplish the deepest level much sooner and receive almost immediate benefits in the earlier stages of practice. This is, in my opinion, the absolute best meditation practice available. It is not free, however, and may be out of reach for many. If you can afford this highly respected and successful program, I highly recommend it.HOLOSYNC'S PROGRAM |