What About Brain Entrainment?

Meditation Monk

In a previous blog post, we talked about isochronic tones being used instead of binaural beats in brain entrainment.  Remember, brain entrainment is about training the brain to produce brainwaves that will induce relaxation, healing, anxiety reduction etc by listening to sounds at particular frequencies and then producing brain waves at those frequencies for itself.

The reason the change to isochronic tones came about is because for a long time there were only binaural beats. And then scientists discovered through research that the brain gets bored with binaural beats and stops paying attention to them. Isochronic tones then made an appearance and, because they are intermittent sounds with unexpected breaks or pauses, the brain does not get bored with hearing them.

Recurrent meditation sessions with isochronic tones have a major positive psychological impact in terms of relieving stress and propagating a feeling of all-round relaxation. Moreover, concentration improves which has a holistic impact going beyond meditation sessions alone and into every-day life.

This psychological boost in turn has a significant positive impact on your ongoing wellbeing, producing a physiological boost and reducing stress and tension.

Now the good thing is that it only takes the brain 6 or 7 minutes of listening to the sound frequencies to induce it to start producing its own brainwaves at these frequencies.  So you can be in a state of reduced anxiety or deeply relaxed in less than 10 minutes.  Doesn’t that sound like something you could enjoy?  Why not try a short Alpha meditation for yourself:

Alpha frequencies put you in a relaxed, daydreamy state.

Many meditation tracks await you on Meditation Monk.  We look forward to seeing you soon

The Use of Isochronic Tones in Meditation

Meditation Monk

Meditation clearly requires a completely focused state of mind, free of distractions.

Yes, initially it seems a little tough but with time (and practice!) it gets much easier to stay focused consistently while meditating.

It’s in this context that isochronic tones have proven to be especially useful. So what exactly are isochronic tones?

Well, before I get into what isochronic tones are, it would be useful to bear in mind that they are not binaural beats ie they do not require a different frequency to be played into each ear.

Instead, isochronic tones play a sound pulse to both ears simultaneously. Unlike binaural beats where the resultant brainwave entrainment occurs thanks to the sub harmonic binaural frequency that is created, with isochronic tones an entrainment response comes with the tempo of the sound being played.  In layman’s terms, listening to the sound played at a particular frequency causes the brain to repeat the frequency by creating waves in the same range, thus entraining the brain.

In the case of isochronic tones, this brainwave entrainment is particularly pronounced since there is a direct stimulation of the thalamus, thanks to the stark contrast between the sound pulses and the intermittent silences that the brain perceives.

Typically, isochronic tones have varying tempos, with faster ones more easily leading the brain to a higher frequency as opposed to those with slower tempos.

The end result is that there is a more direct impact on the mind as far as getting into a meditative state is concerned. After all, there is only a single tone being played at a time which makes auditory processing simpler and more straightforward. This is a major reason why isochronic tones are popular for meditating.

Moreover, with isochronic tones playing only a single tone at a time as mentioned, there is no compulsion for headphone usage unlike binaural beats. Although, having said that, we would recommend that you do use them.  People around you may not want to hear calming or relaxing sound frequencies …

At the same time, it is also true that this experience of listening to a monotone repeatedly may not be a very pleasant one. That is the reason MeditationMonk often combines a variety of ambient sounds such as soothing music or sounds of nature, along with the isochronic tones, which provides a more pleasurable listening experience.

Here is a link to one of our Day Dream meditations which has an Alpha frequency through it.  Listening to it should make you feel as though you’re daydreaming, so don’t listen to it if you have to do anything else, like drive or operate machinery.

Try it for yourself, and let us know in the comments what you think.

What Do You Do When You Meditate?

Meditation Monk

Rather than fighting whatever might occur during meditation, make an effort to accept this is the way things are at this time. It’s not uncommon to fall asleep when you meditate, particularly in the event you do it lying down.

If we look at mindfulness meditation, for instance, it can be defined in a lot of ways and may be used for a range of unique therapies. It involves the process of developing the skill of bringing one’s attention to whatever is happening in the present moment.

Meditation delivers a chance to observe lots of the things which are happening in our minds all of the time without our awareness, so just beginning to become conscious of them is important in itself. Hence, mindfulness meditation enhances one’s capacity to see with clarity the types of emotions and feelings that spring up in the mind with some level of detachment. It can also be used as a means to develop self-knowledge and wisdom.

As you begin the practice of meditation, whether mindfulness or any other form, you develop an awareness of your entire body and a feeling of where you’re at, then you start to observe the breathing.  Regular practice has been proven to have a positive impact on your overall wellness and decrease stress levels significantly. Research even suggests that the custom can slow the aging process. It is easy, accessible and effective for everyone.

The tradition of meditation has been thought to supply numerous therapeutic advantages to people with psychosis, and could also be a preventive strategy to halt the growth of mental health issues.

Individuals can often lack understanding of what motivates them, the character of their reactions and feelings, and even, occasionally, what they’re actually thinking about. If this sounds like you, something you can do is to learn simple meditation methods that you are able to apply in daily life. By developing them, you will be in a position to look deeply into the essence of your own reality.

At the basis of the practice of meditation is the growth of concentration and mindfulness. Frequent practice will allow you to reap the benefits of your practice when you require it. So go forth and meditate!

How Much of A Perfectionist Are You?

Meditation Monk

All over the world people are struggling with stress: work stress, family stress, life stress. And this is exacerbated for people suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression etc. It’s easy to say relax, unwind. Not so easy to do.

As I worked with clients, both through hypnosis and coaching, I realised that people needed something to take away with them. Something for when I wasn’t around.  Something they could do when they wanted to relax, unwind, de-stress. Something that wasn’t alcohol or pills.

I had started using colouring with a few younger clients, all male, who didn’t want to talk directly about how they felt. So I created mandalas and gave them coloured pencils. This turned out to be an excellent way to get them to open up while taking the focus off them.

From there, I started using colouring pages with other clients. Soon, grown adults could be seen marching out my door, clutching colouring sheets and pencils!

My clients are not traditional colourers, although to be fair, who is? The men in particular are not fans of paisley patterns or cute little animals.  As one said, it’s hard enough walking around in public carrying a colouring book or going into a shop and buying one without actually sitting down and colouring something like a kid.  So I made blocked patterns for them, designs taken from a section of a mandala and extrapolated.

Here is an image of a work in progress from one of my clients, taken from https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/cooldoodledesigns :

Sitting down with paper and colouring pencils or pens allows us to spend time on ourselves, relaxing, focusing only on the image in front of us. We can feel the stress slipping away as we switch off our phones, TV, landline, laptop, tablet, whatever electronic device we would otherwise be using, and just contemplate that picture. What colours to use? Which pens or pencils? For the perfectionists amongst us, starting with colouring sheets or pages is a great idea, because we can download and print off/photocopy multiple times so if we decide, two colours in, that we don’t like it, we can start again with a fresh page. Once we’ve developed a style, or gained more practice, we can move on to a book. This is the way I work with my perfectionist clients, who otherwise would never start, or stress themselves out further trying to create the perfect image before they even put pencil to paper.

So if you are a perfectionist, try starting small, map out what you want the end result to look like, and then set off on your journey.  Remembering, it’s perfect as you go, not perfect as you go!

The Quick and Easy Way to Reduce Stress and Anxiety Using only Paper and Pencil

Meditation Monk

Well here we are in a new year, already well under way and we’re back into the swing of things. How did that happen!  It’s like we get to go round again every year, but hopefully learning different lessons each time.

Now I don’t know about you, but I love the idea that there are patterns within patterns, and I use the concept when working with clients: Here we have a mandala, you can see the shape. Put it under a kaleidoscope and suddenly there are dozens, hundreds of different patterns we didn’t notice before. Unseen to the naked eye, yet there when we are able to see them. I use this as a metaphor for the lives we think we have, versus the lives that are available for us to have. Powerful stuff!

Then when we’ve looked at some different patterns, we do some colouring: maybe some shading, maybe pastel colours.  And we can do it while listening to meditation music too.

I have worked with people who feel overwhelmed just looking at a whole page of colouring.  This can be a characteristic of perfectionism. There is no need to colour everything at once. In fact, I advocate spending only half an hour a day colouring. Half an hour is a perfect time to just spend on yourself, by yourself, for yourself. Give it a try and see.

Colouring can be a quick and easy way to destress, unwind, relax, be more creative and just generally have fun. For those who like to be sociable, try group colouring sessions. Invite your friends over and each take the same page but use different colours. Or share a page, with each person using one colour on a particular part of the image. Like book club for people who don’t want to spend time reading a whole book.

So jump onboard the colouring craze, get yourself some sheets, pages or even a book. There are so many on the market at the moment, get something that appeals to you: paisley patterns, gardens, forests, oceans, animals, blocked patterns… or try one of my Crop Circle Pattern books from https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/cooldoodledesigns

Give it a go and bring a little more calm, a little more relaxation, into your life.