How to use your own brain waves to combat A.D.D.
What is the problem with A.D.D. sufferers as related to brain waves?
HERTZ
Brain waves are measured using an EEG, which stands for electroencephalograph. Everyone's brain generates these waves. The EEG is simply a device that can display the waves, and their corresponding strengths.
Normally - when a NON ADD person is focused or concentrating, the BETA waves are higher, and the THETA waves are lower. We know now from studying EEG results that ADD folks don't achieve the right (high enough) level of the BETA brain waves. To understand this, lets look at the different types of waves.
Theta Waves are associated with the subconscious. They are related to emotions, memory and other "sensations". The Theta wave is in the 5-8 hertz range, and is associated with light sleep and sometimes the REM dream state. Some illegal drugs raise the theta waves.
Alpha waves are a bit less abstract, and they are associated with an "idle"' state. Watching TV raises the alpha waves. The brain uses alpha waves to "give a break" to parts of the brain not currently in use. Alpha waves increase when you close your eyes. All in all its not a good place to be if your goal is to focus or concentrate.
Beta Brain waves are the ones we are interested in here. Beta goes up (in a normal person) during work or play. They are associated with motivation, logical thinking, and feeling "in the moment". This is our goal for the ADD sufferer.
Terrance A. Bastian noted that "This range is between 7-8 hertz and this is not so surprising when you learn that the resonant frequency of the earth and ionosphere is approximately 7.5 hertz. Our brains evolved within this dynamic field and used it as a standard to function on."
So to review:
Theta: You are drowsy or sleeping
Alpha: You are daydreaming, relaxed, or watching tv. Your brain is in neutral.
Beta: You are focused, and alert, and motivated.
It has been shown that ADD sufferers lack beta, and sometimes have higher alpha and theta waves.
So, then, it is our goal to increase beta waves right?
What are the possible solutions and their pros and cons?
- Drug therapy
It is interesting to note, that certain drugs (ritalin, caffeine, and other stimulants) increase beta waves. This is why they are frequently used to treat ADD. Of course these drugs work, because they do accomplish the intended goal. But many people go off the drugs because of the side effects. These can include restlessness, nervousness, anxiety, headache, dizziness, and a host of other problems, including abnormal thoughts or hallucinations.
Also alot of these drugs cause a crash when they wear off, resulting in a "low".
- Medical Bio-Feedback
There has been much reported and documented success with bio-feedback. Bio feedback can be done in your doctors office, where they will connect you to an EEG and read your brain waves. They will have you do various tasks, or play a video game or read something while connected. They will look at your brain waves while you do this and take preliminary notes.
Then they turn the screen around and let you see them, and show you how to change them, all the while you are watching the screen. After a few sessions, you learn how to change your brain waves, increasing the beta - without the EEG machine.
Cons include: expense, and time, and you have to go back if you ever "loose it" or forget how to control the waves.
Brain wave entrainment
Entrainment means - simply put, when two rhythms that have almost the same frequency become coupled to each other so that they end up with the same rhythm.
This was discovered in 1665 by A Dutch scientist (Christian Huygens). He had a room full of clocks, and started them all up, one at a time. One day later, when he re-entered the room, all of the pendulum's sway had synchronized.
Audio brain wave entrainment is using sound and music to create the waves in your brain at will. Audio Entrainment was first discovered at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
Gerald Oster discovered that when different sound frequencies were delivered separately to each ear (stereo headphones), the two hemispheres of the brain come together to "hear" the sound, but they don't hear the two sounds - they hear a 3rd phantom sound, which is the exact mathematical difference between the two sounds. This is called the "Binaural Beat".
So if we are shooting for 8 cycles per second, we would want to introduce a frequency of 100 cycles in one ear, and 109 cycles in the other. You hear a rhythmic pulsing sound, and your brain activity soon matches the sound. Soon your brain is resonating with this "phantom" sound. This is called "Frequency Following Response".
How to Use Your Own Brain Waves to Combat ADD
To learn more or to get a brain entrainment mp3 or CD, Check out electrifly.net, where you can find this and a host of other articles related to training your brain to overcome some of lifes common problems.
HERTZ
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