The level of consciousness – mind state for accessing the subconscious.
Have you ever wondered how we can change our subconscious to be our ally and not our enemy? The secret is in brain waves and their characteristics. Scientists have discovered that when our brain is in the alpha state of consciousness, we have open access to our subconscious and we become more creative, our intuition becomes stronger, and we start to learn and remember better.
The first article about electrical phenomena in the brains of monkeys and rabbits was published in the British Medical Journal in 1875.
Our brain cells use electricity for communicating with each other. By watching the cells, a scientist could see the pattern in which the brain is working. Brain waves can be measured with a device called an EEG (electroencephalogram) invented by Hans Berger (21 May 1873 – 1 June 1941). There are five types of these waves. Just like sound frequencies, these waves are measured in Hz. The slower the frequency, the more relaxed you feel.
Gamma Waves (40Hz-70Hz) – State of pure focus. When we are in “gamma mode”, we have great concentration and are using the most of our intellectual capabilities.
Beta Waves (13Hz-30Hz) – You are in a beta state right now, while reading this. Our brain produces beta waves when we do conscious tasks while we are awake and active. It’s also associated with over-thinking and worry. This frequency is dominant throughout the day for most people. While the beta waves have gotten a bad reputation in some meditation circles, you need them in order to think and function consciously.
Alpha Waves (8Hz-12Hz) – The state when you are totally relaxed. An Alpha wave usually appears when we close our eyes and relax, when we meditate or do affirmations. Alpha frequency is considered to be the gateway to deep meditation. Many people are in “alpha mode” when watching TV. Your brain also produces this wave just before you fall asleep and just before you wake up.
At the beginning of deep sleep, alpha disappears and theta comes in.
Theta Waves (4Hz-7Hz) – Theta Waves appears when we are in deep meditation. It has similar benefits as alpha waves, but it’s difficult to focus on one thing while we are in this state, because our attention is scattered. It’s also harder to stay conscious.
Some people consider the theta state to be synonymous with the subconscious mind, as well as a storehouse of creativity. Theta is associated with REM (rapid eye movement) sleep where dreams occur.
Delta waves (1Hz-4Hz) – Delta waves happen in deep sleep and coma. A low carbohydrate diet increases the amount of delta activity and deep sleep. Babies are in delta most of the time. For some reason, adult females have been shown to have more delta wave activity. This is also true for most mammals.
For achieving goals that we have previously set it’s usually necessary to change our beliefs and programs that have controlled our lives, and that is naturally managed in alpha “mode”. That’s when both the left and right hemisphere of the brain are equally active, and that balance is the secret of success. That’s when our intuition and creativity is expressed. We are more focused on ourselves than on the world around us.
In the alpha level of consciousness, we are more physically and mentally relaxed, our immune system is getting better, and we can remember things better. It’s impossible to be under any kind of stress or to worry and think negatively, because, in that case, we wouldn’t be in alpha anymore, we would be in the beta state.
Some people are in an alpha state more than others. Above all, they are the ones that meditate on a regular basis, simply because they manage to consciously reduce the frequency on which their brain works, and that can extend to periods between meditations. Moreover, it’s been discovered that extroverted people function more on alpha waves, and with children, this is the most dominant brain frequency.
However, it’s not recommended to be on “alpha” all the time. If we were mostly in the alpha state, we wouldn’t be able to concentrate on outside stuff, we would constantly dream through the day, our thoughts would be jumping from one thing to the other, and we’d probably feel depressed and tired. We would miss the thrills, and we would certainly be more vulnerable to different kinds of influence, in other words, we would be naïve.
So, what are the ways we can slow our brain frequency?
- Meditation –most types of meditation will get you into the Alpha state, or even Theta.
- Self-hypnosis – Very similar method to meditation in which we get ourselves into a hypnosis Hypnosis is usually connected to the theta level.
- Visualization – As soon as we close our eyes and start imagining some picture, we are slowing our brain waves. Visualization is closely connected to meditation, but can be used separately and you can still get the effects you want.
- Audio simulations – simple process when you are listening to that certain melody, our brain slows his work.
- Yoga –there are a lot of Yoga types, and if you practice them correctly, they will get you into an alpha state for sure.
- Deep breathing – You can achieve alpha brain waves simply by deep breathing.
- Watching TV – not exactly the healthiest and recommended method you can use, but studies have shown that after half an hour of watching TV, our brain is slowly starting to enter “alpha mode”.
You can help yourself achieve your life goals with high focus visualization, and so we really don’t have any reason not to practice some of the techniques I mentioned. Brain waves and their characteristics can help you understand how affirmations work. Let your brain be your friend, not an enemy. Good luck.