Brainwave entrainment is a method to stimulate the brain into entering a specific state by using a pulsing sound, light, or electromagnetic field. The pulses elicit the brain’s ‘frequency following’ response, encouraging the brainwaves to align to the frequency of a given beat.
alpha waves meditation | peace meditation
Keeping your body’s energy system flowing smoothly is key to a happy, healthy life and there is nothing that moves your energy faster than music.
Listening to my favorite songs never fails to make me feel good. And when I’m feeling good, my vibration increases and I emit positive energy.
Music can have a powerful influence on your heart rate, breathing, emotions and even brain power. It is listed as the fourth stimuli which the mind responds most freely to in Napolean Hill’s book, Think and Grow Rich.
Because of music’s profound effect on your body and psyche, it is an excellent way to raise your vibration.
Listening to music that resonates with you in a positive way can shift your mood, helping you to release negative thought patterns and raise your vibration.
Whether you are listening to music, playing an instrument or singing, it all works to uplift you to a positive, high vibrational place if you are enjoying it.
Don’t tolerate music that doesn’t make you feel good because it will lower your vibration. Positive lyrics are definitely a plus but not always necessary. When I hear B.B. King sing The Thrill is Gone, I am more focused on the sounds of the guitar and the magic of his voice than I am on the lyrics. It never fails to make me smile, and moves my spirit in the most wonderful way.
If the music resonates with you and it makes you feel good, you will be in a higher vibrational place.
Research has shown that music can have the following physical effects:
Brain Waves: Brainwave activity changes – a strong beat stimulates brainwaves to resonate in sync with the rhythm, which brings sharper concentration and more alert thinking, and a slower tempo promotes a calm, meditative state.
Breathing and Heart Rate: Both can be altered by music – which can mean slower breathing, and slower heart rate, and an activation of the relaxation response. This is why music can be an excellent prevention against the damaging effects of chronic stress, greatly promoting relaxation and contribute to good health.
State of Mind: Music can help keep depression and anxiety at bay by bringing a more positive state of mind. It can also promote higher levels of optimism and creativity, which brings many other benefits such as boosting immunity, easing muscle tension, and lowering blood pressure.
Music can be used in the following ways:
Relaxation: It promotes relaxation of tense muscles, helping to dissolve stress, and enabling you to release some of the tension from a stressful day.
Meditation: It can help you get into a zone – a meditative state – when practicing yoga, self hypnosis or guided imagery.
Positive Focus: Music, especially upbeat tunes, can help you feel more optimistic and positive, taking your mind off what stresses you.
Affirmations: Affirming lyrics can help you create more positive self talk, by surrounding you with positive energy and helping you to look on the bright side.
Below are a few of my favorite “feel good” songs. If you are not familiar with any of them, I highly recommend you check them out on YouTube and enjoy the good vibes they evoke! Happy listening!
Three Little Birds – Bob Marley
Don’t Worry, Be Happy – Bobby McFerrin
Sound of Sunshine – Michael Franti
Say hey – Michael Franti
True to Myself – Ziggy Marley
Free – Donavon Frankenreiter
Life is Beautiful – Keb’ Mo’
If You Want to Sing Out – Cat Stevens
Bright Side of the Road – Van Morrison
Blue Sky – The Allman Brothers Band
Sunshine on My Shoulders – John Denver
I’m Alright – Little Anthony and the Imperials
Don’t Look Back – Mick Jagger & Peter Tosh
Shout – Isley Brothers
Living in the Moment – Jason Mraz
Brainwave entrainment is a method to stimulate the brain into entering a specific state by using a pulsing sound, light, or electromagnetic field. The pulses elicit the brain’s ‘frequency following’ response, encouraging the brainwaves to align to the frequency of a given beat.
This ‘frequency following’ response of brainwave entrainment can be seen in action with those prone to epilepsy. If a strobe flashes at their seizure frequency, the brain will ‘entrain’ to the flashing light, resulting in a seizure.
On the positive side, this same mechanism is commonly used to induce many brainwave states; such as a trance, enhanced focus, relaxation, meditation or sleep induction. The brainwave entrainment effectively pushes the entire brain into a certain state.
Brainwave entrainment works for almost everyone. It is a great way to lead your mind into states that you might usually have difficulty reaching, allowing you to experience what those states feel like.
THE HYPE
There is a lot of marketing hype around brainwave entrainment. It is sold with promises of increasing IQ, promoting weight loss, ‘mind-tripping’, enhancing creativity, concentration, inducing spiritual states and more.
While these claims are not entirely true, they are not altogether false either. In practice, the claims are based on an overly-simplistic view of how the brain and the brainwaves function.
THE RUB
People are very seldom deficient in a certain brainwave type in all areas of their brain. Usually the distribution is much spottier, with an excess in one area and a deficiency in another.
We are all different, especially when it comes to the distribution of our brainwaves. Boosting a certain brainwave state may be beneficial for one person, and emotionally uncomfortable for another. Without knowing each person’s starting position, entrainment can be rather ‘hit and miss’.
If brainwave entrainment leaves you with unwanted side-effects (see below) or discomfort, you’re probably encouraging a range of brainwaves that are already excessive in some area of your brain. The way around this is to get a brain map to see what your brain’s strengths and weaknesses are, and see what (if any) brainwaves could use some encouragement.