BrainTraining

Why We Need to Train Our Brains

The Problem

For the most part, we do not use our brains in a highly balanced way. We do many of our physical activities using mainly one side of the body. We develop predominant styles of approaching the world - logical analysis or emotionality. We have tendencies in our relationships - either to be overly aggressive or

overly passive. We become preoccupied with work over play, or the opposite.

With little doubt, these habits partly stem from the way our individual brains just happen to function, due to genetic (including gender) differences. Very few of us choose to be right-handers or left-handers, and likely there are deep biological factors which influence our moods, skills, social habits, and other traits. But our brains are also shaped by our up-bringings and culture, the requirements of work and modern-day living, and our conscious choice. Violinists who practice more develop different brain activity patterns from those who practice less.

Whether the provenance be nature or nurture, as we repeat particular behaviors, our brains get more efficient at those behaviors. The brain literally rewires itself based on experience and habits. This is the basis for our fantastic ability to learn, change, and develop ourselves. It is also the basis for our capacity

to get stuck in ruts.

The problem, then, is that as individual brains generate their repetitive behaviors, they tend to rewire themselves so that they become systematically out of balance. And just as a car that has not had front-end alignment will not drive straight - causing tire wear - so does virtually every modern human brain have some tendency to get out of sync with its own body - causing health problems.

The Solution: Map, Train & Balance the Brain

There is a simple and fun way to come back to balance.

Our patterns of life experience and behavior are reflected as different patterns of electrical activity - brainwaves - in different regions of the brain.

And just as white light is composed of many different colors, our brainwaves can be analyzed by computers into different component bandwidths. Each of these bandwidths is associated with different states of being. For example,

Delta waves are associated with deep sleep.

Theta waves are associated with the twilight state between

waking and sleeping, and also the unconscious.

Alpha waves are associated with normal, calm wakefulness.

Beta waves are associated with concentration and analytical thinking.

Importantly, through advances in computer technology we can now monitor brainwave patterns in specific parts of the brain and reflect this information back to the brain, almost instantaneously. That is, the brain can be allowed to observe itself. By being exposed to its own activity patterns, the brain begins to automatically better regulate itself, much as individuals can learn to improve their appearance simply by looking into a mirror.

Graph shows average intensity of brainwaves increasing during 15 minutes of typical thinking. If unbalanced, increased brainwave intensity may be associated with tension, anxiety, or other unpleasant or dysfunctional states.

Graph shows brainwave intensity decreasing during 15 minutes of brain training.

The client reports feeling calmer and more centered.

Graph shows a dramatic reduction in brainwave intensity during 15 minutes of

brain training. The client reported being in a

deeply peaceful, creative, and problem-solving state.

In physiological terms, brain training coaxes the brain to change its own way of activity, so it will better manage its own chemical needs. In contrast, when we take medications we are changing the chemical environment,

so as to influence brain activity.

Brain training can help individuals achieve improvements in some or more of the following: mood, sleep, social relationships, ability to focus, learning capacity, memory, insight, sexual function, flexibility in thinking and behavior, spiritual discernment, creativity, athleticism or work performance.

Release of addictions also commonly becomes easier.

Who can benefit from brain training?

Brain training can benefit any person with a brain – young to elderly.

It can be highly valuable for persons with neuro-psychiatric conditions including depression, anxiety, insomnia, learning difficulties, cognitive impairment, attention deficit, post-traumatic stress, addictions, stroke, traumatic brain injury, headache, seizures, migraine, and movement disorders. Other health conditions commonly benefited include cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disease,

and cancer recovery.

Training is also excellent for persons without major health challenges. It can catalyze creativity and peak performance for artists, athletes, and executives.

For more information about brain training, visit www.brainstatetech.com.

What to Expect with Brain Training

The ultimate purpose of brain training is to support people so they can more easily

reach their goals for well-being and excellence.

The process begins with the completion of an on-line questionnaire,

which takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.

For the first session (approximately one hour), we take a map of the brain by placing sensors on paired scalp locations, while you are either keeping your eyes closed or open. Based on the map and the questionnaire data, we develop a training plan.

Each training session lasts about one hour and forty-five minutes. Your trainer will place the sensors on different locations around the scalp to target the underlying areas of the brain for training.

The sensors read the electromagnetic signal coming from the brain and send it to a computer program, where the information is transformed into soft, musical sounds.

The sounds are transmitted back to you through headphones.

Brain training is entirely non-invasive. There is no electricity being transmitted to

your brain, and your brain is not being "programmed" with any type of signals or

information. Rather, the musical sounds coming through the headphones are

simply an audio representation of what the brain is itself doing, in near real

time. The headphones are acting as a kind of mirror for the brain regions being

trained - no more and no less. Simply by observing itself, the brain

learns how to better self-regulate.

During the period of training, we recommend that individuals increase their intake of

water and protein, and refrain from any use of alcohol or recreational drugs.

Every person is different, and the number of sessions advisable varies. Based on one’s initial condition, the desired outcome, and the relative flexibility of one’s brainwave activity, the number of training sessions needed may range from 5 to 30.

We generally recommend beginning with an intensive series of

7 to 10 sessions, done within a span of five to seven days.

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