Achieving Alpha And Theta States Through Deep and Prolonged Breathing by

Mr.Activated

Posted byadmin

September 12, 2020

Posted inArticles

Tags:Breathing Techniques

Sometimes, we feel quite stressed out or at a loss for motivation due to any reason
in life. It might be a tough routine, tight deadlines, or personal problems that
might lead us to feel in this particular way. And no matter whatever we try to do to
come out of this “Low-Zone”, nothing seems to work in our favor at all. It is only
after some time when we finally notice a change in our life coming all by itself that
takes all our negative energy away.

This fact is no longer surprising that everything inside our bodies is connected.
Our body organs work together synchronously after consulting the mastermind –
the brain, similarly, our mind is strongly connected with our soul.

It is also said that how we breathe reveals greatly about our inner feelings, apart
from depicting our external state. With breathing being a subconscious activity, we
do not even at times realize that we are ourselves giving away our real feelings
through our changing patterns of breathing. Ever notice how at times when you
are angry or frustrated, you seem to breathe faster all of a sudden? All of this
happens because of the deep-rooted connections and interlinkages between the
brain neurons and the respiratory cycle of a human being.

However, thanks to the recent discoveries and research, we can finally put an end
to all of this (by will!) and learn how to achieve a calm and relaxed state of both
our mind and personality.

It is all in our hands, and we can very much control it as well! Surprised? Carry on
reading!

Taking control of our breathing state is not only concerned with the fact that it
would help us think from a clever, broader perspective, or help us in controlling
our angry or frustrated state of mind, it would also help us in boosting up the
“positive” brain waves, which are the real reason for making us feel calm and
relaxed through their naturally acting mechanisms.

What are the Brain Waves and How Do They Work?

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The brain is considered to be the “Controlling Center” of a living being. The brain
is expected to send messages to a particular body organ to carry out a particular
function, and that organ has to comply with the instructions sent by the brain.

This communication is made possible because of the “Neurons” which are brain
cells, and are billions in number. These neurons carry messages from the brain to
the organ of interest, and from that organ back to the brain. These neurons
communicate with each other too, and this is how your mood is controlled by the
brain. The neurons communicate with each other through messages in the form of
electrical impulses. These electrical impulses, if visualized on an
electroencephalogram or EEG, are seen to emerge in the form of a wave-like
pattern, and hence, were given the name of “Brain Waves”[1].

Since the communication between the neurons keeps on taking place throughout
the day, therefore there is a lot of fluctuation in the brain waves’ activity, and they
keep on changing on a minute-to-minute basis.

So far, scientists have been able to discover 5 different types of brain waves[2]. All
of these brain waves reflect a person’s thought processes and feelings and
simultaneously keep on changing throughout the day.

Since these brain waves move at different speeds, therefore they are measured in
Hertz.

A brief overview of the different types of brain waves, in increasing order of their
speeds, is given as follows:

Delta Waves: These are the brain waves with the slowest speed, and measure up to
0.5 – 3 Hz. They are produced when a person is in a state of deep sleep or is deeply
meditating.

Theta Waves: These brain waves are produced when the brain is in a relaxed and
calm state but is open for a reception. They mostly occur during light naps and
relaxed meditative states. They have a speed measuring from 3-8 Hz.

Alpha Waves: Ranging from 8 – 12 Hz, the Alpha type of brain waves are produced
when the body is in an alert yet relaxed state. This is accountable for the times
when the person has just aroused from his sleep, but is not doing any stressful
activity, and has a mind free from all loads. This is a “resting” phase of the brain
and is particularly useful for reducing anxiety and stress.

Beta Waves: Produced at a speed of 12-30 Hz, the Beta types of brain waves are fast
running waves and are produced when a person is wide-awake, and his brain is in
a highly alerted, almost alarmed stated, and is occupied with tasks that require
him to use his mental capabilities for solving those problems. These may include
decision making and arithmetic problem-solving.

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Gamma Waves: The Gamma type brain waves are considered to be the fastest
running brain waves as they have been measured to have a speed of about 25 – 100
Hz. These brain waves are “High Level” waves, and are observed to emerge during
learning, thinking, and memorizing processes.

The Significance of Alpha and Theta Waves in Achieving a Calm and Relaxed
Composure

Out of all the five types of brain waves mentioned above, the Alpha and Theta
Waves have been given special importance throughout all the studies[3] carried
out on brain waves. These brain waves are of that much interest that they are given
the designation of a state, the “Alpha Theta State”, which is a state of the mind in
which a person feels at complete rest, and is calm and collected with his thoughts,
a condition in which both are produced in.

It was revealed through studies that these Alpha and Theta waves can be produced
through conscious control of a person, and they can further help in soothing the
target person. And this conscious control is achievable through making deep,
prolonged exhalation a part of one’s daily routine.

Okinaga[4], or the art of prolonging the expiration step of breathing, greatly helps
in achieving this Alpha-Theta state. The Alpha-theta state is a very intuitive and
clever state of the brain in which a person is in an almost euphoric state – he is
willing to meditate and stay focused on this very state while willing to learn and
absorb new information too. All the body muscles are relaxed, and in a completely
calm, non-functioning state.

In the same study, results were observed after about 10 minutes of starting the
experiment. it was found that while people remained with their eyes closed in a
peaceful environment, their Alpha waves surged with the increasing duration of
breathing, while the Theta waves kept on surging for as long as the person was
breathing at a rate of about 3 to 4 breaths per minute.

Many people strive to achieve this state, and within a few days of regularly
learning to master the art of deep and focused breathing, they can very much
succeed in doing so as well.

How to Achieve the Alpha-Theta State?

The Alpha-Theta state[5] can be achieved by anyone. It just requires complete

focus and a relaxed mind. As soon as a person enters the Alpha-Theta states, his
anxiety and stress levels seem to fade away, and only a relaxed aura is left behind.

These changes can be easily observed on an Electroencephalogram (EEG) which

shows how significantly Alpha and Theta-type brain waves seem to rise as soon as
a person goes in a relaxed state of mind, causing the Beta waves to decrease
significantly.

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Changing one’s thought process, or stopping oneself from thinking about all the
negative and worry-inducing energies can also help in stimulating the Alpha-Theta
states. The more Alpha-Theta waves a person can produce, the more endorphins
(happy hormones!) our body can produce.

Here are a few effective techniques that could help a person in achieving the
Alpha-Theta state of mind:

Suit yourself in a calming environment

Relax your mind and body muscles completely, leave no bodily stress hovering
behind

Don’t strain yourself, listen to brain-designated music

Open yourself for meditation, feel grateful and mindful of everything around you

Inhale to up to a count of 4, pause, and then exhale again after an 8 to 16 times

count

With regular practice of this exercise, you would very soon be able to get complete
control over your anxiety and would be able to successfully eliminate it from your
life in no time.

One Breath in One Minute Challenge

Lance Wantenaar

I have been meditating for many years and have tried many ways to be able to
achieve a calm zen like feeling.

I battled the thousands of thoughts in my head when all I wanted were feelings of
calmness and focus. Add to that the brain seems to wake up and register each little
itch or twitch.

Meditation became a random practice of random results.

It was like I had two opposing forces battling to steal my attention and force me
not to be calm.

My brain would race thoughts through my head. They demanded attention and
seemed to take my down a rabbit hole of jumbled thoughts.

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I tried many things to get zen state but my results where sporadic whenever I sat
down to meditate.

Some days I would feel focused and calm but it would take 20 minutes to get to that
stage.

The time was too much and I struggled to have a consistent result.

My podcast topics meant reading research material on meditation and brainwaves.

I researched how breathing worked to help focus the brain and which parts of the
brain it affects.

The gut-brain axis highlights the importance of the vagus nerve function. This
allows the vagus nerve to change how the brain functions.

All research mentioned how you had to breath to relax the body and the brain.
Breathing using the diaphragm was key to trigger relaxation in the body. This
signal would then travel back up the vagus nerve to the brain.

Once the body relaxes the brain follows.

It was as simple as that.

But….

Box Breathing Was Not Cutting It

All breathing methods spoke of box breathing, pranayama and various other
complex methods.

An example of box breathing is where each part of your breath is a four second
stage.

Breath in count one, two, three, four

Pause and count one, two, three, four

Breath out count one, two, three, four

Pause and count one, two, three, four

I realised box breathing wasn’t cutting it. Even though I got some results from it.

I felt oxygen deprived and it was time consuming. It became mentally demanding
to maintain focus.

Then during a podcast interview with a guest I had a brain wave.

The long exhale is exactly like a sigh!

A sigh is the bodies natural mechanism to release stress. In some cases a way to
brace you before doing something challenging or stress related.

Before a physically demanding task you take a deep breath and slowly exhale. Its a
way of calming the brain and to help you focus.

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This is where the magic happens.

One of the research articles talked about a breathing method that ninja’s used. The
Japanese researcher measured how brainwaves changed when using this specific
breathing method. He monitored participants who all were long term
practitioners of the ninja skills.

The breathing method is known as Okinaga breathing.

There was one hurdle.

One breath was as long as one minute. The ninja’s were doing this for a minimum
of 20 minutes to get to the alpha and theta brain wave state.

The research came up with one consistent piece of information. The longer the
exhale the stronger the effect was on helping the body relax and destress.

There was very little online reference how to do the super long exhale or do one
breath for one minute.

I became obsessed with learning this breathing method.

I practiced it and struggled to be able to manage a one minute exhale for up to 20

minutes.

A slow 20 seconds inhale is hard, you become oxygen deprived dong this,

Controlling the exhale for 40 seconds was even harder. Again I was using up
oxygen trying to manage this.

I knew the exhale was working as shorter exhales allowed me to feel the relaxation
response.

The research all proved that the signal via the vagus nerve from the exhale to the
brain relaxed you.

But, how do I do one breath for one minute?

Photo by Max van den Oetelaar on Unsplash

Then I came across a hack watching a Youtube video on ways to trigger the vagus
nerve. Stanley Rosenburg’s book about vagus nerve stimulation was part of this
puzzle.

But how?

The Youtube video gave me the key to effortlessly control the exhale!

I now exhale for fifty seconds or more with no effort. My meditation has become a
consistent practice to get me to the zen place.

My emotions are calmer and mental focus is better. My awareness and

mindfulness has improved dramatically.

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To prove this technique works and is simple to do I got a guinea pig involved.

My brother.

He has never done breathwork and the like man the pandemic has had its impact.
He needed a way to manage his stress and feel more in control.

The first time I showed him the breathing method he was able to do a 40 second
exhale.

I knew this would work no matter who did this.

The benefits of effective breathing allows you to reduce feelings of stress. Having a
healthy vagal tone improves health. It allows for improved heart rate variability
(HRV).

How would you like to reduce your stress and feel Zen like calm with one breath?

Get your free guide to the One Breath in One Minute Challenge.

Lance Wantenaar

A Cyber Security pro interested in psychology, cognition and learning with a

passion for developing How to think.

Jack Schwarz Pain and Mind Over Matter Practice

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By Mark on 4 June 2014Pain Management Possible Mind Power of the mind

Jack Schwarz was beaten and tortured during World War 2 in such a way that most of us, luckily,
would not ever have to experience. He cleverly developed a practice which involved meditation and
prayer that enabled him to cancel out his pain.
After his release, Schwarz continued his mind over matter practice and occasionally demonstrated
his skills by putting a long sail-maker’s needle through his arm without injury. He also displayed
his ability to regulate his body’s blood flow by causing the puncture hole in his arm to bleed or stop
bleeding at will. Schwarz was studied by researchers at the Menninger Foundation who found that
he could indeed control many of his bodily processes with only his mind. Furthermore, through an
electroencephalograph, they determined his brain had different electrical activity as compared to
most other test subjects. According to Schwarz, he could also see people’s auras, which allowed him
to gauge their physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental conditions.

Source – listverse.com

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Jack wrote a book called Voluntary Controls sharing some of his views and techniques. The
technique I have used most of his is this one:
The 6 Basic Steps to accomplish changing your states are:

Ground – which means sending your energy into the earth to reconnect with your energy centers.
Align – means aligning your heart energy to the energy of the unified field.
Go to theta (the theta brainwave) – with your eyes closed, roll your eyes up as if you were following
a golden beam of light out through the top of your head and out into the deep black velvet of space
– this automatically and energetically moves you to the theta brainwave.
Command – a silent command in your mind and emotions to communicate your intention to your
subconscious, such as…..
I don’t know how I (am/do/have)________________________, I only know it is so now, and I am
fulfilled.

Example: I don’t know how I am strong and healthy, I only know I am now and I am fulfilled…..

Or – I don’t know how I am financially secure, I only know I am now and I am fulfilled.

Expand – allow your Command to expand into an idea greater than yourself – you are connected
now with the profound information of the unified field and your own greater capacity.
Receive in Gratitude – feel your sense of gratitude for this fulfillment and know that when your
thoughts reach your DNA, new programs or patterns are created. There is a significant amount of
research that indicates that living in gratitude changes your life for the better, and we know that
what you put your attention on expands – whether it lack and limitation, or abundance and success.
Source – evolutionezine.com