Binaural beats have become increasingly popular over the last decade in America. As more and more of us find ourselves stressed from imbalances in various parts of our lives, we look to find some sort of relief that doesn’t lead us straight to the pharmacy counter. Do not get me wrong, while modern medicine does have its place, I feel it is equally important for us to find alternative ways to care for ourselves.
It is important for me to learn all that I can about inducing a resting state of mind, especially in dealing with PTSD. When I discovered binaural beats, I was hesitant to try it for myself. I didn’t want to try it because anything that alters the brain’s frequency pattern can gain influence over the body. As someone who knows of spiritual and environmental influences well, this was a huge red flag for me.
Why would anyone willingly change the frequency of their brainwaves?
Since binaural beats presented itself to me as something new and likely to provide some sort of mental relief from the constant unwanted chatter, I decided to ask several people - friends, doctors, counselors, and colleagues - about the use of binaural beats.
Once again I ended up back at square one in wanting to try, but not understanding fully the risk involved.
Because some people didn’t know about binaural beats, the results that came from my close friends and confidants were a hard no. However, experts in fields of neurology and sound therapy were positive that the use of binaural beats could not only help out with calming the mind, but it could reduce stress further over time.
What exactly are binaural beats?
According to Lori Smith from Medical News Today, “Binaural beat therapy is an emerging form of sound wave therapy. It makes use of the fact that the right and left ear each receive a slightly different frequency tone, yet the brain perceives these as a single tone.”
Earlier I asked why would anyone want to change the pattern of their brainwaves. In this article I came across posted on Psychology Today by Dr. Michael J. Breus, binaural beats at its base were explained along with details about how brainwaves worked, how it aids with inducing sleep, and reduction of anxiety.
My understanding of brainwaves is that our brain operates our body through electrical stimulation which comes through the form of thoughts or as a response to external stimuli.
Dr. Breus mentions that binaural beats “can affect cognitive function positively or negatively, depending on the specific frequency generated” which means that if anyone wishes to use binaural beats, then an understanding of the effect that brainwaves have on the body and what each frequency could do for you .
Of course these are experts, so their words should be trusted, right? Unfortunately, one may never know what the motive might be behind some scientific advances, so make sure to read thoroughly and use discernment when it comes to things that might affect your entire body.
Binaural beats: My personal review
While I will agree that these frequencies have the potential of changing your brain pattern, I have experienced positives and negatives with using binaural beats.
I will go on record and state that I do use binaural beats to help me cope with PTSD. Anyone dealing with PTSD can attest to this statement: With PTSD, it feels like the brain is sort of “stuck” in the time that the trauma has occurred. While anyone with PTSD can go on to live normal lives, the flashbacks of the trauma is constant. While the mental condition cannot be cured, one can learn to cope with it, and binaural beats can help.
Thus far, there are no reported side effects of using binaural beats both long term and short term as of June 2020. It is recommended that you listen to your binaural beats with headphones. If using binaural beats with headphones, the volume must be lower than 80 decibels or you run the risk of hearing loss.. I have not personally dealt with during my use, but please do exercise caution when using any sort of soundwave therapy.
Using binaural beats during my meditation sessions has enhanced the amount of energy that surges through my body upon focusing on the tones. The binaural beats themselves don’t do anything crazy to me whatsoever. The worst thing I have ever felt when using any binaural audio is a brief dizzying sensation as my brain attempts to adjust to processing the new sound information coming in. I mean it is very brief - only about five seconds long.
Friendly tips for using binaural beats:
Use caution when searching for binaural beat audios. I recommend that you be careful when it comes to using some YouTube videos as many of them mention the use of binaural beats, but the quality is so poor that you receive no real effect from it.
Do not listen to any binaural beats while driving or operating any heavy machinery. As I mentioned above, binaural beats have the ability to alter your brainwaves which controls the functions of your body.
I suggest binaural beats are used when you are already planning to settle in for relaxation as some are designed to induce sleep.
Do you use binaural beats or pass them by? What are your personal experiences with using binaural beats if you have tried them? Leave a comment below so that you can get the conversation started today! Also, feel free to share with your friends and invite them to weigh in on the topic as well! In the meantime,
Catch you in the trees!
With Love,
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