Clients come in for a Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy session, with pain in their back or hip, and part-way through the session often they arrive in a mental and emotional state where “magic” happens and the pain dissipates.  How is this possible?

​

Connecting scientific research about overall brain activity (measured by electroencephalography, EEG) with what happens in a Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy session points towards an explanation of how this sudden relief occurs.   The four brain states I will speak to are all important, however, it’s the slow wave brain states where we find the magic.

​

Beta Waves = Default (13-40 Hz)

You may not know the term Beta Waves, but I am sure you are familiar with this state as this is where we spend most of our waking hours.  Here we are ready to react and we can multi-task.  It's how we walk and talk, and even catch a ball if it comes flying at you.

​

This state is so important... but if you are stuck here it sucks.  You are stuck here when you mind is racing and you can’t settle to sleep.  Perhaps anxiety wrecks havoc with your digestion, or gives you a tension headache.  It takes a lot of energy input to be at this level and if you are unable to shift down a gear its being stressed-out.

 

Alpha Waves = Mindfulness (7-13Hz)

The Alpha state is mindfulness and relaxed engagement.  Here you can effectively learn to play an instrument, go for a walk, or have a conversation.  When you are in this state you fully listening to the person speaking to you, you are enjoying the sound of the lively birds above, and you’re learning in a relaxed and powerful way.  The ability to live mindfully supports you living a happier, more engaged life.  Mindfulness in and of itself is a life changer and deserves the hype it gets.

​

Theta Waves (4-7Hz) & Delta Waves (0-4Hz) = Your unconscious world of healing/change/intuition

Mindfulness promotes the release of serotonin and gives us a gateway to consciously travelling down to Theta and Delta states.  Though it is not possible to live from these two states as you go about your tasks in a day, this is somewhere you can go to restore and gain perspective.

 

Theta is the level we usually sleep at, and it dominates in deep meditation.  Senses withdraw from the external world and into our inner world.  We are entering into our unconscious here where super learning and emotional integration can happen.

 

Go a little deeper and you are in Delta, it’s the deepest meditation, it's dreamless sleep.  You absolutely can’t live from here but if you visit here you'll find healing, organ regeneration, and the stress hormone cortisol is removed from your system.  With coaching, you can consciously travel deep into the Delta state and effortlessly bring home some priceless mementos such as deep peace, freedom, and inner wisdom.

 

We live from Beta and Alpha, but travelling to Theta and Delta is the best vacation.  Within your human body there is the innate capacity to have access deep restoration and relaxation in your body. No plane tickets required.

 

Part of what I offer is a bridge to your inner vacation, a bridge to your capacity to adapt, heal, and change.

 

Please contact me about booking your vacation in my safe office space where I will skillfully coach you to travel into the deeper states mind where your body heals.

 

-------------------

I would like to acknowledge my mentor, Sarah Kaczor (www.yourkompass.com) for encouraging me to research brain waves and supported me in my understanding of the relevance of brain waves in the context of a Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy session.