Brainwaves, screentime & science

The average person opens up Instagram/facebook a 150 (or an average of roughly 55 minutes per each app)times a day. How healthy is that? Or in what way does it affect us? Companies are paying and putting fortunes to understand why we do what we do and how we do it. Our behavior is being studied constantly. So if you are picking up the phone first thing in the morning it wont lead you anywhere good, mentally. You may wonder why is that a problem? I will try to explain using two sources I stumbled upon recently.?To better understand how we can simply function better. Best way to do that is to study our mind & body. Thanks to few publishings that I have gone through neuroscience became one of areas I occasionally like to focus my reading on.?

We’ve all experienced that magical feeling of being hit with ‘a brainwave’. That moment of newfound clarity, a shift in perspective, or a novel idea. And typically, it seems to appear out of nowhere. In between sips of coffee, while out for a walk, or simply during shower. While brainwaves can be a figure of speech to describe our thoughts, scientists and clinicians can use literal brainwaves, measured on the head, to help understand the functioning of the human brain. As it turns out, the key to having more of these ‘aha’ moments lies in understanding the science behind brainwaves. Neuroscientists have been studying brainwaves – the popular name for the field of electroencephalography – for nearly a century. We need to understand that there are 5 primary brainwave states.

Gamma brainwaves – are the fastest measurable EEG brainwaves and have been equated to ‘heightened perception’, or a ‘peak mental state’ when there is simultaneous processing of information from different parts of the brain. Gamma brainwaves have been observed to be much stronger and more regularly observed in very long-term meditators including Buddhist Monks. Associated state: Heightened perception, learning, problem-solving tasks

Beta Brainwaves – are easiest to detect when we’re busy thinking actively. State: Alert, normal alert consciousness, active thinking

Alpha brainwaves – are some of the most easily observed and were the first to be discovered. They become detectable when the eyes are closed and the mind is relaxed.?

They can also often be found during activities such as: Yoga, just before falling asleep, being creative and artistic. State: Physically and mentally relaxed

Theta Brainwaves – According to Professor Jim Lagopoulos of Sydney University, “previous studies have shown that theta waves indicate deep relaxation and occur more frequently in highly experienced meditation practitioners.?The source is probably frontal parts of the brain, which are associated with monitoring of other mental processes.” Most frequently, theta brainwaves are strongly detectable when we’re dreaming in our sleep (think, the movie Inception), but they can also be seen?during : daydreaming or deep meditation. State: Creativity, insight, dreams, reduced consciousness

Delta Brainwaves – These are the slowest of all brainwaves and are strongest when we are enjoying restorative sleep in a dreamless state. This is also the state where healing and rejuvenation are stimulated, which is why it’s so crucial to get enough sleep each night. State: Sleep, dreaming

Now that we have covered the brainwaves & their definitions(Yes I literally found out about them a week ago). Now lets go further.?

Alpha is a state of learning, accelerated learning whilst relaxed awareness. You ever noticed that if somebody’s watching TV or their phone and you are trying to have a conversation with them? They are literally entranced. They don’t usually hear or listen because the what they are seeing on screen is putting them into a state of trance. But thats Alpha state, that is where information is – just going inside your mind. We train people how to learn languages faster and learn facts better by putting them into an alpha state.?

I really think understanding of brainwaves should be acknowledged by education systems. School is a great place to learn & precisely “what to learn”. But how many classes were there on “how to learn” or how to think critically, how to solve problems, how to focus, concentrate & make decisions. So if we go back to getting up in the morning & grabbing our phone is the first thing we do. We train our brain for distraction. We cant focus enough on things that matter during the day and so forth. I am not even going to talk about(pre-sleep phone scrolling) screen’s blue ray emission, melatonin production & insomnia. Go do your own research:)

So next time you wake up before reaching out to your phone, do some stretching, plan your day, set some goals, do yoga or whatever. More & more I hear comments like “I am doing social media cleansing” “I am deleting all my apps” “social media detox”. This is all is the result of our inability to wire our brain towards mindfulness.?Even me – finding interest in this topic is a necessity, the reason it triggered my curiosity is not because I wanted to seem smarter, no! The reason neuroscience is interesting to me is because I want to solve a lot of my own shit:)?

Painful conclusion is that there is a whole generation who is growing up with so much tech & information around. However a lot of people that I know came to certain “ahaaa” moments in life after a certain age not because of their surroundings & what they are being taught. But because of what they lack in life and out of necessity like me.?

**PS this ain’t an article, blogpost or a scientific research – my knowledge on this topic is still evolving & I wish to learn more. Thinking out loud & sharing with you. Pura Vida!

www.rashad.blog