Hemi-Sync® Journal 1991-3 (Summer)

--- PAGE 1 (OCR) --- mmer 1991 No. 3 he Monroe Institute A Publication o' Professional Division IN THIS ISSUE HEMI-SYNC IN THE TREATMENT OF CHEMICALLY DEPENDENT PATIENTS....... 1 Bogdan Maliszewski, MD, discusses the impact of Hemi-Sync in drug rehabilitation and treatment. HEMI-SYNC AS AN AUTOGENIC PROCESS RELATED TO THE GAME OF GOLF.......... 2 A study demonstrating the effects of Hemi- Sync on the performance and enjoyment of golf by Laura Batchelor, MA, educational therapist. USE OF THE EMERGENCY SERIES DURING MULTIPLE SURGERIES............-++0005+ 5 In an excerpt from her book, Face /t, Gari Carter describes her reconstruction and recovery following a traumatic automobile accident. HEMI-SYNC IN THE TREATMENT OF CHEMICALLY DEPENDENT PATIENTS by Bogdan F. Maliszewski, MD As a physician, Bogdan Maliszewski has been deeply involved in investigating and implementing effective methods for the treatment of chemically dependent patients. He moved from his practice in Seattle, Washington, to Tampa, Florida, four years ago. Dr. Malis- ‘zewski became a member of the Professional Division in 1988 and recently submitted this article on the impact of Hemi-Sync in drug rehabilitation. Between the years 1987 and 1989 I practiced as attending physician at the Glenbeigh Hospital in Tampa, a rehabilitation and treatment center for alcohol and drug abuse. During that period, Hemi-Sync was introduced as an adjunct to the in- tervention program. The preliminary results suggest a sub- stantial increase in recovery for cocaine-addicted patients using Hemi-Sync. The treatment program was based on the traditional twelve-step Alcoholics Anonymous recovery program. An av- erage stay in the hospital was about one month, and patient age ranged from early teens to over seventy years old. In the older group, alcoholism was the most prevalent dependency; in the younger group, the most popular was cocaine, then marijuana, alcohol, and opiates. About twenty patients partici- pated in the program each month; an approximate total of 300 for the year. The success rate, based on sobriety for at least one year after treatment, was best for alcohol, reaching about fifty percent of the patients, but poor for cocaine, achieving only twenty-five percent or less. These percentages correspond to the national average recovery rate. Over thirty-five years ago the American Medical Association recognized alcoholism as a disease. Since then many other chemical dependencies have been added to this category. One of the most serious and challenging addictions is that of cocaine. Progress in research and science, especially biochemistry and physiology of the brain, has allowed us to understand many aspects of the diseases of chemical dependency. With alcoholism, it has been found that brain activity in alcoholics differs from that of nonalcoholics, as measured on an elec- troencephalogram (EEG). Alcoholics show a prevalence of fast Beta activity anda deficit of Alpha and Theta frequencies. Their sleep is shallow, lacking the Delta waves characteristic of deep © 1991 The Monroe Institute Route 1, Box 175, Faber, VA 22938-9749 804/361-1252 --- PAGE 2 (OCR) --- HEMI-SYNC™ JOURNAL sleep. The excess of Beta frequencies on EEG is characteristic of anxiety, restlessness, nervous tension, and inability to relax. At the same time, very important neurotransmitters playing a crucial role in the reward system in the brain, show lower levels than nonalcoholics. They belong to the Beta endorphins and enkephalins group of chemicals. It has also been discov- ered that these neurotransmitters are released during sports activity, relaxation, meditation, and other activities. Alcohol’s influence on the brain is very characteristic: the number of Alpha waves in the brain increase greatly, but only in alcoholics. In nonalcoholics this action is very limited. Thus, it becomes clear that many alcoholics drink to relieve stress and anxiety, characterized by increased Beta waves on EEG. It has also been discovered that continuous use of alcohol causes depletion of endorphins and enkephalins in the brain, resulting in a state of anhedonia—inability to feel pleasure—and later, a state of depression. Recovery increased from twenty-five percent to about fifty percent. . . With cocaine addiction, dopamine, another important neurotransmitter, becomes depleted, causing severe depres- sion. This is preceded by a feeling of very strong euphoria which lasts only briefly. The euphoria is so strong that it causes almost instantaneous dependency. Later on, after treat- ment attempts, recall of that euphoria is the main cause of relapse and subsequent return to use. Cocaine is a stimulant and causes an increase in Beta frequencies on EEG. It occurred to me that if alcoholics and patients addicted to cocaine were trained to increase the proportion of Alpha and Theta waves in their EEGs, they would increase the chance of recovery. This could be achieved by biofeedback, massage, sports, meditation, and restricted environment stimulation therapy (REST), among other approaches. However, it seemed that the Hemi-Sync technology would probably be one of the most effective and easiest methods to use in the hospital setting. Direct action of Hemi-Sync on the brain provides an excellent therapeutic tool. Experience of positive states of mind, not achieved by alcohol or drugs, would reinforce the patient's ability to cope with stress and the craving for alcohol and drugs. In medicine, it is relatively easy to cope with stress and anxiety by using tranquilizers like Xanax, Valium, etc., but only for a short time. These medi- cines, if used for longer periods, also lead to chemical dependency. We started to use the PREP side of the Relax tape from the H-PLUS series in a group setting, on an average of three times weekly. With the exception of the cocaine addicts, patients were exposed to the tapes after stressful group therapy ses- sions. Before the tape, the cocaine-addicted group participated in special desensitization sessions involving exposure to the paraphernalia of cocaine use—pipes, white powder resem- bling cocaine, etc. They even pretended to use cocaine to evoke the craving for this powerful stimulant. Overall, patients responded very positively to the tapes. At first, most of them fell asleep during the sessions, although many suffered from chronic insomnia caused by the drugs. Later, the patients participated more consciously in the relaxa- tion exercise. Some of them used the tapes individually, in their free time. After completion of the treatment program, they had the option of purchasing H-PLUS Relax to use at home. Perhaps ten to fifteen percent exercised this option. After one year we attempted to follow up with the former patients. It was a difficult task, but the results were very encouraging. While the rate of recovery improved with alco- holics, the most dramatic increase was achieved in the group of cocaine patients. Recovery increased from twenty-five per- cent to about fifty percent of patients still drug-free one year after treatment. Attitude toward the therapy was very important. More spiritually oriented patients responded better to the treatment program. For this group, we recommended further use of the Hemi-Sync tapes, such as Focus 10 and Focus 12 exercises. We used Pain Control for patients suffering from chronic pain, and De-Hab for others. These results were also positive, especially those with the Pain Control tape. In my opinion, the Hemi-Sync technology can be used in treatment of chemically dependent patients very effectively. However, more controlled studies are necessary in order to promote this method of treatment among the professionals in the field of addiction medicine. CA HEMI-SYNC AS AN AUTOGENIC PROCESS RELATED TO THE GAME OF GOLF by Laura Batchelor, MA Laura Batchelor is an educational therapist in private practice in St. Louis, Missouri, specializing in creativelvocational expression, Spiritual development, Jungian theory, and transitions. In this study, Ms. Batchelor demonstrates the effects of Hemi-Sync on both the “inner” and “outer” game of golf. She has been a member of the Professional Division since April 1990. PURPOSE This study was designed to investigate the effects and preferred rate of application of Hemi-Sync as an autogenic, or self-regulatory, tool. The subjects in this study were men and women unfamiliar with autogenic exercises and who were interested in improving their performance in the game of golf. THEORY It is the thesis of this study that as individuals improve control of their mental, emotional, and physical elements, --- PAGE 3 (OCR) --- Summer 1991 through the process of manifesting progressively deeper levels of consciousness, there will appear within them an especial nature capable of improving the quality of their performance, the level of their enjoyment, and the rate of their learning. REVIEW In the field of psychotherapy, it is generally understood that inner, subjective, frequently irrational realms of human experience are the most immediate and most interruptive factors in human performance. It is also generally understood that learning how to identify and overcome such interruptive thought, emotional, and physical responses is not easy. Most people in this culture are accustomed to being asked to look or listen closely to someone or something, but often are un- comfortable—even lost—when asked to imagine or feel some- thing closely, especially when it is an emotion or a physical sensation. The premise of this study is that this cultural blind spot is a primary reason many people often do not function well; they avoid feeling their bodily sensations clearly. To a great extent, excellence in any field is a result of how aware one is. Without self-interference, one is better able to function in the “aware- ness state.” Everyone has experienced the awareness state at one time or another during moments of peak performance or experi- ence. Alertness and perception are heightened, actions are flawless, and life is simple and whole. Even in the most complicated and demanding situations the effort needed is clear, and actions flow in an uncanny but appropriate way. Children, especially the very young, are immersed in the awareness state, blending and integrating with their play by using imagination. Often, as we grow older and become more educated, we trade our imaginations—our images—for words. Words and instructions from others and from our own minds replace imagination. The images remain within us, however we are no longer within the experience, within the state of awareness. Learning how to overcome the thoughts, emotions, and physical activities that interfere with human performance is one of the most difficult tasks to perform in life. A key to reviving this natural state of awareness is relearning how to sense or feel things. In the natural state of awareness, we first receive images in our minds, images including sight, sound, taste, or smell, then we respond by translating the images into actions or words. Rich imagery is concurrent with bodily relaxation. Relaxation does not cause imagery, but it certainly provides the environment in which imagery functions at its fullest. The natural internal communication system of per- formance is imagery-based. In the last decade, there has been significantly greater attention directed toward the relation between mind, body, and awareness, to tap hidden potential to heighten perform- ance and experience. Learning how to become more aware— more conscious—of such things as tension, doubt, fear of failure, anxiety, and a limited image of performance, and then learning how to overcome them, are all at the heart of auto- genic training. Autogenic training is a psychophysiologic form of psychotherapy that works with the body and mind simultaneously.