Hemi-Sync® Journal 1992-4 (Fall)

--- PAGE 1 (OCR) --- urna Vol. X Fall 1992 No. 4 A Publication of The Monroe Ins Professional Division IN THIS ISSUE BEHAVIORAL EFFECTS OF HEMI-SYNC- EMBEDDED MEDITATION MUSIC ON A HORSE . 6 ae ROR Equine behavioral differences observe during a Hemi-Sync experiment are the subject of this paper by Helene Guttman and Shirley Bliley. RECAPTURING THE INTUITIVE IN THERAPY AND EDUCATION: HEMI-SYNC IN ADULT CONTINUING EDUCATION ......... i Speech-language pathologist Suzanne Evans Morris discusses a workshop offering spe strategies for using and enhancing clinical intuition. © 1992 The Monroe Institute Route 1, Faber, VA 22938-9749 BEHAVIORAL EFFECTS OF HEMI-SYNC-EMBEDDED MEDITATION MUSIC ON A HORSE by Helene N. Guttman, PhD, and Shirley Bliley Helene Guttman (shown above,left) heads HNG Associates, the sponsor of these studies, in Bethesda, Maryland, and is also animal care coordinator at the Agricultural Research Services, USDA, Shirley Bliley is an applied equine ethologist (behaviorist) who maintains horses in Lovingston, Virginia, and is a member of the TMI staff. Here the authors discuss observed behavioral changes in a subject horse during a Hemi-Sync experiment. In her 1990 article, Guttman proposed using studies with species other than humans to determine whether lis- tening to binaural beat technology, namely Hemi-Sync, would synchronize the left and right brain hemispheres and also result in a similar array of altered behavioral effects as experienced by humans. A number of beneficial applications of the use of Hemi-Sync for nonhuman animal species also were proposed. The first experimental test of this proposal, using an equine subject, was reported in Guttman’s 1991 article. This study showed that the equine brain became syn- chronized (as shown by Fourier-transformed EEGs) as a fesult of listening to a music tape embedded with binaural eats. The study reported here asked whether discernible behavioral differences could be detected in a horse listening to meditation music compared with listening to the same meditation music embedded with Hemi-Sync. Methods This study was done in the home upper pasture of the equine subject, Kerry Mist. It is important to note the envi- ronmental conditions on the day of the study because the subject usually expresses particular behaviors under such conditions. The study was done in the early afternoon of a very humid, hot (95°F) day with an electrical storm approaching rapidly. Under such circumstances, this horse usually moved inside her shelter in the lower pasture. Thus, the conditions were unfavorable for inducing the expression of a “calm behavior.” Setting conditions that are opposed to a potential experiment-induced effect controls against the experimenter creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. Kerry Mist’s stable mate, Bonny Dick, was allowed to roam freely in the pasture during the study, but chose to stay close to Kerry Mist for the entire study time. Kerry Mist was outfitted with a hood to which was sewn headphones that were attached to a small, portable tape 804/361-1252 --- PAGE 2 (OCR) --- HEMI-SYNC™ JOURNAL player. Care was taken not to touch the horse's ears with the headphones. The tape player was secured to Kerry Mist’s neck with veterinary tape. The initial experiment plan was to play two tapes in sequence for thirty minutes each. The entire experiment was recorded on videotape archive with date and time and with audio behavioral observations by Bliley. Bliley stood near the subject for the duration of the study and was unaware of the music tape that Guttman selected for play. The meditation music tapes played to Kerry Mist were selected at the last minute and their identi- ties were known only by Guttman. For this study, the tapes selected were (1) Inner Journey (without Hemi-Sync) by Mohammad Sadigh—a powerful meditation composition— and (2) Inner Journey with Hemi-Sync (primarily Theta and secondarily Delta frequencies). There are no discernible dif- ferences in the audible sounds of the two tapes. The rapidly approaching electrical storm (heralded by a clap of thunder and a bolt of lightning about a mile away) punctuated the first-selected tape after ten minutes of play. To assure at least some listening time on the second tape before the storm reached the pasture, the second tape was substituted at that time. After playing the second tape for eleven minutes, another, much closer, clap of thunder and bolt of lightning made a final punctuation to the tape por- tion of the experiment. Results At the start of the study, Kerry Mist was not agitated; she had been exposed to the headphone-containing hood previ- ously and the three new people involved in this study and now accepted the three virtual strangers walking around her. She was not agitated by movements of her free-roaming stable mate in the pasture. As we were about to begin the experimental portion of the study, she exhibited the classic equine “relax stance” (one back leg raised and relaxed). The stable mate, Bonny Dick, came close and remained facing her tail from a distance of about one foot for the duration of the study. During the playing of tape (1), Kerry Mist maintained the relax stance and stayed alert to the tape music, as evi- denced by orienting her ears toward the sound from the headphones. At this point, it was noted that it was getting uncomfortably hot (all members of the human team and the horses were sweating profusely). Neither horse exhibited a startle response to the thunder and did not attempt to move to the shelter in the lower pasture. Also, they maintained their posture while tape (1) was unloaded and tape (2) was inserted. While listening to tape (2), Kerry Mist maintained her “ears alert” position. She became progressively more relaxed, as evidenced by her head position moving lower until it was no more than twelve inches from the ground. During this period, her manner changed to calmer and “looser,” ie., more detached from the surroundings, as evi- denced by her not swatting the numerous flies that landed on her. Her legs were no longer directly under her trunk and she was no longer standing straight. She did not tug on her rope to signal that she would prefer to move elsewhere, as she usually would during a rapidly approaching storm. Kerry Mist maintained this demeanor until after the tape was turned off and the equipment and hood were removed. She then moved very slowly and lackadaisically (but not staggering), staying in the upper pasture only a few feet from where she had been listening to the tapes. Finally, she made a succession of six big yawns. This horse had never before been seen to make serial yawns! These results show that the addition of a Theta-Delta Hemi-Sync program to a powerful meditation composition produces additional, easily visible behavioral effects. Discussion Horses become recumbent only about three hours out of each twenty-four. Horses only exhibit REM sleep during recumbency. Recumbency usually is exhibited during the night and is preceded by relaxation and head lowering until the head touches the ground. Since the subject horse in this study never before approached this almost recumbent state during a hot, humid day with an electrical storm rapidly approaching, it is probable that it was induced by the combination of a powerful meditation music tape plus the embedded Theta-Delta Hemi-Sync program. This evoking of behavioral change in an equine suggests the potential for numerous uses for various Hemi-Sync-embedded tapes with nonhuman animal species, including relaxing animals dur- ing transportation (transportation usually is stressful); inducing “relax-alert” before tasks; using concentration tapes for training animals that are hyperactive and have dif- ficulties learning new tasks, etc. The observation that Kerry Mist's stable mate main- tained his position behind her during the entire tape portion of this study suggests that it would be interesting to follow the EEG output of close pairs (“friends”) of animals, includ- ing humans, to determine whether the EEG output in the member of the pair not receiving direct audio stimulation changes to resemble the EEG output of the subject who has received the audio stimulation. In addition, future experi- ments now in the planning stage will investigate inter- species relationships, for example, those between Border collies and the sheep they herd. a RECAPTURING THE INTUITIVE IN THERAPY AND EDUCATION: HEMI-SYNC IN ADULT CONTINUING EDUCATION by Suzanne Evans Morris, PhD |* Internationally known for her work with children with develop- mental disabilities, speech-language pathologist Suzanne Evans Morris maintains a private practice near Charlottesville, Virginia. As director of New Visions, she also provides innovative professional workshops and family-oriented clinical services. Dr. Morris is a member of the TMI Board of Advisors. In 1985 adult continuing education workshops were developed for professionals working in rehabilitation and special education. Between 1985 and 1988, 320 individuals attended twelve small, five-day workshops that incorporated --- PAGE 3 (OCR) --- Fall 1992 Hemi-Sync signals in background music to enhance partici- pant learning. Following the workshop 96% stated that they were both more relaxed and more attentive than usual dur- ing the workshop. In a follow-up questionnaire four months later, 50% of those responding stated that they were using Hemi-Sync tapes in therapy with children and adults. Many participants stated they felt more intuitive and connected with their clients since the workshop. However, this experi- ence was frequently uncomfortable since they lacked the trust and ability to integrate these intuitive “hunches” with the rational approach others expected. From this feedback a new workshop, “Recapturing the Intuitive in Therapy and Education,” was born. Workshop Rationale Current systems of professional education were exam- ined to identify existing models of thinking that would vali- date an intuitive-rational model. Therapy and education have been described as both arts and sciences. However, most educational programs have supported only the scientific component. The “art of thera- py” has been superficially acknowledged, but little has been provided to assist the development of skill and accuracy in this area. Professionals are usually educated and trained ina fact-based approach. The assumption is made that clinical and educational decisions are made at a rational level, and specific approaches and techniques should be supported by scientific theory and research. The therapist or educator is expected to observe each aspect of the client’s abilities and disabilities, and move step by step toward the logical conclu- sion. Only information that “makes sense” and can be veri- fied objectively is included in the planning of a therapy or educational program. The term “clinical intuition” might be substituted for the “art of therapy.” An intuitive approach to assessment and treatment includes hunches and spatial-timing components. Intuition is defined as knowing something without knowing how we know it. In accessing intuitive information, professionals open both physical and nonphysical senses to obtain a global impression of the child and family. Questions are asked of the intuitive self, and answers are incorporated in the assess- ment, treatment, or education program. The intuitive data is generally refined, with specific points checked out by addi- tional questions and observations. Responses to subtle non- verbal messages and intuitive knowledge promote further investigation or lead directly to a conclusion. Changes in space and time occur so easily and appropriately that thera- py/education exhibits an aliveness and a flow from one event to the next. Information does not initially have to make sense. It usually cannot be validated objectively at the time