COVID’s Blessing: Optimal Living in The Gamma State
Where is this Gamma State Located?
Is there really a place I can live optimally during COVID? Is it a place far away from the disease where there is no racial, economic, political and environmental unrest? Is it an adult community where all of your needs are taken care of before you even know you need them? No, you’ll be pleased to know that the Gamma state resides within us at all times. Simply put, it is a wave frequency in the brain that is far and above higher than all of our usual brain frequencies (photo credit to Muse):
Gamma brain waves are the fastest brainwave frequency, starting at about 32 Hz. This is so fast that scientists always missed the mark on measuring it because they were focused on measuring the upper ceiling of our other brain waves, which caps off at usually around 25 Hz. Only now are neuroscientists starting to comprehend the superpower properties of the brain in this state.
According to a recent article The Marvelous Properties Of Gamma Brain Waves:
“They are associated with the “feeling of blessings” reported by experienced meditators, such as monks and nuns. Gamma waves are associated with peak concentration and high levels of cognitive functioning…gamma waves are able to link information from all parts of the brain. The gamma wave…moves from the back of the brain to the front and back again 40 times per second. This rapid “full sweep” action makes the gamma state one of peak mental and physical performance. Gamma is the brainwave state of being “in the zone.””
Renowned pioneer in bridging the gap between science and spirituality and New York Times best selling author Gregg Braden points out that Gamma waves turns on over 1300 positive biochemical reactions in the brain: boosting immunity and longevity, activating anti-aging hormones, lowering blood pressure while increasing awareness, deep intuition, focus, learning and memory. Gamma waves even eliminate depression and eats away at the plaques and tangles that cause Alzheimer’s Disease.
Why Should I Care?
Unfortunately, COVID is going to last a lot longer than anyone ever anticipated. Even with the vaccine coming out, we still need to wear a mask because it won’t stop the infection, it just arms us to fight it off more effectively. Adding to this is the second strain, which is approximately 50% more contagious than the first. All of this means that it is up to us to boost our own immunity, we cannot rely solely on waiting for someone to come along and make this all go away.
This is extremely challenging, however, since being at home for a prolonged period of time has left us isolated, sensory deprived and fear focused. A recent article in The Scientist reveals isolation severs critical neural pathways that support cognitive skills, making us feel cloudy, unfocused, inhibiting learning and creativity. At the same time, the stress hormone cortisol increases, making us angrier and short fused, putting us into an ongoing state of fight or flight. In this state, our brain turns off those 1300 positive biochemical reactions to support fight or flight. It instead activates biochemical reactions that break down our body, elevating our heart rate, making our breath shallow and turning off digestion. This is causing 1 in 3 Americans to spiral down with anxiety and/or depression and is contributing directly to our lowered immune response.
How Do I Turn on My Gamma Superpowers? I am NOT a Good Meditator!
All that is needed is 3 minutes a day (which we all seem to be able to spare right now) to turn on the Gamma state for boosted immunity, memory, and reverse aging on demand!
It starts with the heart. According to the, HeartMath Institute “Most of us have been taught in school that the heart is constantly responding to “orders” sent by the brain in the form of neural signals. However, …the heart actually sends more signals to the brain than the brain sends to the heart!” This is accomplished using the over 40K neurons that have been found in the heart, which are a replica of the neurons in the brain. In other words, we actually have another brain in our body, and it’s in our heart. This discovery was made by Dr. Armour (such an appropriate name!) in 1991. He states, “Signals from the “heart brain” redirect to the medulla, hypothalamus, thalamus, and amygdala and the cerebral cortex. Thus, the heart sends more signals to the brain than vice versa.”
The Gamma state can be achieved simply by using the brain in our heart to talk to the brain in our head, which then produces Gamma waves. This is called heart-brain coherence, which is what happens when we connect the shared neural network of the heart and the brain, turning on our superpowers. It opens the door to our subconscious for self healing, triggers spontaneous deep intuition, total recall and super learning and perception. Most importantly, it activates our first line of defense against COVID, the white blood cells in our mouth, which is needed to prevent COVID transmission.
How Can I Get My Heart to Speak to My Brain?
It’s the heart that sends emotion to the brain and signals a chemical response based on that emotion: fight or flight chemicals (breaking down) or relaxation chemicals (building up, like immune response). When we choose to send a positive emotion from the heart to the brain, the body interprets this as heart-brain harmony and experiences it as healing and self-love. This then turns on those 1300 positive biochemical responses, reconnecting the neural pathways that are severed when we are in lockdown; setting new patterns for health and wellness, on-demand.
Heart-Brain Coherence Exercise: 3 Minutes Per Day
Step 1: Find a comfortable seat, closing your eyes, shift your attention to your heart. Place your hand on your heart for easier focusing.
Step 2: Breathe in slowly for 5 seconds, and out for 5 seconds. Deep breathing signals to the brain that we are safe and that we are going inward. With each breath, continue focusing on your heart, and start to feel what it is like to actually breathe through your heart.
Step 3: Now choose a positive emotion like gratitude, appreciation, compassion, or love and feel that emotion with your heart as you continue your slow and deep breathing. Continue for 3 minutes.
Too simple- right? Wrong! I started this practice just two weeks ago. After the first time, I was immediately able to recall my then chosen positive emotion of gratitude and feel it through my heart even while my eyes were open and I was going about my day. I tried to do this as often as possible and something miraculous happened- thinking and feeling through my heart became my default way of living. I was able to choose any positive emotion that I needed for that moment and signal it to my mind, instantly relieving stress and tension and trusting myself more as I was accessing deeper levels of intuition.
I was able to lean more into connecting with my friends and family, appreciating the temporary precious moments that make up our lives. My sleep improved, my anxiety dissipated, and I feel more creative with an increased level of focus and clarity mixed with joy. Even my workouts have improved, I started killing it on Peloton and my husband keeps asking me if I washed my hair (yes it’s not too frequent during COVID!). I am taking this as a compliment! I know I look and feel more relaxed, yet I also feel more productive.
Most importantly, I am able to embody that COVID can build us up and usher in a new way of being, instead of it being what brings us down and takes away what we once viewed as normal. The Cherokee Indians called this “Shante Ishta”, or “single eye of the heart”, signifying vision without judgement. This supports the belief that we are all connected, shifting focus away from self and towards unity, empathy, and compassion.
Thinking and Feeling Through Your Heart Also Moves Us Away From:
- Making purchases to feel joy, since we can already access joy free of charge within us
- Needing others for validation, since we already feel our own self-worth
- Burnout and our title as our identification since we already know and love our authentic selves
- Numbing out with food, alcohol, or smoking because we already appreciate ourselves and bodies
- Distracting ourselves by physically going somewhere because we can finally embrace stillness as we take the most meaningful trip ever, the journey within
- Pillaging our environment, shifting us towards honoring our planet
This is the true meaning of optimal living in the Gamma state. It is not just about arming us with boosted immunity or reverse aging (altho people sure love the latter!), it is about a global evolution that trades the political, racial, economic and environmental unrest that is virtually surrounding us for a new way of being that is heart-led. COVID can be a blessing when we see that it took a global pandemic to signal to us that the way we were living was no longer serving us. Together, we can infuse our world with positive emotion so that we can become better than before COVID as we finally tap into the superpowers that have resided within us all along on our path to inner love.
Alana Ezderman
