Am I screwing this up?

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09-28-2008, 02:47 PM
jloom

Am I screwing this up?

I'll express what I want to achieve from the Mind Machine first. I would like to put a larger gap between "me" and my emotions. I would like to put a wider gap between "me" and my thoughts.
The 1 hour meditation session on the Proteus spends alot of time well below 4hz. Shortly after the session, usually within 30min, I've acted like a complete ass because I caught resentments and raged out on people, the very behaviour I'm trying to change.
Ok, so I create my own sessions at 4.5hz because this is what I think to be the right freq for meditation, and at the end I don't add frequencies to ramp back up, which I've noticed most mind machine sessions do. The 30min and 40min 4.5hz sessions I created work well without any consequence. So I did the 60min session and made it a point to watch "myself" for intense emotions and fiercely expressed opinions. The results were still the same; raw, intense, easily pissed and strongly opinionated.
My questions:
1 )Are these states just irritation or should I continue them and learn to cope without verbally attacking others?
2) Is there a better frequency to use for what I'm trying to achieve?

Please, I love the machine and I'm not looking for a scapegoat, I need insight here so I'm not moving in the wrong direction. As I said, the shorter sessions don't create any troubles. I don't want to regard these negative experiences as "irritation" from doing the MM too long. If I will get me where I want to be, I will learn to cope with it.

Thanks,
Jerome
09-28-2008, 03:25 PM
CraigT

Re: Am I screwing this up?

My immediate thought would be to try some alpha relaxation rather than trying to go deep. My experience has been that if I try to dive straight back into the ordinary world immediately out of theta or delta I have trouble coping. Alpha has been very effective for me in reducing anxiety and allowing me to cope with stresses better.

Good luck! I feel for you!

Cheers,
Craig
09-28-2008, 06:04 PM
Marisa

Re: Am I screwing this up?

Hi Jerome,

Quote:

Originally Posted by jloom

I'll express what I want to achieve from the Mind Machine first. I would like to put a larger gap between "me" and my emotions. I would like to put a wider gap between "me" and my thoughts.
The 1 hour meditation session on the Proteus spends alot of time well below 4hz. Shortly after the session, usually within 30min, I've acted like a complete ass because I caught resentments and raged out on people, the very behaviour I'm trying to change.

Theta shouldn't cause this kind of reaction. Usually irritation would result from too much Beta. I agree with Craig that choosing an Alpha program would be best. Try Program 9, 33 or 34.

That kind of irritability may have more to do with biochemistry being off (serotonin too low) than brain waves. Also keep in mind that you do have a choice in what you do with your feelings when they arise - raging and acting like an ass are one choice, exercising is another. Exercise helps stimulate endorphins; having sex and/or being loving stimulates oxytocin and thinking positive boosts serotonin. All three are "feel good" brain chemicals.

Quote:

1 )Are these states just irritation or should I continue them and learn to cope without verbally attacking others?

Regardless of what your state is, you should learn to practice better self control because verbally attacking anyone ... well nothing good ever comes from that sort of thing.

As I mentioned above, theta shouldn't cause irritation - so I doubt that the irritation was caused by the session. I think there is something else going on ... it could be a biochemical thing and/or a behavioral thing.

Quote:

2) Is there a better frequency to use for what I'm trying to achieve?

Alpha

Quote:

Please, I love the machine and I'm not looking for a scapegoat, I need insight here so I'm not moving in the wrong direction. As I said, the shorter sessions don't create any troubles. I don't want to regard these negative experiences as "irritation" from doing the MM too long. If I will get me where I want to be, I will learn to cope with it.

If you find the longer sessions getting to you, then choose shorter sessions. Longer doesn't necessary mean better. In addition to your work with the AVS machine, if you haven't already, educate yourself about proper nutrition and other substances, situations etc. that may be behind the irritability. If you can, learn more about yourself and choose a method of increasing your self control - martial arts may be a good option.

I hope this helps.

M.