Stress busting, brain enhancing MindSpa

A spa for the mind? Well sort of. You don't wear a plush white robe and have a foot massage, but you do relax or get motivated (your choice) while wearing a pair of special specs and some headphones.

MindSpa, a Gadget Show winner,  does for your brain what massage does for your body - chills you out, heightens your receptivity, softens your muscles and prepares you for your day, event, exam etc.

So what is it exactly?


MindSpa is an audio visual stimulation - sound coming through the headphones and light playing through the glasses - that capitalises on the frequencies proven to have a restorative effect.


We know that certain sounds makes us sleepy, alert, active or passive, while equally we know that pulsing, flashing soft light can produce a deeply meditative, or energised state. Now this know-how has been put it to use in a simple way, so we can actively stimulate our brains and minds, or just get a betters night's sleep.

Winner of The Gadgets Show's stress buster gadgets - MindSpa is a therapy, or a use at home product, designed to tap into, or enhance the four most common brain wave frequencies and patterns: Beta, Alpha, Theta and Delta

• The Beta brain waves - (around 14-30 Hz per second) - occur when we are concentrating, alert or using cognitive functions

• Alpha brain waves (3-13 Hz) occur when we are relaxed, in a light trance or meditating, or found during the moments of pre-sleep or pre-conscious waking. The Alpha waves kick in when we are about to access the unconscious mind.

• Theta waves (4-8Hz) appear during the first stage of sleep right through into dreaming sleep (REM sleep). Vital for learning and memory, we also produce catecholamines during this stage.

• Delta waves (1-4Hz) is deep dreamless sleep. Growth hormones are released as the body repairs and recovers, taps into the collective unconscious and loses physical awareness.

Good for...
Anything that you want to focus on, but it has been known to assist:

• Stress
• ADD/ADHD
• Learning difficulties
• Depression
• Insomnia
• Fatigue
• Meditation
• Self control
• SAD
  

Using sound and light to tap into the power of the brain is not new, but this handy little package of headphones and glasses does make it easy to use at home - or you can treat yourself to a session, 20 mins up to an hour, at a health clinic. 

So if you feel particularly blue around this time of year as your circadian rhythms are knocked out of sink with the reduced day light hours, or you feel the onset of SAD, then a regular 20 minute session with MindSpa maybe just what you need.

My experience
I had a 23 minute Stress Magic MindSpa, set up by Chris McAuley at The Anahata Cinic, Brighton. The programme was set at 9hz per second - mid Beta moving into Alpha - which suited me as it was mid Monday morning and I wanted to get set for the week, not sleep through the day.

I had control of the volume and intensity of light, so never felt out of my depth, and it as lovely to sit back and surrender to the soft motion of lights and sound. Occasionally I drifted off, but the frequency was such that I relaxed and felt calm, but was still alert and aware, and had a productive, stress free day

I'm in no doubt that regular use would be beneficial. For more info, contact Chris McAuley at Anahata Health Clinic, or visit MindSpa, or for free light & sound downloads visit Audiostrobe