The sleep stages (11)

To understand the process of physical and mental relaxation is necessary to carefully study the different states the person transits when relaxing and thus understand the benefits that one can obtain from this practice.

Our brain emits a certain amount of electrical energy with a frequency measured in cycles per second. This rate varies according to the degree of activity of our conscious mind and can be measured using an encephalograph. When we are awake and active, the brain emits waves known with the name of beta, and these go from 14 to 21 cycles. Depending on the mental activity degree, when a person is very agitated, he will possibly be emitting beta waves around 19, 20 or 21 cycles.

When we are relaxed, with our eyes closed, but without being asleep, we will be emitting waves known by the name of alpha. These range from 7 to 14 cycles per second. When we are asleep, during the first stage of sleep, these waves become longer and slower as the sleep deepens and they are known as gamma waves, ranging from 4 to 7 cycles per second.

At the deepest stage of the sleep, we emit delta waves ranging from 0 to 4 cycles per second. Of course, 0 would indicate a dead brain with no mental activity, and therefore no living person reaches 0. Even an individual in a coma state emits delta waves.

This cycle from beta (awake), alpha (relaxed), gamma (sleep) to delta (the deepest sleep), we all go over it every night while we sleep, possibly about 8 to 10 times. We lay down in beta, then we relax and reach the alpha point that is the condition in which we are not asleep nor awake; then we reach the first levels of sleep and continue to deepen till reaching the delta levels. It is precisely at that delta level where dreams occur, and it is known as the phase of rapid eye movement. If we approach a person who is deeply asleep, we will notice that their eyelids move continuously. Due to this, it is called phase of the rapid movement of the eyes, and it is in this stage where the person dreams. Then we go back and go over this cycle in reverse.

From deep sleep in delta, we go back to gamma and continue till we reach the alpha level. There we will not be asleep nor awake, and some even wake up, go out briefly to beta, drink water, go to the bathroom and then repeat the cycle about eight or ten times each night. That is to say that we all transit through this cycle at night and we all dream, although many times we do not remember the dreams.

Of these four mind stages, we are interested in the second level, or the alpha level, since it is the most important for the physical and mental relaxation, as also for the development and mind control. Recent studies on the alpha level are being carried out by psychologists, psychiatrists, and scholars of human potential. In following articles, we will explain these discoveries, how we benefit from the practice of relaxation and what the alpha level represents.