ALOHA FROM KAUAI! I hope that this article finds you all doing well and enjoying life as much as I am immersed in the majesty and beauty of Nature. Sitting on my lanai enjoying a balmy jasmine-scented evening while a stunning moon rises over the mountains and ocean, I’m intimately reminded of the powerful lessons that Nature offers us in our pursuit to heal and transform, both individually and collectively. So how exactly does Nature heal us?
To answer that question let’s look at the power of human attention and human brain waves. Neuropsychology now believes that the human brain allows us to process two distinct types of attention. The first is a “voluntary or direct” attention that enables us to focus our thoughts and neural energy to tasks that require our direct concentration, e.g. writing this article or driving a car. The other type is an “involuntary or indirect” attention that our brain does with little or no effort, e.g. watching a sunset or meditating. Additionally, there are corresponding brain waves associated with these two types of attention. When our brains are engaged in voluntary, direct attention, beta waves tend to be predominant, versus the alpha waves when we experience involuntary, indirect attention. The two other brain waves, theta and delta, are predominant in sleep with theta waves occurring in deep-sleep and delta waves in REM dream-sleep.
In the growing medical field of psycho-neuro-immunology (PNI), there appears to be a correlation between the various brain waves with our health and wellbeing. When our brains are highly amped up in focused direct attention for long hours at a time, we live our day predominantly in a beta-wave state accompanied with the release of cortisol, the stress-hormone that eventually may lead to chronic anxiety, illness and disease. The good news is that involuntary, indirect attention produces the alpha-waves that produce serotonin, the neurotransmitter that enables us to become relaxed, calm, and centered when we’re in stress.
While having our brain in beta-wave state is important, as it helps us to focus on daily tasks, unfortunately, many of us live a typical life with our brains disproportionately in the stressful beta-wave state and barely enough time in the healing and regenerative alpha-wave state. Unlike theta and delta waves that occur predominantly in sleep, the healing and regenerative properties of alpha waves are produced only when we are conscious and awake. When the alpha and beta waves are equally in balance throughout our waking day, we experience psycho-physiological coherence, a deep and profound state of integration of the body, mind, and brain. The longer we can remain in psycho-physiological coherence, the stronger our immune system becomes enabling us to be whole and healthy.
So how, then, can you cultivate more alpha-wave states throughout your day to help you maintain coherence? The answer is NATURE! Another emerging field of study, known as ecopsychology, advocates that even though the human brain is currently shaped for our modern and technologically-driven environment, its original function was to interact with and respond to the natural world in which it evolved over the millennia. In essence, the human brain is literally “hard-wired” to BE IN NATURE, and human beings have an instinctual biological need to connect with Nature, something known as the biophilic instinct.
Scientific studies have already begun and continue to demonstrate the powerful healing aspects of Nature. Dr. Ulrich, who published one of the earliest studies in 1984 Science, noticed that patients who were recovering from surgery healed more quickly and required less pain medication when placed in hospital rooms that had views of Nature, versus patients placed in rooms facing brick walls. Why is that? Perhaps it is due to when we are in Nature, our brain goes automatically into the involuntary, indirect attention-mode that is connected with the healing alpha-wave brain state. Research suggests that even a short walk in the park during your lunch break, touching a tree on your walk to the office, or literally “stopping to smell the roses” once in a while is beneficial, as it is an evolutionary trait that our brains evolved to do. Furthermore, even passive contact with Nature such as viewing an open pasture in your car or hearing the sound of birds chirping from your window can have the same powerful benefits as an actual immersion in Nature.
So even if you’re not on a tropical island like Kauai, know that a simple thing like having a plant in your office, a picture of a beautiful scenery on your desk, or simply staring out your window at the trees every couple of hours can connect you to Nature. The point is that Nature is a powerful teacher and healer offering us lessons in our pursuit for genuine peace, love, and abundance, and health. There is a wonderful proverb from ancient India that says, “Hope is Nature's way of enabling us to survive so that we can discover Nature itself.” It is with this intention that I hope you continue Living Your Lightâ as you revel in and benefit from the immense healing power of Nature.
Dr. Jay Kumar
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