Four Ways To Use Meditation CDs

Often when I use my meditation CDs they put me to sleep. This isn't surprising, since some of them are designed to bring one's brainwaves down to the delta range (below 5 hertz - 5 cycles per second), and I'm usually laying down when I listen. In fact most of the programs which use brainwave entrainment advise against laying down.

That's okay though, because these things are tools, and can be used for more than one purpose. I like having a CD that can relax me and put me to sleep when I want. They do wake me back up again too, because most meditation CDs alter the embedded beats to bring your brainwaves back to the beta range (above 14 hertz - normal waking consciousness) at the end of the session. So I effectively get a "power nap" by using them.

Of course, sleep is not the goal normally, and if you want to used these products to meditate it helps to sit while listening, so you won't fall asleep. If you do stay awake during a session, you'll have an experience very similar to "regular" meditation (it seems just the same to me). Some people argue that you are consciously "taming" your mind when you meditate through the usual practices, and the CDs are not quite the same. As one meditator put it; "I feel that I am doing something when I sit and practice on my own, but with brainwave entrainment it is more that something is being done to me."

He may have a point, but I don't see any reason you can't do it both ways. It is just a tool. In addition, even if the experience is somewhat different, the ease of using these CDs means that many who otherwise might never meditate because of the difficulty can do so and get the benefits they wouldn't otherwise get. I have never heard of any harm coming from using meditation CDs.

Other Ways To Use Meditation CDs

You can use them for a power nap (they really knock me out), or for regular sitting meditation. In what other ways can you use these powerful tools? Here are two more.

Walking Meditation - I like to load a good brainwave entrainment audio onto my MP3 and take a walk while listening to it. I certainly don't fall asleep in this way, and it really clears the mind in my experience. You may even notice that things look a little different as you walk and get into a deeper state of consciousness. I think this is because you stop or slow a lot of the internal chatter that normally tells you what you are looking at, so you see with "new eyes." You also become more self aware, noticing not only the workings of your body, but the thoughts that are typically just below consciousness.

Creativity Booster - Many meditation CDs are designed for "lighter" sessions, meaning they only bring your brainwaves down to the alpha level (8 to 14 hertz), These are great for listening too while you write or take notes for a project or goal. You will generally have more creative ideas when in this state of consciousness.

Sittiing meditation, power-naps, walking meditation, and creativity boosting - those are some of the ways to use your meditation CDs, but why not experiment with other ways? Don't try to drive while using them, but you can certainly safely try them out in other settings and circumstances.