by Tim Brunson, PhD

If systems can entrain to those of their external environment – whether through physical or mirror neuron means – then what would happen if the input came from mental resources? Can thoughts, imagination, or suggestion have an entraining impact? Can such entrainment become a positive therapeutic tool?

There are several examples of people using imagery to self-entrain. Charles Garfield's (1986) "peak performance" book series popularized the concept that a person should visualize the results they aspire to manifest. In fact, he pointed out how Russian Olympic weightlifters could significantly improve their performance merely by visualizing their desired results. In fact in the world of sports psychology this technique has pretty much become a cliché as it is widely acceptable. Within the medical arena, the wound healing research conducted in 2003 by psychologist Carol Ginandes, PhD, at the Harvard Medical School indicates that we may be able to affect somatic changes merely by visualizing the desired results.

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A Book Review by Tim Brunson, PhD

Handbook of Ericksonian and Solution-Oriented Hypnosis continues that accomplishment by presenting an enjoyable and practical guide to permissive hypnosis. I highly recommend this to the serious clinician. However, this is a book that would benefit just about anyone interested in personal change. I will definitely encourage my students to add this new book to their library.

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The dynamic interactions among physiological rhythms imbedded in the heart rate signal can give valuable insights into autonomic modulation in conditions of reduced outward attention. Therefore, in this study we analyzed the heart rate variability (HRV) in different levels of practice in Zen meditation (Zazen). Nineteen subjects with variable experience took part in this study. In four special cases we collected both HRV and respiration data. The time series were analyzed in frequency domain and also using the Continuous Wavelet Transform, which detects changes in the time domain and in the frequency domain simultaneously. The shifts in the respiratory modulation of heart rate, or respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), reflect the different levels of practice among practitioners with variable experience in Zazen; in turn the modulation of the RSA may reflect changes in the breathing pattern as in the parasympathetic outflow related to the quality and focus of attention in each stage.

Int J Cardiol. 2009 Jul 23. Peressutti C, Martín-González JM, M García-Manso J, Mesa D. Departamento de Educación Física, Facultad de Ciencias de la Actividad Física y el Deporte, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017 Canary Islands, Spain.