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I'm in a very unusual state as I type this, which I think might even be a Theta state, or possibly Delta. I'm slightly dizzy, extremely tired, and thinking weird thoughts. I haven't done anything special or out of the ordinary, except for having a dentist's appointement this morning... And yet I'm in this state... Wow. Any ideas/clues/thoughts?
It is perfectly normal to experience Theta brain waves while awake. Delta would mean you were in a deep dreamless sleep, so it is not likely that is what you are experiencing. Theta can come about by doing tasks which require little thinking like brushing your teeth/hair in the morning, or (unfortunately) driving on the highway for several minutes. Not that driving doesn't require thinking, but a lot of people are known to fall into theta states on the highway. Sitting at a computer and letting your mind wander will also induce alpha/theta brain waves. So really it's nothing unusual, even though you personally may be unfamiliar with experiencing such states during your day.
If Theta was normal, this wasn't Theta. I'm out of it now, but I remember it distinctly, and it was very unusual. Almost like recovering from sedation after surgery, mixed with a hypnagogic state.
Well there are levels of each. You should read up about it if you really want an answer, though I can see how sedation could cause some high level of Delta?
http://www.web-us.com/images/waves.gif
I have slept consciously for hours before. It has been my experience of conscious sleep/ delta waves as a timeless state of bright darkness, I have no form & I really don't experience language at all but I know what is happening. Sometimes I could hear my environment other times nothing at all.
Mostly I experience it in 30-75 min increments. I haven't been able to do this at will but it happens i'd say 1-2 a month.
Just for clarity on this. One time I caught myself dreaming and started exploring some limited belief systems. Then the dreams ends all thought patterns dissolved followed by form. There was nothing after this just a sensation of eternal expansiveness devoid of everything else. My point is I slipped consciously for about 3 hrs or less this time in conscious sleep from lucid dreaming. I figure this by estimating sleep cycles at 90 mins from the time I woke up
Are you sleep deprived? If so, this is normal, and you'd have started to experience "micro-sleeps" as some call them. Otherwise, I believe you were consciously in the fastest delta state, or the slowest theta. If you felt uncomfortably drowsy and tired, my bet would be somewhere in the delta range.
Remember, that deep sleep / dreamless sleep both occur during delta brainwave activity, but that brainwave function is not exclusive to those activities. It's perfectly possible to experience delta frequencies while awake.
Theta is more like daydreaming, and it happens to most people several times throughout a day, if not several dozens of times. It's like a trance state that comes from doing something that is repetetive or no longer requires conscious effort beyond basical mechanical functions.
I'm impressed by your experiences of dreamless state (I've read something else on other thread about your experiences). I've had them too, but very short, because my mind quickly starts looking for references, shapes, colours and I just jump into dreams or wake up after a while. But I really want to stay there in that voidness. Do you have any trick to go there and rest there or it just happens? Congrats. It's not everybody who can do that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hijo de la Luna
Are you sure you're not just drunk? :DQuote:
Originally Posted by LRT
Just teasing... but does a theta/delta state actually have to have those properties? Maybe you just had a dizzy spell (random dizziness), and you happen to be tired. And I'm always thinking weird thoughts, so it's all good. I don't think there's necessarily anything out of the ordinary here.
Most of the time when it just happens. However, I have two resources may be of interest to you one is a CD called Yoga Nidra by Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati. Another is Dream Yoga and the Practice of natural light by Namkhai Norbu.Quote:
Originally Posted by immaia
I will say that when it happens i tend to be confused when it happens. My mind starts racing or i am listening to the odd sounds of the house and or thinking about ghosts and somehow I get stuck in between.... No worries I am never really stuck but in my above story sometimes it winds up being a while but it never seems like a long time.
Also when I am lucid I will become disinterested in the dream and it fades away. Sometimes another dream begins then in the gap of the two I find myself disembodied.
Happy Trails and good luck!
Not to hijack the thread... but, do any of the waves mimic cataplexia?
My experience is most likely triggered by anxiety, but during road trips (even of just 30 minutes) I start falling "asleep". It's as if before me are two realities. The dream is foremost in my vision, but reality is in the background, as if behind a screen. Eventually, reality dissipates and I jerk "awake". During all of this, my body starts going limp and the area (especially) around my mouth tingles. Then my hands tingle. If someone tries speaking to me, my voice will be slurred as if drunk.
It happens during large gatherings of people too.
I don't pass out, but I might as well. I eventually fall completely and uncontrollably asleep.
This thread reminded me of those experiences (which no one has every explained satisfactorily).
I take meds for anxiety which have caused the episodes to nearly disappear completely.
I have experienced similar experiences of drowsiness while driving even after drinking a whole pot of expresso & coffee at the same time and after 8 hrs of sleep. However , I found that I could listen to Dr. Jeffrey THompsons Awakened mind pattern CD and it totally fixed the prob for me.
IO never experience this around large groups of people though :panic: he he he;)