Using Audio Visual Entrainment to Treat Insomnia
In 2021, Doc Nic completed a Doctorate and Ph.D. program in Integrative Medicine at The International Quantum University of Integrative Medicine. The professional program endorsed 1000 hours of practical experience aligned with healing practices underpinned within the science models of quantum physics, epigenetics, neuroscience, and psychoneuroimmunology. His dissertation examined the entrainment effect of graduated audible frequencies and light pulsations from 18.0 Hz to 0.5 Hz on adults with symptoms of chronic insomnia.
Chronic primary insomnia is one of the most common sleep disorders among adults, including day workers, with difficulties initiating (latency) and/or maintaining sleep as well as early morning awakening commonly reported, which can result in daytime impairment. Aside from conventional pharmacotherapeutic and non-pharmacotherapeutic treatment, no complementary intervention has been found to treat chronic ‘primary’ insomniac adults with normal sleep duration (> 6h). Previous studies have found that open-loop audio-visual entrainment (OLAVE) potentially reduces excessive hyperarousal, which is thought to contribute to difficulties with impairment in the daytime and initiating and maintaining sleep at nighttime.
The research design of the study was a randomised single-blind placebo-control parallel study. After 6 weeks, between-group differences were found in sleep fragmentation in the OLAVE group. Within-group differences showed that both groups reported some improvement in sympathovagal balance (increased Heart Rate Variability or HRV) and significant improvements in insomnia symptoms, stress, and emotional regulation, which continued to the end of the trial. Improvements in sleep quality and sleep efficiency in the OLAVE group were reported during the 2-week post-intervention period. Results suggest that OLAVE technology used during the daytime may be efficacious in improving chronic insomnia in adult dayworkers.
The study elucidated three very important findings. First, audio-visual entrainment (AVE) can be used to quickly and non-invasively alter a person’s state of consciousness and improve their state of health. Furthermore, AVE alters the state of consciousness—specifically, from an aroused to a relaxed state in 20 minutes. This empirical study shows that certain configurations of sound and light that incorporate a limited range of frequencies between beta and delta can positively affect the autonomic nervous system (ANS) as measured objectively by reduced heart rate and increased heart rate variability. The ANS affects the heart rhythm on a cellular level. A relaxed state created while resting initiates the “relaxation response” that tells your heart to slow down, making room for changes between beats (higher HRV).
While it is plausible that no technical method could create an instant and profound state of deep relaxation, nothing prevents adults from using brain stimulation technology, including multisensorial auditory and optically designed systems (e.g., BrainTap Technology), to quickly and non-invasively cultivate an altered state of consciousness amenable to improved stress and emotional regulation. Improved heart rate regulation and HRV relate to better sympathovagal balance and cognitive and emotional processing. This sort of multi-sensorial approach could have other personal healthcare applications for cognitive performance and emotional wellbeing, as well as treatments for mental disorders such as PTSD.
Second, progressive improvements in sleep and daytime functioning were reported by participants two weeks after the 6-week intervention. This suggests that our brains do not contain fixed hardwiring; the neural pathways and circuits can in fact change quickly with little conditioning, and brainwave entrainment may be a harmless way to encourage the growth of new neurons (neurogenesis) along with the formation of new connections between existing neurons (synaptogenesis) that support better sleep. By joining the neurobiological effects of neurotransmitters, brain waves, instrumental conditioning, and the empirical evidence from the psychological experiments, it is evident that brainwave entrainment using multisensorial stimulation is a potential method of effective treatment for insomnia and associated symptoms such as emotional reactivity, with no adverse effects. It may also function as a preventive medicine; therefore, it is highly recommended to everyone and not limited to adults experiencing sleep problems.
Third, like the experimental group, the placebo group reported significantly reduced insomnia symptoms and emotional reactivity from music-listening when comparing the baseline heart rate variability (HRV) measurements and self-reported measures. The results arising from the placebo group may be equally explained by the dosing schedule effect and/or by the placebo. Although not statistically significant, all HRV metrics improved between the first and sixth session. This finding is surprising in that it suggests that the brain’s response to audible stimuli correlates with improved HRV.
It is noteworthy to mention the ‘placebo effect’. Many randomised placebo-controlled trials of insomnia interventions find that participants allocated to placebo treatment experience significant improvement. This suggests that insomnia may be responsive to the placebo effect, whereby the treatment context itself elicits positive expectations that trigger improvement. Importantly, improvement in the placebo group of this trial can be accounted for by other factors, such as spontaneous recovery and regression to the mean. The research contributes to the evidence that placebo interventions can reduce insomnia symptoms.
Accepted extract for the Eurasia Conferences ‘3rd World Conference on Psychology and Behavioral Science’ can be read here.
The complete study is available at https://research.braintap.com/publications/
Presentations
Dr Francisco Cidral presented on Nicholas’ behalf in Chicago at the 2023 National Integrated health and Medicine Symposium.
Other events Nicholas was invited to present the research at:
- The Institute for Functional Medicine’s 2023 Annual International Conference (AIC).
- The 2023 IMH Conference in the Gold Coast, Australia.
- The 3rd World Conference on Psychology and Behavioral Science in Paris, France, October 2023.
Chronic insomnia, prevalent and impactful on physical, emotional, and cognitive well-being, has long resisted effective treatment. Dr Nicholas Keown, an integrative healthcare practitioner with 30 years of experience, presented a compelling approach at the 3rd Eurasia Psychology and Behavioural Science conference. Highlighting the limitations of traditional pharmacological interventions, he explores the potential of neuropsychological interventions, specifically audio-visual entrainment (AVE) combined with guided visualisation and psycholinguistics. Keown shares insights into the intricate relationship between consciousness, the mind, and chronic insomnia. Through AVE, he demonstrates its capacity to reduce hyperarousal, modulate brainwave activity, and enhance parasympathetic activity, offering a non-invasive alternative to standard treatments. Backed by scientific evidence and studies, the presentation unveils the synergistic benefits of AVE combined with guided visualisation and NLP. Keown’s research, including a recent randomised placebo-controlled trial, underscores the effectiveness of this approach in reducing chronic insomnia symptoms and improving heart rate variability (HRV). The presentation concludes by inviting viewers to explore the BrainTap Technology and contact Dr Nicholas Keown for further information or a free trial, emphasising the potential of neuropsychological interventions for enhanced mental health and overall well-being.
In 2022, Nicholas was invited to present this research at the International Symposium for Integrated Medicine and Health in Arizona, supported by National Institute of Health. The research is making brain wellness and the use of brainwave entrainment mainstream and accessible to everyone.
The Impact of Job Demands on FIFO Workers
Between 2000 and 2003, residents living in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia voiced grave concern about the health of mine shift workers. Themes like “work hard – play hard” and “the golden handcuff syndrome” helped motivate residents to establish the “Goldfields Men’s Health Inc. (GMH)” to better understand the health needs of its workforce.
Local politicians, general practitioners, and lawyers wanted to know the effect of FIFO versus residential mining work practices on the health and wellbeing of employees and their families. Anecdotal and overt observations suggested that the on-off rosters for FIFO workers contributed to high levels of psychological distress compared to residential workers. The voices of local healthcare practitioners indicated that FIFO workers reported distress stemming from missing special events at home, relationship issues, shift rosters, and social isolation; the nature of their work led to disruptions in social activities and family dynamics. They further observed FIFO workers appearing to be more likely to use drugs, smoke, drink at risky levels, and be overweight than residential workers.
However, all mine workers, in particular male FIFO workers, were unlikely to report mental health problems to their employers and partners, likely due to the stigmatisation of mental health within the industry. Local politicians argued that the social fabric in Kalgoorlie and other mining townships located within the Eastern Goldfields region was nourished by residential mining workforces and their families and impaired by transitory FIFO workforces. Moreover, the impact of mining work practices profoundly affected the sustainability and attractability of the mining townships for miners.
Nicholas was employed as the GMH Research Officer in 2004 to explore the experiences of mine workers’ health and the extent to which intensive shift work practices and employment settings, job (that is, perceived job control), and individual variables (ie., sleep quality and duration, social and domestic interface, personality, and coping style) were associated with social, psychological, and physiological health outcomes. The results of a two-year study found that one out of three participants, mostly blue-collar mine shift workers, reported a moderate or higher level of chronic fatigue and a clinical range for psychiatric morbidity including symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. The FIFO group, particularly the day workers, reported higher use of active coping strategies in response to long and successive working shifts compared to the residential groups.
Residential workers also perceived a higher level of control over their job, which may provide more opportunities to employ action-oriented, problem-focused coping. Thus, white-collar FIFO and residential workers presented fewer signs of maladjustment to working time arrangements in mining than their blue-collar counterpart workers. While both blue-collar groups reported impaired well-being because of interference with sleep, and social and domestic aspects of their lives, residential workers seem to have fewer problems with recovery and coping with intensive shift work practices.
In 2011, Nicholas completed a Ph.D. program at The University of Western Australia in Organisational/Industrial Psychology. His dissertation investigated the impact of job demands (continuous rotating shift work and commuting arrangements) on the psychological health and wellbeing of residential and non-residential (Fly-in Fly-out or FIFO) white- and blue-collar male miners employed in the Goldfields region of Western Australia. He further examined coping strategies used by these two groups in response to job demands.