The second audio component in our Healing Minds by Design® programs is called a "bilateral beat," or "bilateral stimulation."
Bilateral stimulation is any type of stimulus that alternately and rhythmically activates and balances both hemispheres of the brain. This stimulation has been empirically proven to “unlock” painful memories that are stuck in the limbic system, and desensitize a person to the corresponding emotional “charge”. The desensitization and reprocessing of a traumatic event can happen when a person focuses on a disturbing feeling or memory while activating both hemispheres of the brain. One way to accomplish this hemispheric synchrony is through the use of bilateral stimulation, or BLS.
BLS is a key component in EMDR therapy, which is a very successful psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress and trauma-related issues. First developed by Francine Shapiro, EMDR therapy uses eye movements or other bilateral stimulation to assist clients in processing distressing memories or negative beliefs.
BLS is believed to balance and strengthen the neural connections between the hemispheres and between neurons, especially throughout the corpus callosum. The corpus callosum connects the right and left cerebral hemispheres, enabling communication between them.
