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psychophysiology
shifting cerebral hemispheric dominance
psychospiritual approaches
definition
Debra Werntz (1981) found that ultradian rhythms in cerebral hemispheric dominance were contralaterally associated with similar alternations in the nasal breathing cycle. That is, when the left nostril was open and taking in air, the right cerebral hemisphere had an EEG pattern indicative of greater activity, and vice versa. Further, she found that changing nasal breathing from one side to the other also changed cerebral hemispheric dominance.
Rossi notes that this has important implications for the development of new approaches to therapeutic hypnosis. An exploration of any mind-body state or problem involving the autonomic nervous system could be undertaken by shifting cerebral hemispheric dominance via the nasal breathing rhythm. His favorite method is to simply lie down comfortably on one side of the body. Lying on the right side causes the right nostril to become congested, while the left nostril opens within a few minutes. This reflexively tends to activate the right cerebral hemisphere. By lying on the left side, the left cerebral hemisphere is activated. His method for shifting cerebral hemispheric dominance and mind-body states is as follows:
Stage 1: Identifying nasal dominance and mind-body state
When you are experiencing a mind-body state you would like to explore and transform, first determine which nostril is clear.
Stage 2. Shifting nasal and hemispheric dominance
Lie on your side, with the clear nostril downward. This will shift reflexively your cerebral dominance within a few minutes to the hemisphere on the downward side. Simply receive and wonder about the sensory, perceptual, emotional, cognitive, or symptomatic shifts taking place all by themselves within the next five to twenty minutes.
Stage 3: Ratify hemispheric and mind-body shifts
In an upright position, notice that the formerly blocked nostril is now clear, and vice-versa. Record the mind-body changes that accompanied this nasal-cerebral hemispheric shift and study the characteristic patterns of your responses to guide yourself further.
(Rossi, 1986, p. 121-3)
see:
bodymind psychobiology
converting a symptom to a signal
holographic paradigm
human energy fields
hypnotherapy: overview
hypnotherapy: techniques
hypnotherapy: guidelines and precautions
process paradigm
reframing
self-hypnosis
state-dependent learning
the shadow and physical symptoms
ultradian rhythms
footnotes