By IMDHA Board member Rayma Ditson-Sommer, PhD, Phoenix, AZ
Rayma Ditson-Sommer, Ph.D.
Calmness development can positively affect the anterior cingulated gyrus area of your brain. This area controls concentration and is directly related to the hippocampus area which governs learning. As the message moves through the brain a chemical reaction is set off to neutralize the norepinephrine reaction that makes you feel edgy and tired. It is true, then, that calmness can actively cause mood swings and restlessness.
At the University of Wisconsin Madison, a research study concerning relaxation revealed that during an alpha relaxation session the brain actively switches from the right side of the prefrontal cortex. This cortex is directly related to anxiety producing reactions and to the right side of the brain. This research also reported that positive emotions are a direct result of left brain activation. In other words, left dominant people are happier than right dominant individual who tend to be more anxious.
Calmness development is a powerful trigger to the brain’s energy center. Anxiety robs people of this energy and calmness can help them triumph over disease entities presenting exhaustion. This same calmness can alter pain thresholds by 50% according to Kabat-Zim of the University Of Maryland School Of Medicine.
With all the proof of the positive side of calmness development, more emphasis should be placed on helping clients become more knowledgeable about their own abilities to lessen anxiety and produce more positive energy through activating states of mind.
Rayma Ditson-Sommer, Ph.D has a lengthy background in psychology, wellness facilitation, neurotherapy, biofeedback, peak performance training, specialized education, early childhood development and education, neuropsychology, music therapy and research. She holds degrees from Columbia University, New York City; Texas Woman’s University, Denton, Texas; and Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, with year-long internships at Southwestern Medical School, Menninger Clinic, and Topeka State Hospital. Dr. Ditson-Sommer has help professorships at the University of Wisconsin, Texas Woman’s University, and Viterbo College, with Consultantships at Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, and Southern Methodist University.
For more information visit: www.OptimalFocus.com Dr. Ditson-Sommer is presently immersed in research and development of biofeedin neurotechnical methods for wellness and learning. She has developed innovative approaches to learning and attention deficits using bilateral hemispheric training through light and sound techniques. She is the developer of the Maximal Learning System for accelerated learning, and is the author of the Maximal Learning CD Series for whole brain learning. Dr. Ditson-Sommer is involved in performance neurophysiology and trained Garry Hall, Jr., Gold Medal USA Olympian in the 1996, 2000, and 2004 games, as well as, 15 additional gold and silver medals by various Olympians. Dr. Ditson-Sommer is an internationally known speaker, developmental consultant, and lecturer in the field of biofeedback, biofeedin, and overall learning. She has conducted seminars throughout the world related to accelerated learning, participation enhancement, attention deficit difficulties, closed head injury, autism, dyslexia and wellness. Dr. Ditson-Sommer is the C.E.O. of OPNET Inc., partner in International SportsLink LLC., and designer of the SportsLink Focus Trainer, and a program consultant to many other developers of light and sound equipment. She is in private practice in Phoenix, Arizona, and can be contacted at Optimalfocus.com or Opnet2@aol.com. Dr. Ditson-Sommer has completed a two year research and design development of the Focus Trainer, Sportslink, ChiQ , ColorLink and LearningLink neurotechnical units to be launched in late 2006.
