Years ago I was dealing with a lot of health issues that were unresolvable with mainstream medicine and traditional physical therapy. I found myself doing endless amounts of research on the internet looking for ways to fix my problems, which included chronic injuries and insomnia.
I learned many powerful techniques and eventually joined organizations and developed protocols to become super healthy, strong and totally in control of my body – however one of the most powerful videos I watched early on in my journey was this video by Dr Berg.
To briefly summarize this video…
We’ve always know that Melatonin is important because it helps us fall asleep and our body will repair and recover during sleep. We understand that Seratonin is a precursor to Melatonin – so essentially feeling relaxed and having a sense of well being will help the body produce Melatonin and drift into reparative sleep. We also know that Melatonin is produced by the body during darkness in the pineal gland – hence the emphasis on sleeping and waking with the circadian rhythm.
Two new things we learn in this video.
1) is that Melatonin acts not only as a hormone that helps the body sleep but it is also a “Master Antioxidant” – meaning it’s a powerful antioxidant that TRIGGERS the activation of other antioxidants. Antioxidants repair the body from stress that causes damage to the cells. This stress causes cancer, improper functioning of the cells, and basically is the reason that all diseases develop. So Melatonin therefore is the antidote to the damage that occurs inside the cells as we age and are exposed to degradative stimulus in the world.
2) is the while we previously thought that Melatonin was produced in the pineal gland during darkness, what we actually learn now is the the majority of the Melatonin is produced inside the mitochondria of the cells and is activated by sunlight – particularly the Infrared rays.
You can watch the video for a more in depth explanation of the topic, but essentially we learn that Melatonin is drastically more important than we previously thought – it’s literally the basis of the repair mechanisms of the body – and it can be activated by Infrared light (which is one of the spectrum of light that’s found in sunlight).
The problem with sunlight is that it also contains UV rays which can be harmful to the body in high doses – so ideally we want to be able to isolate the Infrared from the UV rays.
Fortunately there are several ways to do that. One is with fire – which emits Infrared frequencies, but is generally not hot enough to emit UV ways. So you can light a campfire at night or light some candles around your house.
However if you really want a powerful solution you can use a specially designed Infrared lamp – which only produces rays in the Infrared spectrum, is very affordable and can be used without any special equipment in your bedroom or couch.
You can get a cheap Infrared device here or you can do some research and try to find a more expensive one. However I’ve had great results with the one that I linked to above.
Now lets talk about how to properly use Infrared lamp
These devices have been around for awhile and although some people love them, many people report a limited effect, and I’m sure it’s because they are not using it in the best way that they can. They probably use the light while they are active and awake and simply shine it on their skin for 20-30 minutes and hope to get some benefit. While according to the science this may lead to some increased Melatonin, the most powerful way to use it is to understand the specific interaction that is happening in the body.
Remember that Seratonin is the precursor to Melatonin. Seratonin is released when we feel relaxed, safe and happy. These are states of mind that happen during meditation, when we lie down or sit down in a comfortable place and try to slow our heart rate.
Infrared light will be a powerful stimulus to help put the body into a meditative trance – a HEALING state of being – and this will exasperate the interaction between the Infrared, Seratonin and Melatonin.
So the way I would recommend using your Infrared Lamp is to turn it on literally in your bed when you are try to fall asleep. If you are someone who likes to read or listen to music or watch TV while you are falling asleep, you can put the lamp on your night stand – aim it directly on your head – and whenever you’ve decided to stop being active for the day simply absorb the rays as you wind down and eventually fall into sleep.
You will find that using Infrared in this way will get you HIGH. Almost like smoking a joint or taking some sort of opiate or anti-anxiety medication. This will put you into a totally healing trance where the sensation of feeling high, the Seratonin, the slowed heart rate, the Melatonin and the Infrared radiation will all work together cohesively to help your body repair and recover.
If you also practice slow nasal breathing – gentle long inhales through the nose (5-10 seconds) and gentle long exhales through the mouth (10-20 seconds) – this will even exacerbate this calming effect.
You can use this lamp anywhere from 1-4 hours at night – I have never heard of or experienced any negative effects from it – and it will help your body rest and recover, reverse oxidative stress and even reverse aging. Because it is a heat lamp, it’s most comfortable to use during the winter. However I have even used it during the summer and it still helps you relax.
The body needs Yin and Yang to work optimally. Think of going to the gym, taking cold showers – things that increase your adrenaline as the Yang, and then think of Infrared lamp and relaxing as the Yin. The Yang increases bloodflow and energy, the Yin helps the body recover, repair and make optimal use of the power it has generated in Yang state.