Open-Focus Brain Training

Exercise One: Open-Focus Brain Training

The perception of space is the foundation of open-focus brain training exercises. Once you grasp the concept of focusing on space, you are able to shift between narrow to diffused and immersed focus, between foreground and background, and into a relaxed and synchronous space of alpha brain waves.

As you read this page, soften and relax your focus to include the space between your eyes and the print on the page or screen. Become aware of the three-dimensional space between your eyes and the words. Allow this to happen as you continue reading. Once you are aware of this space, pause for a few seconds to maintain this awareness.

Increase your awareness of space to the borders around the left and right sides of the page. Gradually allow your perceptual field to expand to include more of this space around the page, including top, bottom, and sides. Continue to relax and expand awareness to include whatever is in the foreground, background, all around. If you are sitting at a desk, you might take in your lap, hands and arms, screen, and desk. Expand your peripheral field to include space near in the foreground and then out beyond this space.

Allow your visual foreground equal importance with the background. Move back and forth between foreground (the page and all around it) and background (everything further out). Include the space in front, sides, and even behind you. You likely don’t usually give foreground and background equal focus and interest.

It takes practice to develop this open style of attention. Become aware of your attentional style. Is it relaxed and diffuse or is it mainly narrow focus. Practice including background and space around this narrow target of reading focus. An ability to switch between narrow and diffuse focus mitigates stress.

As you do this reading exercise, you take in more in a glance, increasing your reading speed as well as comprehension without attempting to do so. You can create this same relaxed alpha state while driving while talking with someone, or standing in front of a classroom lecturing.  Alternate from narrow to diffuse focus with space all around. It may take a little time to get the hang of it. Don’t stress on whether you are doing it correctly. It will start to become natural.

Exercise Two: Expanding Your Space

Think of the space around your brain, between your skull and brain. As you take in deep relaxed breaths, breathe in to fill the space between your skull and brain. Visualize the open pathway from the nostrils to the brain. As you begin to relax into deep relaxed breathing and diffuse focus, become aware of the space outside your skull. Think of the space outside the skull and the space inside the skull. Breathe into and fill the space between your brain and skull.

Think of the space outside of your skull and let that expand to include the space in the room. Breathe into the space surrounding your brain with a rich supply of oxygen. Expand the space outside your skull to include the space in the room, Can you move out beyond the room, out into deep space?

Earth & Moon Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

Focus first on the earth. Then focus on the moon (Both narrow focus).

Now include both earth, moon, and space all around (Diffuse Focus).

Don’t stress with these exercises. Adapt them to fit your unique style and tempo. The goal is a relaxed alpha state. This is what it is all about in the client training at the Princeton Biofeedback Center in Princeton, New Jersey. At his clinic, Les Fehmi hooks clients up to an electroencephalographic (EEG) feedback device, but open-focus exercises can be done with or without EEG feedback.

pale blue dot

Now see if you can locate the earth (really the sun) in the Milky Way above. It is a pixel white dot just below center of the milky way. Focus on that tiny dot. Then relax and open your focus so you are aware of the space throughout the Milky Way. Take in the dot of our earth and infinite space outside and beyond our galaxy.

Practice whenever and wherever you might be. Open your focus and take in space all around. Do this while you are talking, walking, or lecturing to a group.

Self-help books that help:

Total Self-Renewal through Attention Therapies and Open Focus

The Open-Focus Brain: Harnessing the Power of Attention to Heal Mind and Body