How Visually Impaired Students Overcome Anxiety when Retaining Test Information

How Visually Impaired Students Overcome Anxiety when Retaining Test Information

Students who experience a gradual or sometimes abrupt loss of vision find themselves searching for alternative methods for learning new information and retaining important elements for upcoming tests to memory. Learning to use the Braille keyboard or having to depend on retaining information almost exclusively through hearing both lead to anxiety and stressors that cloud their academic performance.

One student in particular was a locksmith until her vision deteriorated and it became apparent she needed to return to school and retrain in another line of work. She had not been to school in 25 years. Here are Laura’s words in describing her situation: “My anxiety level was through the roof. I needed to read my material and it was necessary for me to be able to have a high level of memory retention. I am a very visual person and when confronted with this new dilemma I did not know where to turn.”

Five years later and Laura is a college graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree from a major university. She attributes, in part, to the success of her adapting to learn in alternative ways to having vision through the use of audio brainwave frequency stimulation. According to Laura after employing this method while studying: “My anxiety level began to decline and my test scores improved. I went from a 2.0 GPA to a 3.2 GPA and I began to retain information being read to me on audiobooks. I listened to my books while I played the audio stimulation at a very low volume in the background. On late night studies I used the Beta selection for energy instead of coffee. The Alpha selection helps me during the day to calm my nerves and relieve anxiety when studying for a big exam. While studying some of my more difficult subjects like statistics I use the Alpha / Theta or Theta selections to help me grasp the concepts and retain the information. At night I often have difficulty falling asleep so I put on the Delta selection and I am able to sleep through the night without waking.”

Shortly after Laura realized the benefits gained by using audio brainwave stimulation while studying, she invited me to the Braille Institute in Los Angeles. They were having their annual Oktoberfest Open House for their Braille patrons.  The Library Services Division of the Braille Institute asked if a demonstration showing how dual independent binaural beat frequencies work. As Tina Herbison, Braille Open House Coordinator, observed: “We had over 600+ guests attend and most of them seemed extremely interested in our sound demonstration area. Thanks for helping make this the best Open House to date”. 

Dual independent binaural beat audio brainwave frequency stimulation results in longer brainwave entrainment than other delivery types of frequency stimulation as shown via eeg/neurofeedback testing.  As the senses of the body transmits electrical impulses to the brain based on environmental stimuli, hearing is a favorable sense to deliver brainwave stimulation safely. By generating frequencies in a targeted brainwave state, the mind hears the stimuli and begins to follow or mimic the audio stimulation, allowing the session to gently lead the mind to the targeted state. This mimic or following suite is what entrainment is all about. In essence, audio brainwave frequency stimulation speaks to the mind in it’s own language – the language of frequency.