Abstract
Patting an infant’s back to facilitate sleep induction has been a long-held custom, and the beneficial effect of such patting has also been empirically recognized. Such patting represents rhythmic stimuli different from a massage and generates vibrations of a constant frequency. In order to verify the effect of regular rhythmic stimuli in enhancing relaxation and consciousness level, we conducted two experiments per person on 43 healthy female students. In the intervention experiment, the students laid in the right lateral decubitus position for 10 minutes and received regular rhythmic stimuli of approximately 0.33 to 0.67 Hz (around 20 to 40 times/minute) on the back, while in the control experiment, the students laid in the same position without receiving any stimuli. In regard to autonomic nervous activity, decreases in the sympathetic nervous index and heart rate were observed in the intervention experiment. Comparison revealed a significant difference between the two experiments in the BIS index at one minute after the start of the experiments. The results of evaluation based on the relaxation standard, JUMACL, and the introspection report suggested that the regular rhythmic stimuli relaxed the students. The results suggested that the stimuli calmed sympathetic nervous activity and provided a subjective relaxation effect.
