🧠 Brainwaves and the Subconscious: Why the First 7 Years Are So Important

Mitsu Emig
Jun 17
3 min read

Brainwaves are closely tied to our state of consciousness, and depending on which brainwave is dominant, our level of access to the subconscious changes.

🧠 Brainwaves and Their Daily Manifestations

Brainwave	Frequency	State of Consciousness	Daily Example	Access to Subconscious
Beta	14–40Hz	Awake, thinking, analysis	In a meeting, focused on work	✕ Mainly conscious mind
Alpha	8–14Hz	Relaxed, calm focus	Taking a shower, zoning out in nature	△ Light access
Theta	4–8Hz	Deep meditation, drowsy	Hypnosis, before falling asleep, when kids are deeply playing	◎ Deep subconscious access
Delta	0.5–4Hz	Deep sleep	Dreamless deep sleep	◯ Integration at unconscious level

Adults operate across this range throughout the day, but children—especially under age 7—function primarily in the theta and alpha wave states, meaning they are living in a subconscious state.

🧒 Childhood and the Subconscious: Why the First 7 Years Matter So Much

Children, especially under the age of 7, are dominated by theta and alpha brainwaves, meaning their subconscious is directly shaped and formed. In other words, they live almost entirely in their subconscious mind.

💡 This explains their immense absorbency.Whether it's learning piano or picking up a language, children absorb skills far more quickly than adults. The reason we can speak the language we hear around us daily is thanks to the brain's theta wave state. As adults, it’s harder to learn a new language to native-level fluency—because we are no longer in that state.

Because of this, children absorb language, rules, habits, and more like a sponge.This is nature’s way of writing a "survival program" into the subconscious. During this phase, they absorb everything needed to survive in their specific society or species group—such as language, manners, understanding danger, and how to receive love.

🧬 Biologically, this is the phase for learning how to survive within their own tribe or community.For example, a puppy learns how to bark and cooperate during this early stage. In humans, if a child is raised by wolves, they begin to act like wolves—because of this subconscious programming window.

Therefore, the habits and values formed before age 7 are deeply imprinted into the subconscious. That’s why they are so strong and persistent.A dog can't easily forget it's a dog. In the same way, our values, including our self-image and worldview, are shaped during this stage and become core beliefs.

🧠 Early Beliefs Shape a Lifetime

The values and beliefs formed during this period have a profound effect on the rest of life.In other words, your self-image, relationships, and even how you perceive the world are all constructed through the brainwave states of your early childhood.

🔒 Subconscious Programming Is Largely Completed by Age 7

The values, beliefs, and worldview installed during this time become the foundation of who we are and how we live later in life.

✨ Can We Rewrite It as Adults? Yes.

Even as adults, there are moments when the brain enters theta waves—during meditation, hypnosis, or the drowsy half-asleep state (just before falling asleep or right after waking).These are the best times to deliver new suggestions or visualizations into the subconscious.

So if you’ve ever thought: