I thought I'd jump in here and let you all know that I took the plunge and invested in PATHS. I'll be honest, I am really skeptical, but I am also a psych student and couldn't resist my own curiosity. Seeing as most research into subliminal effects either discredits the fact or is inconclusive, this stuff really gets my academic mind piqued. I chalked it up to an experimental investment
Let me add a disclaimer here that I am not posting to compete, discredit, or diminish anyone else's experiences with this program, but merely to add to the knowledge base that the people here seem to appreciate.
So, here's my experience thus far: Last night I ran the program for the first time. It's just an image with a pulsating "light" and some rather obscured letters moving around in the background. The audio sounds exactly like a self-hypnosis track I have from another source and I presume comprises the "improved sleep" aspect of the PATHS program.
After running the "show" I felt the same as I do when i run a deep sleep self hypnosis track- very relaxed, sleepy, and calm. I went to bed but had that unnerving experience of the brain being very awake while the body is asleep. It took a good 45 minutes for my brain to quieten down- which is very rare for me.
My sleep was riddled with very vivid dreams about experiences I've had, people from my distant past (unpleasant people), and tasks that I need to complete. (aka taking out the garbage
)
Today was a typical day. No massive insights, no profound boost in self confidence, productivity, mood, energy, or anything really. And this is in spite of the fact that I am actually LOOKING for an effect, and as we all know, if you look you will generally find something.
So, thus far results are chalked up to a strange sleep experience and lots of general curiosity. They claim that the program is progressive, so I suppose that means that I should have a different experience after watching it next week- it's a once a week thing.
In the interim, I'll continue to keep you all posted on my experience.