Neurofeedback Is The Science Of Brain Change In Action
What Is Neurofeedback?
What Conditions Is Neurofeedback Helpful For?
- Anxiety & Stress
- Trauma & PTSD
- Depression
- Concussions
- ADHD
- Autism
- Learning Disorders
- Epilepsy
How Does Neurofeedback Work?
Direct Neurofeedback
Direct Neurofeedback often provides quick results, helping to decrease anxiety, calm your nervous system, and reduce depression, concussion, and other symptoms. During these sessions some sensors are attached to your head and then you just sit back and close your eyes. The equipment works by first measuring how your brain is functioning, and then based on that it sends brief micro-current signals to help encourage your brain to do something different. These signals are re-calibrated every second in response to the changes in your brain. The energy in these signals is a small fraction of what we are exposed to from talking on our cell phones. It is not the amount of energy in these signals that produces the effect, but their unique nature that positively helps your brain.
Direct neurofeedback was developed over 30 years, and is marketed under different names including LENS neurofeedback.
Connectivity Neurofeedback
For Connectivity and other forms of neurofeedback, you are sitting watching a computer screen. As the neurofeedback equipment monitors your brainwaves, it instantly changes the screen in order to encourage and discourage your brain in making certain patterns. For example you might be watching a video and when your brain makes the old pattern the video will either stop or dim to discourage this pattern. Conversely when your brain makes the healthy brainwave patterns, the video will either progress or brighten. Through this process your brain learns and gets re-conditioned into more healthy patterns.
Connectivity is vital for your brains health and is a measure of how well the different areas of your brain are communicating with one another. Hypo-connectivity is when certain areas of your brain are not effectively communicating with one another, like people who are cut-off and do not speak with one another. Hyper-connectivity on the other hand is when certain areas of your brain are rigidly enmeshed together with one another, and thereby do not have enough flexibility and independence. Connectivity focused neurofeedback, also called coherence neurofeedback, has been utilized and researched for a range of conditions for over 20 years now.
We utilize a special form of connectivity neurofeedback called 4 Channel Multivariate Coherence Neurofeedback. Research starting in 2018 has been documenting that this type of neurofeedback is superior to standard forms of coherence and connectivity training. Some of the research on this type of neurofeedback included 2 year follow up assessments that showed that the beneficial effects from only 15 sessions persisted or even increased 2 years later.
BRAINMAPS or QEEG
Brainmaps are a way to get a scientific picture of how your brain is functioning. They usually take about 75min, and during this time we connect something that looks like a shower cap that has 20 different sensors on it. After being properly set up, we collect a lot of data about how your brain is functioning.
Advanced Analysis Of Brainmap
A Brainmap is a starting point for collecting data about your brain. However to truly make use of a Brainmap’s data, the analysis of this data is crucial. While the industry standard for Brainmap Analysis is Neuroguide software (which we offer), this software still makes many errors in its data analysis and thereby creates errors in its recommendations for neurofeedback training.
We recommend that all Brainmaps are sent for an advanced analysis conducted by Dr. Rob Coben. This advanced analysis is required to engage in connecitivity neurofeedback treatments at our clinic, which Dr Coben oversees. Dr. Coben has served as the President of the International Society for Neurofeedback and Research, and is also the past President of the International Board of Quantitative Electrophysiology.
How Many Neurofeedback Sessions Are Required?
This depends on a number of factors, so it is impossible to generalize. But many people with anxiety get significant long term reduction after 15-20 neurofeedback treatments. Most people get further benefits if they do a second round of treatments. Each treatment session is usually 30 minutes long and are optimally done twice a week.