How can Neuro Training Help My Family?

Chronic illness can be a struggle for entire families, not only for the person with the chronic illness. While each family's situation is unique, one study interviewed families dealing with chronic illness and found that 91% reported a "negative effect on day-to-day living as a result of having an unwell relative."

Neuro training, or brain training, is a modern tool that can reduce the effects of chronic illness for the whole family. Each person can use the neurofeedback machine at any time, so it can bring huge benefits to the rest of the family as well as the person with the chronic illness.

In addition, primary caregivers who undergo neuro training can provide motivation for their child to complete a brain-training session. They are also better equipped to answer their child's questions, help them remain calm, and support them during the process.

What are some effects of a chronic illness?

Chronic illness takes a toll on family life and mental health. Things that many families take for granted become daily challenges, such as cleaning the kitchen table or getting ready for school. In addition, families with children with behavioral disorders like ADHD, autism, anxiety, or depression struggle with unpredictable emotions and behaviors that can put a heavy emotional burden on the family.

Is neurofeedback safe for my child?

Yes! Neurofeedback is a noninvasive tool that is considered far safer than other tools like drug therapy. Like other therapy modalities, there are a few rare side effects, but these are typically due to the conditions surrounding the neuro training rather than from the neuro training itself.

Suggested read: Curious about the side effects of neurofeedback training? Check out our recent blog post to learn about what side effects are possible and how you can minimize your risk.

What is neuro training?

Neurotraining, or neurofeedback, is a neurotechnology that helps you train your brain to respond more efficiently. Neurofeedback works by placing electrodes on your head and/or ears and monitoring your brain waves in different parts of the brain. Our brain is then alerted to what it has just done in the present moment and is able to correct itself for optimal functioning. This process trains our brain and our nervous system to respond to different situations more efficiently, leaving us better able to manage behaviors and stress in our lives.

There are two primary types of neurofeedback technology: traditional linear neurofeedback and Dynamical Neurofeedback, developed by NeurOptimal.

Linear neurofeedback displays your brain waves on an iPad-like screen, and with the help of a neurofeedback specialist, you can learn to consciously manipulate those brain waves.

In the case of Dynamical Neurofeedback, the process is slightly different. Instead of doing anything consciously in order to control your brain waves, you simply relax as the neurofeedback system alerts your brain to any patterns that can be linked to physical, mental, and emotional behaviors or reactions. In this case, your brain can choose whether to take this "alert" under advisement and to change these patterns of processing or not. This system can result in fewer adverse side effects and eliminates the need for a neurofeedback specialist to direct the session.

Suggested read: Learn more about how neurofeedback works in our in-depth article.

What is the minimum age for neurofeedback training?

There is no minimum age for neurofeedback training. It is a safe and non-invasive tool for children and adults of all ages. As it does involve staying still for up to 30 minutes and not tangling up the wires that are used, you may need to take into consideration the activity levels of your child and their capability to participate in a session.

Can my child still take medication while doing neurofeedback training?

According to this source, it’s perfectly safe to continue taking any medications while doing neurofeedback training. In fact, this can be a good way to compare results on the effectiveness of drug therapy versus medication with brain training. Some patients even discover that neuro training allows them to reduce their dosage of medications (especially in the case of ADHD). However, please consult your doctor before changing your medication.

Neurofeedback for Disruptive Behaviors and More

Neurofeedback is effective for a range of behavioral disorders in children such as:

ADHD

Neurofeedback shows good results for children with ADHD when combined with other forms of therapy like medication and behavioral training.

Anxiety & depression

Brain training realigns brainwaves to be more well-regulated and can reduce the severity of reactions for those with anxiety. For depression, through brain training, your brain can return to a neutral state, which will affect external symptoms like low or no emotion or apathy.

Autism

For children with Autism Spectrum Disorders, there has been a documented lower rate of emotional outbursts, impulsivity, speech issues, hyperactivity, and intolerance to change. This can help your child adjust to various stressors in a much more resilient way.

Developmental trauma

Neurofeedback can help you and your child shift patterns in the brain related to developmental trauma. This provides an opportunity to address the problem directly, and empower your child to explicitly manipulate the way their brain is functioning.

Anger and rage

Neurofeedback helps children to not erupt when they feel anger. By watching the brain waves react in real time, you or a specialist can predict an emotional outburst and take steps to mitigate it.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

We've found that neurofeedback for PTSD helps clients to process past events without talking about them. This can especially benefit children who are non-verbal, and patients who may be retraumatized by talking about their experiences.

Suggested Read: We founded Ohana Neurofeedback because we dealt with chronic illness in our family. Neurofeedback helped us find peace in the midst of that chaos and now our purpose is to share it with you.

Getting Started with Neurofeedback

How much does neurofeedback cost?

There are two primary ways to do neuro training: by visiting a specialist or renting a NeurOptimal neurofeedback machine for home therapy.

Neurofeedback specialists can range in price from $100 to $200 per session (similar to other mental health modalities).
Ohana Neurofeedback offers equipment rentals starting at $1,000 per month including shipping. We also offer long-term rental discounts for families looking to rent our NeurOptimal machines for more than one month.

You can read more about the costs associated with neuro training in our recent article.

Is neurofeedback covered by insurance?

Unfortunately, there's no clear-cut answer.

Whether or not your health insurance will cover neurofeedback training or therapy will depend on your individual insurance provider. While we offer flexible payment options to keep therapy accessible, we do recommend talking to your insurance provider about what types of neurofeedback options, if any, they will cover.

How long does a neurofeedback session last?

Our neurofeedback sessions take just over 30 minutes. According to njneurofeedback.com, average sessions last from 25 to 30 minutes.

How many sessions will I need?

The number of neurofeedback sessions you need in order to see consistent results will vary depending on what brain wave patterns your brain is struggling with. Typically, we've found that clients notice the effects of neuro training in as few as 10 sessions, while other clients may need 20-40 sessions. We recommend continuing with brain training to see more results.

Are neurofeedback home treatments available?

Yes! We offer NeurOptimal Neurofeedback machines to rent for neuro training at home. They are fully automated and come with easy-to-read instructions. All you have to do is set up the system and follow the directions to get started.

We at Ohana Neurofeedback are available to help answer any questions you have about setting up your neurofeedback at home rental.

How can I find neurofeedback treatment near me?

You can find neurofeedback specialists or rental providers in these directories:

Ohana Neurofeedback would be happy to help you decide on the right treatment method for you and your family. Contact us to learn more about how we use neurofeedback therapy to help our clients.

Neuro Training Benefits the Whole Family

Neurofeedback can benefit your whole family. We provide monthly at-home rentals so that each member of your family can experience neuro training as often as you like.

Neuro Training changed our family's life when we rented a unit for our daughter who was struggling with behavioral issues. After years of misdiagnoses and thousands of dollars visiting specialists, we finally found a solution in neurofeedback. After seeing the effects it had on our daughter's behavior, my husband and I underwent neuro training as well and we became more peaceful, relaxed, and were better able to cope with stress.

Many other families have benefited from neuro training as well:

To find a neurofeedback specialist near you, visit Psychology Today or contact us to learn about different options for pursuing neurofeedback therapy.