What is neurofeedback therapy?

Introduction

Our brains are the processing center for our nervous system. Through our senses, they monitor our body and control things like breathing, heart rate, temperature, and everything else that keeps us alive and healthy. Most of this work is done without us even realizing that it's happening!

But what happens when stress, chronic or mental illness, and other factors influence our brains and make them perform in ways that don't actually help us? What happens when our brains stop working optimally and instead repeat negative patterns that keep us feeling unhealthy or stuck?

How can you regain control of your brain's automatic processing ability?

For many, neurofeedback therapy can help to regain control and improve the way that the brain and body perform. This type of therapy can even be used as a tool to help issues like anxiety disorders, OCD, insomnia, epilepsy, depression, and more.

Photo via neurofeedbacktraining.com

Neurofeedback therapy is a non-invasive way to regain control of the subconscious processes your brain uses to keep your body healthy. It's a way to consciously or unconsciously retrain your brain to use more healthy methods of processing.

Neurofeedback specialists use machines and electrodes that track how your brain is responding, moment to moment, to what is happening. The system feeds back that information to the brain, then allowing the brain to decide how best to respond. This can help to improve relaxation, stay focused, or even heal from a traumatic brain injury.

How does neurofeedback work?

Typically, we are completely unaware of what our brain is doing to keep our bodies alive and healthy. Our brains automatically do the hard work to make sure we stay alive.

However, in 1924, a German psychiatrist named Hans Berger was the first to realize that while controlling these unconscious activities, our brains emit electrical impulses (what we call "brainwaves") from different locations within the brain according to the type of activity being performed.

Photo via Signal Processing

Brainwaves known as "alpha waves" came to be associated with deep relaxation, peacefulness, and mindfulness, while "beta waves" became associated with focus, alertness, and excitement.

This means that for people who struggle with anxiety, the ability to consciously emit alpha waves can enable them to more easily relax and be at peace. On the flip side, people who want to improve attention and focus can train their brains to target beta waves instead.

Neurofeedback therapy uses electrodes and a digital screen (similar to an iPad) to display the types of brainwaves we are emitting at any given time.

What are the benefits of neurofeedback therapy?

Nearly everyone can benefit in some way from the effects of neurofeedback. According to one study, 1 in 5 adults in the United States is affected by mental illness, meaning that this form of treatment would be useful to nearly every other family in the country.

And it's not just the person with the diagnosis that may be struggling: the whole family can be affected by the trauma and stress that comes with mental illness. Neurofeedback can help relieve stress and has been used with many trauma-related issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries.

Neurofeedback has also been used to help individuals diagnosed with epilepsy. "One study showed that 74% of participants reduced the frequency of their seizures through the use of neurofeedback training." (Source)

Neurofeedback sessions are also great for:

Optimal performance in athletics and academics
Anxiety and depression
OCD, ADHD, and PTSD
PANS and PANDAS
Traumatic brain injuries
Behavioral and anger issues
Insomnia and restless legs syndrome

Types of neurofeedback

As with any therapy, there are many different types of neurofeedback treatments. There are 7 main types of traditional "linear" neurofeedback:

Frequency/power neurofeedback is frequently used to target the speed of brainwaves in locations of the brain associated with ADHD, anxiety, and insomnia.
Slow cortical potential neurofeedback (SCP-NF) is also used to treat ADHD and anxiety.
Low-energy neurofeedback system (LENS) actually delivers an electromagnetic signal, changing the patient's brainwaves and treating traumatic brain injuries, ADHD, insomnia, fibromyalgia, restless legs syndrome, anxiety, and depression.
Hemoencephalographic (HEG) neurofeedback displays blood flow to the brain in order to help treat migraine.
Live Z-score is another type of neurofeedback used to treat insomnia.
Low-resolution electromagnetic tomography (LORE-TA) is used to treat addictions, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) helps to regulate brain activity from deeper regions of the brain.

While these types of neurofeedback sessions are often very effective, they also require a specialist to be used. In some cases, they can even result in rare and unintended side effects such as anxiety, brain fog, cognitive impairment, fatigue, depression, and more. Typically, these side effects are due to factors such as the area of the brain being targeted, individual variations in brain function, and pre-existing neurological conditions.

Instead, we recommend Dynamical Neurofeedback: a technology developed by a neurofeedback company called NeurOptimal.

What is NeurOptimal?

NeurOptimal is a newer type of neurofeedback tool that relies on the brain’s own innate healing and reorganization process to target brain function. Essentially, NeurOptimal allows your brain to adjust itself instead of relying on the expertise of a specialist and your own ability to unconsciously do what is best for your brain.

When our brains are functioning in a less-than-healthy way, we often see abrupt changes in electrical activity in the brain. NeurOptimal detects these changes and provides the brain with the information necessary to self-correct this process.

This means your brain can take control of the adjustment process itself, without the need for a specialist to direct it.

What to expect during a neurofeedback session

While the exact methods used in a neurofeedback session will vary from therapist to therapist, typically you can expect a few things:

The therapist prepares the environment to help you feel relaxed and in control during your session.
A few electrodes will be applied to your head or ears, either as a headband or cap or with small sensor clips and adhesive pads (there are no needles or medications involved).
Depending on what you're treating, this part of the process will look different. Sometimes you will be asked to play what seems like a video game, other times you may be asked to listen to music or watch something on the display screen.
If you are using traditional linear neurofeedback instead of NeurOptimal, you will then be given feedback as to how your brain is performing. This will encourage you to consciously modify your brainwaves. In the case of NeurOptimal neurofeedback, your brain will do this on its own.

In a 2018 blog post by Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Alison Pepper, she describes her own experience using NeurOptimal neurofeedback. "...after the sensors were placed on my head and clipped to my ears, and the 'start' button was pressed there was nothing else for me to do," she writes.

"After about a month of my weekly, sometimes twice-weekly summer neurofeedback therapy sessions, I was feeling more relaxed, the tension was releasing in my body, but also in my mind. I was focused and alert, but not in the usual hyper-vigilant way I had grown accustomed to as a stressed city dweller." (Source)

How can I find a neurofeedback specialist?

There are a few online directories that can help you to find a neurofeedback specialist or equipment rental provider near you:

Ohana Neurofeedback offers both in-office neurofeedback treatment and monthly rental services so you can train your brain in the comfort of your home. This is our favorite way to help clients since you can then use our NeurOptimal equipment to train every brain in your home.

Neurofeedback therapy is a great way to empower your brain to heal without the use of invasive techniques or the exorbitant costs of other therapy methods. We hope that this technology can enable families throughout the country to take control of their mental health.

Contact us today to learn more about our flexible options for training your brain and improving your life.

What is neurofeedback therapy?

Introduction