Neurofeedback sessions involve relaxing for 30 minutes while you watch a movie or listen to music of your choice. Electrodes are attached to your scalp that monitor your brainwaves during the session. When irregular patterns are detected, a response is triggered from the software that pauses or dims the video or music. this response will automatically cause you to focus more, which will move your brainwaves back into normal ranges. With repetition of this process over multiple sessions, your brain can learn to stay within healthy ranges on its own without neurofeedback.

Again, results will vary from person to person. Some feel different within a couple of sessions, while tougher conditions will take many sessions to see any noticeable results. It’s important to not get impatient and listen to the practitioner. They should be able to show you the graph results of each sessions, which will provide a visual reference of improvement. The type of neurofeedback training we offer here is permanent. Neurofeedback helps to improve functions such as concentration, short-term memory, speech, motor skills, sleep, energy level, and emotional balance.

Long term follow ups have been done on many patients over the years. Dr. Joel Lubar at the University of Tennessee has followed ADD clients who’ve sustained their improvements from neurofeedback for 10-20 years. Published research on epilepsy 12 months after brain training shows the effects on epilepsy usually holds. Owners of the Clear Mind System have commonly reported no relapses from patients after 10 years.

Yes you can start neurofeedback while on your medications. As you progress your physician might suggest that you slowly reduce or eliminate certain medications related to the condition that you are addressing with neurofeedback. Since every patient is unique, the decision to reduce medication will be up to your physician. More research is needed on this, but a common theory is that the same dosage seems to have a stronger effect on a more efficient brain.

If used improperly, it is possible to see problems. That is to be expected from a system that can produce such positive changes. It all comes down to training and proper use. Fortunately, each session is designed to create small changes in brainwave activity, meaning that problems can be spotted and corrected before they become bigger. Our clinic has extensive training on this equipment and can change protocols as needed if negative effects are seen.

Recent research suggests that individuals with ADD/ADHD tend to have elevated theta brainwave activity and low levels of beta brainwave activity. Symptoms of ADD/ADHD are usually reduced when brainwave activity is changed. Neurofeedback is commonly used as an adjunct or alternative treatment to medication and behavior management.

Neurofeedback has been around since the late 1950’s when Dr. Joe Kamiya discovered that by using a simple reward system, people could learn to alter their brain activity. His partner, Dr Sterman discovered that he could train cats to control their epileptic seizures through a similar method. He moved on to train humans to control their epilepsy. Neurofeedback has evolved over the years from laboratory research to a system that can be administered in an office setting. And with 5 decades of positive case studies, it is not likely to go away any time soon.

Neurofeedback has been around for decades. To date there are thousands of studies, with more being published every day. This site has a comprehensive list of studies on neurofeedback for many conditions. You can view them here.