Author Archives: Tamera

The Trajectory of Neurofeedback Training

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One of the questions I frequently receive is how neurofeedback training progresses and what that’s like.  The short answer is that it varies by person.  The longer answer is that although each person experiences neurofeedback slightly differently, for most people, there is a common pattern.

The Normal Pattern

Most people begin to notice changes somewhere between six and ten sessions.  I like to use an exercise analogy here in that if you were to start a regular exercise habit, you’d find that it takes several weeks to start to notice muscle definition, greater endurance, etc.  It’s the same with neurofeedback.  Although changes are probably happening at the cellular level right away, you don’t really see the differences for a while.

In fact, when changes do start to be noticeable, many people are not sure it’s from neurofeedback.  They will tell me that things are shifting, but that it could’ve just been a good day at work, or something they ate, or the benefits of finally getting some down time.  And, that’s fair.  Our lives are too complicated to know with 100% certainty what caused any one change.

Over time, though, people will begin to realize that the changes are starting to be longer-lasting.  Results string out for more hours at a time, or more days a week.  Eventually people doing brain training realize that their changes must be coming from neurofeedback, and that gets exciting.

The excitement carries most people over through the routine part of training, when no new changes are happening, but training must continue to occur to ensure that those new energy patterns in the brain “stick.” Most neurofeedback practitioners believe that this is a learning process for the brain, and that learning needs to be ingrained.

Toward the end of training, the number of sessions tapers from two or more times a week to once a week or less.  This is to ensure that the training is long-lasting and that there is no back-sliding. By this time, some people doing training tell me that they have a hard time remembering what things were really like before training. This is okay, because they’re just happy with their results.

Other Possibilities

This is the normal course of training that lasts around 40 sessions.  It can vary, though. Sometimes, people begin to experience results as soon as the first training session.  This may be the start of a long-lasting shift, but it can also be a bit of a novelty effect, in which the brain responds extremely strongly to training, and no session after that will ever have the dazzle of that initial, amazing shift.  I personally don’t like it when this happens, because even though the brain’s energy patterns may shift just like the person wants, it doesn’t come with the fanfare of the opening session, and that tends to discourage people and make them want to stop, even though sticking with it would help them reach their goals.

That said, some lucky people who do neurofeedback get results almost immediately, and they stick well.  These individuals end up needing far fewer sessions than the average person, so they save time and money.  Most of the time, people who get fantastic results are doing other things in their lives, such as eating clean, sleeping long enough (a rarity in Northern Virginia!), and pursuing other interventions such as acupuncture, counseling, spiritual work, or chiropractic care.

The opposite of an immediate shift can also happen, meaning that it may take far longer than 6-10 sessions to begin to see results. When that happens, it’s important to understand why. Sometimes, it’s because a person may have a diagnosis that makes training challenging, such as autism.  Sometimes, it’s because the trainee is using certain medications that make progress with neurofeedback challenging.  Sometimes, it’s because the trainee hasn’t committed to regular training.  And, more rarely, sometimes we just don’t know why.

For the vast majority of people, the regular trajectory of slow and steady results is what’s desirable, and what happens. To explore more about how neurofeedback might unfold for you, give me a call and set up a consultation.

Working Memory and Synchrony

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According to researchers from MIT and City University London, trying to retain too much information in our working memory can cause communications problems among three areas of the brain that coordinate working memory.  Synchrony–how linked together neurons in the regions of the brain are–breaks down when working memory is overloaded, and the three areas no longer work together properly.

This is new research that was not specifically focused on neurofeedback, so it does not shed light on whether using neurofeedback training to improve synchrony might therefore improve working memory.  That said, most (not all) neurofeedback practitioners already are aware of the importance of synchrony in slower brainwaves, and those who practice whole-brain training automatically include synchrony and coherence training in their work.

For more information, a summary is available at Neuroscience News, http://neurosciencenews.com/brain-synchrony-working-memory-8887/  

The actual study, published in the journal Cerebral Cortex, is available here:  https://academic.oup.com/cercor/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cercor/bhy065/4955775

The Three Biggest Myths about Neurofeedback

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When people come to my office for consultations, they often have three key concerns.  Let’s explore those one by one:

1-  It’ll change your personality. 

Neurofeedback is about calming your body’s autonomic nervous system so that it can regulate itself better.  Obviously, many of us behave in ways we would prefer not to when we’re keyed up too much.  When we feel calmer, we likely also feel better about ourselves because we are treating ourselves and those around us better.  Increased calmness and sense of well-being is not, however, a change in personality.  Neurofeedback does not change the core of who you are as a person.

2-  It’s dangerous.

Nothing in the scientific literature has ever shown that brain training using neurofeedback is harmful.  On the contrary, many people find that they like the so-called “side effects.”  Being calmer and more relaxed can start a cascade of positive changes in one’s life.  It is true, however, that when people first start out doing brain training, they may feel a bit tired after sessions, but that generally lifts within a short period afterward.  The worst things, in my view, that can happen are no change at all or working with a practitioner who doesn’t quite know what she is doing and therefore wastes your time.  Of course, if you have a mental health disorder, it is wise to speak with your psychiatrist and/or primary care physician before starting any new self-care plan.

3-  It’s too expensive.

This myth needlessly stops a lot of people.  The overall cost of doing an average of 40 sessions of brain training with me is less than the cost of braces, and I try to keep my clients’ costs low by keeping my overhead as low as I can.  That said, it can feel expensive for some people because it requires coming in for training at least twice a week.  Sometimes, too, it’s a matter of priorities—not wanting to spend money on something as opposed to not being able to do so.  That said, I don’t turn away clients for financial reasons—for those with true need, we usually work out a payment plan, and I do keep one slot open for a sliding scale (though that slot is usually taken).  In the end, you know your personal circumstances and how badly you want to pursue training, and only you can decide whether it’s something worth your time and money.  If you’re really committed, we can find a way to make it happen.

These are the three biggest misconceptions that people come in to my office and ask about.  If you have questions that aren’t addressed here, please feel free to contact me for a free and no-obligation consultation.

Subconcussions and Brain Function

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The dangers of untreated concussions are increasingly reported in the news, but have you heard of subconcussions?  They are mild brain injuries that, over time, may result in an accumulation of damage to the brain.  Researchers from Indiana University recently published work in NeuroImage: Clinical in which they found that there are distinct differences between the brains of athletes who participate and non-contact sports and those who participate in contact sports.  They cautiously note that the differences could be normal differences that occur in brains but call for further investigation of what may be deeply concerning results.  Read a summary of the study at Science Daily:  https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180405120319.htm.

Misperceiving Insomnia

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A new study from researchers at the University of Pittsburg and the Medical University of South Carolina shows that individuals who suffer from insomnia often report being awake when their EEG readings show that they are, in fact asleep.  This discrepancy may come from dysfunction in a part of the brain responsible for inhibiting conscious awareness during sleep.  The researchers, according to reporting in Neuroscience News, believe that practicing mindfulness meditation may help address the cognitive processes that make this sleep disruption occur.

Many who come for neurofeedback training also report that the body’s relaxation response to brain training helps improve their sleep.

Read the Neuroscience News summary of the insomnia study here:  http://neurosciencenews.com/sleep-insomnia-8707/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+neuroscience-rss-feeds-neuroscience-news+%28Neuroscience+News+Updates%29

Neurofeedback for Weight Loss?

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Over the years, I’ve had many people ask me about whether neurofeedback can help with weight loss or smoking cessation, and I’ve always had to tell them that although neurofeedback calms the nervous system and may help with self control, there is no literature to support its application for dieting or quitting smoking.  That has changed with the publication of a small-scale study in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition.  Israeli researchers have found that using an offshoot of neurofeedback called near infra-red hemoencephalography (nIR HEG for short) helped dieters develop greater self control over their food intake, resulting in weight loss.

This was only a pilot study with a few participants, but it is significant because it marks the first time that self regulation of diet was achieved under clinical conditions.

Check out a summary of the study here:  http://www.clinicalnutritionjournal.com/article/S0261-5614(18)30043-8/fulltext 

If you’re interested in knowing more about HEG, I use both near infra-red and passive infra-red for brain training.

Holding Hands Syncs Brainwaves, Eases Pain

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I think we all understand that it is practically an instinct to touch someone to offer comfort when they are in pain.  Now, researchers at the University of Haifa and the University of Colorado-Boulder have found that holding hands synchronizes electrical brainwave activity and causes a reduction in pain.  The study, reported in Science Daily and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that merely being in the presence of a romantic partner created some synchronization but that physical touch through holding hands had the strongest effect in both synchronization and perceived pain reduction.  Check out a summary of the research at Science Daily.

A handful of neurofeedback practitioners around the world have also been experimenting with training electrical brainwave activity in couples to increase synchrony and thereby increase feelings of connectedness.  I haven’t seen published research on their results yet but have read anecdotes that this work is promising.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180301094822.htm

 

Beginning to Brain Read

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This is one of the most fascinating studies I’ve heard about in quite a while.  According to an article in Neuroscience News, neuroscientists at the University of Toronto used EEG measurements to reconstruct images made in the brain.  Study participants were shown pictures of faces while researchers recorded their EEG signals.  Using the recorded signals and a technique based on machine learning algorithms, researchers were then able to recreate the images.  Reading the brain like this has been done before using fMRI measurements, but the recreated images were grainy.  In this experiment, researchers were able to fill in much more detail.  As this technique is mastered, it could be used to help those who cannot communicate verbally, or it could be used for law enforcement purposes.  A summary of the information is available at Neuroscience News, and the study itself will appear in an upcoming edition of the journal eNeuro.  Read more about it here:  http://neurosciencenews.com/ai-eeg-images-8546/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+neuroscience-rss-feeds-neuroscience-news+%28Neuroscience+News+Updates%29

Although this research is impressive, be aware that neurofeedback cannot read what is happening in a person’s brain as it unfolds.  Such an ability is decades off, at least.  Instead, neurofeedback uses EEG brainwaves and reflects them back to the trainee in such a way that the brain can teach itself new patterns and ways of being.

ADHD and Neurofeedback

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In the most recent edition of European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, an international group of researchers published a meta-analysis of studies done on neurofeedback. It shows that the effects of neurofeedback training on youth with diagnoses of ADHD are sustained at least six months after training.  The authors found their results promising and called for more study of longer-term effects, as well as non-specific effects.  You can find this study here and an overview of the study here.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00787-018-1121-4

https://www.brainclinics.com/meta-analysis-confirms-sustained-effects-of-neurofeedback-adhd

Although neurofeedback practitioners know anecdotally from contact with former clients that the benefits last years, there are few studies that look that far ahead.  One that did was conducted in Australia close to 15 years ago.  It found that children with a diagnosis of ADHD who received 40 sessions of neurofeedback not only did not lose the benefits of training a year later, they actually improved their focus.

Differences Found Between Male and Female Brains

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Researchers at the University of Twente, the University of Zurich, and a researcher/renowned neurofeedback specialist at a brain clinic in Nijmegen have found distinct differences between male and female brains, according to a summary from Science Daily.  Using pattern recognition techniques, they found that there are gender differences in beta-wave frequencies (faster-wave frequencies where cognition and intellectual focus are known to occur).   This basic research lays the foundation into further exploration of gender differences, as well as potential gender-specific treatment responses to medical and psychological interventions.  Read more at Science Daily.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180215105949.htm

How I Got Started

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Many people, when coming for a consultation want to know about my background and how I decided to offer neurofeedback, so I thought I’d share that story here.

A few years after I had graduated with a master’s degree in counseling psychology, I ran into someone I knew when I had been a student doing clinical work.  She was from a different university, and our paths had not crossed after we finished working at the same non-profit mental health care provider.  So, it was with some surprise that she told me she had been thinking of me and had intended to start tracking me down.  She explained that she had something she wanted to share with me and invited me to lunch to discuss it.

Even though I looked forward to reconnecting with her, I had great trepidation about the fact that she said she’d had me on her mind despite the fact that we’d gone our separate ways years earlier and made no effort to keep in touch.  Who does that, I wondered.  To make matters worse, she had an excited gleam in her eye that made me suspect that she was going to pitch me to get involved in something like a multilevel marketing organization, which I had no interest in doing.

So, I was greatly surprised when she told me she’d been told by a friend about this exciting thing called neurofeedback and was certain it was right up my alley.  She spent almost an hour telling me all about her research into it and insisted that I not take her word for it but start researching on my own.

I was dubious that it could possibly be as wonderful as she made it sound, but I lived up to my promise to look into it, and the truth is that the more I read, the more excited I became. My friend was right that this was something that captured my interest and seemed like an excellent fit. I realized that if what I was reading was true, I could help make a powerful difference in people’s lives within just a few months.  I met with a couple of local practitioners, a couple of home trainers, and read voraciously.  A month later, I agreed to sign up to take a training class along with my friend.

Back then, neurofeedback was the subject of research in neuroscience labs, but almost no universities were teaching courses in how to do neurofeedback. Indeed, it never even came up as a topic in my graduate studies–perhaps this is because it is interdisciplinary and not just counseling or psychology-related.   Regardless of the reason, this meant that practitioners learned to offer it by attending seminars offered by private companies (and still do today).  The week-long introductory course I took with my friend was excellent, but it was obvious that a one-week class was wildly insufficient to be a competent provider.  More training was needed.

So, I signed up for extensive additional training with other companies and learned other theoretical approaches.  I visited the offices of practitioners and studied at their feet to acquire practical tips and techniques.  Once I felt I had enough academic learning, I started practicing with every guinea pig family member or friend who was willing to indulge me.  Then, I did a 500-hour supervised apprenticeship.  And, even though it is totally unnecessary, I took an exam with a certification board to earn the label of certified specialist.  Once past that first and rather steep learning curve to acquire basic competence, I continued to read and learn, because the field of neuroscience does not stand still.

Now, close to a dozen years later, I am grateful to that friend with the crazy gleam in her eye.  She was right that neurofeedback was and is an excellent fit for me.  I love what I do and feel excited about the challenge each client brings.  I feel honored that my clients trust my reliable tool and me to help improve the quality of their lives.

Anxiety Cells Found in Brain

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Researchers at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and University of California, San Francisco have found specific cells in the brain that trigger anxiety, according to Neuroscience News.  The discovery of these dedicated cells in an area of the brain called the hypothalamus means that researchers can now explore further why some over-respond to anxiety-producing conditions in their lives and also may help point to ways to alleviate anxiety.  Check out the article here.

To Really Learn Something, Repeatedly Learn It

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Neurofeedback practitioners know that brain training involves rewarding the brain for changing, then repeating that reward over and over again until the brain self-regulates into new patterns and ways of being.  It’s why you don’t come just once for training and expect it to stick, you train repeatedly over the course of a few months.  Fortunately, the process is pleasurable, and almost all trainees look forward to training.  This up-ends the notion that learning cannot be fun and that training the brain is somehow a heavy and serious, no-fun business.

I was struck by this article from the website Raptitude, which also emphasizes the notion that if something is worth learning, one needs to study it more than just once, regardless of what that “it” might be.  The author makes the idea of repeatedly learning something sound pleasurable, so I hope you’ll take a couple of minutes and check it out here.

Trying to Decide Whether Neurofeedback is for You?

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“The longest part of the journey is said to be the passing of the gate.”

Ancient Roman scholar Marcus Terentio

I like to research pretty much anything before I make a significant purchase. I dig up as much data as I can find, make a decision based on those facts, waver, then decide again and again.  Eventually, I make a final decision that usually makes me happy.  My process of constantly revisiting data points drives my husband a little batty, but I happen to enjoy it.

The truth, though, is that after finding all the pros and cons for each option I’m seriously considering, I set aside the facts and choose the one that feels right to me—the option that makes me feel good about my choice. The data I gather inform my decision, but they don’t make it for me. It’s really a gut and intuition thing in the end.  And when I don’t do this, I’m often quite sorry about the choice I’ve made.

I suspect that although most people probably don’t savor the decision-making process itself like I do, most end up taking a leap of faith in the end that they’re making the right choice for them and their situation. If one doesn’t trust her gut, making a choice can be overwhelming.  If money is involved in the decision-making process, choosing to move forward with a decision can be downright daunting.  Questions arise about whether the expenditure of funds make sense for the family, whether you’ll get your money’s worth, whether you’ll be satisfied in the end, etc.

Choosing to spend on a tool like neurofeedback is harder still. It’s one thing to invest in something like a new pair of shoes and trusting that they’ll feel comfortable and serve you well when you get them home and another thing altogether to invest money in something that you’re not even certain you know what it is, let alone that it will help whatever it is you’re hoping it will help.

Making things more complicated is all the noise out there about who is and who is not a good brain trainer. No amount of advanced degrees or certifications matters if that person doesn’t serve YOU well or isn’t really as competent at providing a service as they are at marketing themselves as the very best.

So, what do you do? Gather more data?  Read a few more books?

My opinion is that you step beyond online searches and journal articles and books to find your comfort level. Reach out and interview a practitioner. If that person feels like a good fit and in your gut you have a sense of trust, then you’re probably going to be in good hands, even if you still feel nervous about trying something that, due to the cost and investment of time to work has still not become as wildly popular as I personally think it should be.  (Obviously, if you don’t have a good feeling about a person or clinic’s competence, caring, or ethics, step away.)

People who are considering neurofeedback can reach out to me and schedule a free consultation with no pressure. I do this because I think fitting well with someone is as important as competence with the technology.

I also think environment is important, and I want potential trainees to feel the environment I’ve created for them. If you step into my waiting room, my hope is that you will not feel like you’ve stepped into a medical office.  I have comfy upholstered chairs, an antique table, and a bookcase full of titles you’re welcome to pull down and browse.  I have water and tea available to enjoy, too.

My training space is, I hope, similarly inviting. I try to keep the space as calm and non-clinical as possible for a tool that involves things like EEG devices and electrodes and whatnot. You’ll find even more comfortable chairs, scenes of nature on the wall, and natural elements like rocks and fossils and seashells for those who need fidget items to hold.

As a result, if you’re expecting white lab coats, linoleum floors, and stainless steel trays, I may not be the right fit for you. If you’re looking for competence combined with deep caring and a soothing environment intended to promote relaxation for training, I’m probably an excellent fit. And, perhaps surprisingly for a high-technology solution like neurofeedback, the softer quality of fit really does matter.