Neurofeedback

Neurofeedback helps people to focus. There is a large body of research indicating Neurofeedback’s success in helping people to focus better within 40 to 60 sessions, without the need for medication.

There are many reasons for attentional issues, among them are elevated theta, PTSD, anxiety, and developmental disorders. Neurofeedback can completely remedy elevated Theta for essentially normal young people. The training with psychotherapy can remediate both PTSD and Anxiety issues. Although Neurofeedback can help those with developmental disorders focus better, the technique cannot reverse the issue.

Please contact Windward Biofeedback Associates using the appointment toggle on this website.

Mahalo

When discussing Neurofeedback (NFB), it’s essential to first understand Biofeedback. Identified by Neil Miller in the early 1950s, Biofeedback is a learning technique that uses medical instruments to provide immediate feedback on the autonomic nervous system. Dr. Miller demonstrated that once a person is aware of their body’s functions, they can change them with proper guidance. Instruments such as thermometers, blood pressure cuffs, devices that measure skin conductivity, respiratory meters, ECGs, or EEGs can all serve as Biofeedback tools.

In Neurofeedback, an EEG machine records brain activity and sends the data to a computer, which then presents the results to the client in a game-like format. This process enables a person to learn to control and regulate various internal processes—such as blood pressure, temperature, or respiration—by understanding the brain’s electrical activity.

But what does this mean for an individual? The core goal of NFB is self-regulation, which is a broad and powerful objective. It affects sleep, energy levels, social interactions, concentration, emotional balance, physical reactions (such as pain management), and hypersensitivities. Each of these areas is governed by different regions of the brain, and improvements in one area can positively affect another. NFB practitioners look at aspects like sleep quality, memory, attention, emotional stability, and sensory sensitivity to determine how to guide the brain toward optimal function.

A common misconception is that NFB “cures” problems. It doesn’t. Instead, it helps the brain function more efficiently, which can have widespread benefits. When someone is trained to improve concentration, for example, their emotional stability and behavior often improve as well, even if that wasn’t the primary focus. Similarly, reducing hyperactivity can enhance sleep quality. If someone seeks relief from chronic pain, their anxiety might improve as a side effect of the training, even if anxiety wasn’t a concern.

NFB is comparable to a well-rounded exercise program. You might start an exercise routine for one reason, like losing weight, but it also improves stamina, heart health, cholesterol levels, and muscle tone. Likewise, while NFB might not directly lead to weight loss or help someone quit smoking, it can help regulate mood. This, in turn, makes those habits more manageable because they no longer serve a stabilizing role for the person.

NFB won’t automatically improve a child’s grades at school, but it can enhance concentration, focus, organization, and self-regulation, making it easier for them to succeed academically if they are motivated to do so.

An ideal candidate for Neurofeedback is someone who wants to remain calm under stress, improve their concentration, sleep better, and handle tasks efficiently without becoming overwhelmed. Essentially, it’s for people seeking greater ease and balance in self-regulation.

If you or someone you know works with highly stressed, type-A individuals, people struggling with organization and focus, or those dealing with emotional regulation challenges, my husband and I are eager to connect. We’re particularly interested in connecting with professionals such as counselors, doctors, massage therapists, exercise and yoga instructors, school principals, and spiritual counselors.

We’re proud of the transformative results we’ve seen through neurofeedback. One mother recently shared her story about her son, who had been so disruptive that he required 1:1 support at a treatment center for severely disturbed children. She said: “Neurofeedback has helped my son gain control over the roller coaster that was his mood and emotions. The significant improvement in his quality of life since starting neurofeedback has made me a believer.” After just 12 sessions, her son transitioned to a regular public school with 1:1 support, and now that additional help is being phased out.

This level of success is fairly common with neurofeedback, particularly for individuals facing challenges with self-regulation. Here’s why:

Neurofeedback is a direct method of training the brain to function more efficiently. By monitoring brain activity in real time, we provide immediate feedback to the individual, rewarding the brain for shifting its activity toward more desirable patterns. This gradual learning process can be applied to any measurable aspect of brain function.

At its core, neurofeedback is about enhancing self-regulation, a key element of optimal brain performance. Improving self-regulation allows the central nervous system to function more effectively, which positively impacts everything from mood stability to cognitive performance.

Self-regulation covers a wide range of brain functions. It influences sleep patterns, energy levels, social interactions, concentration, emotional stability, and even physical responses such as pain management or sensitivity. Because these brain functions are interconnected, improving one area often leads to enhancements in others. Neurofeedback providers focus on all of these elements—sleep, emotional regulation, attention, memory, balance, and more—because they provide valuable insight into how to optimize overall brain function.

One common misconception is that neurofeedback “cures” conditions. It doesn’t. Instead, it helps the brain operate more effectively, which in turn improves other functions, such as emotional regulation and behavior. For instance, training someone to improve their concentration often positively affects emotions and behavior, even if that wasn’t the primary focus. As hyperactivity decreases, sleep typically improves as well. When neurofeedback helps someone manage chronic pain, it frequently addresses underlying anxiety, whether anxiety was a primary concern or not.

In this sense, neurofeedback is much like a well-rounded fitness program. You might start exercising to improve your appearance, but along the way, you’ll notice benefits in stamina, heart health, cholesterol levels, and muscle tone. Similarly, training one area of brain function often yields positive effects across multiple areas.

That said, neurofeedback isn’t a solution for losing weight or quitting smoking. However, if someone is using overeating or smoking as a way to manage their emotions, neurofeedback can help them learn to regulate their mood without relying on those habits. As a result, those behaviors become easier to manage because they’re no longer serving as emotional crutches. Neurofeedback also won’t directly boost a child’s grades, but it can improve their ability to focus, concentrate, stay organized, and sit still, making academic success more attainable.

Who can benefit from neurofeedback? Anyone seeking to stay calm under pressure, sleep better, or manage their daily tasks without feeling overwhelmed. It’s an excellent option for individuals looking to enhance their self-regulation and lead a more balanced, effective life.

At Windward Biofeedback Associates we are essentially personal trainers for your brain, and neurofeedback is a lot like weightlifting. How many of you exercise or lift weights? You already know that regular physical exercise makes living in your body easier and more enjoyable.

In the same way, neurofeedback makes using your mind easier. By “exercising” your brain, you strengthen its electrical connections, so everyday tasks like remembering things, staying focused, and concentrating require much less effort. As a bonus, some emotional reactions that come with those struggles—like outbursts of anger or anxiety—begin to fade away.

How does it work? We don’t read your mind—just observe your brainwaves! By placing sensors on your scalp, we can monitor your brain activity and send that data to a specialized computer program. This program allows us to see the activity levels of different parts of your brain. Based on your personal needs and goals, we select exercises that are designed to target specific areas that need improvement.

Here’s where it gets interesting: our computer program integrates with a game or video presentation which only runs when your brain is functioning in the right way. If your brain goes off course, the game or video stops or fades. It’s that simple.

We also measure your progress. Before we begin, you’ll complete a brain map, which helps us identify which parts of the brain need attention. Every 20 sessions or so, you’ll complete it again. This allows us to track how well the training is working. Just like physical training, we check if you’re getting stronger in the areas that matter to you. If you are, great! If not, we adjust the training plan.

So, who benefits from neurofeedback? It’s ideal for anyone who wants to sleep better, manage emotions more effectively, improve focus, get organized, or even handle road rage with more calm. If your symptom inventory (on our website) scores above 25 points, neurofeedback could help make life a little easier.

Who might not be a good candidate? Someone currently dealing with substance abuse or facing an unstable living situation, because neurofeedback works best when there’s some stability in life.

Give us a call at 8087813007 or 8 to arrange for a consultation

Peggy and George at Windward Biofeedback Associates

The growing success of biofeedback and neurofeedback techniques in helping individuals with PTSD is encouraging. Approaches such as Heart Rate Variability (HRV) training, Infralow Neurofeedback (ILF-NFB), and Alpha-Theta Neurofeedback (NFB) have shown significant promise in alleviating common PTSD symptoms like nightmares, flashbacks, dissociation, and depression.

Heart Rate Variability (HRV) Training:
HRV is the measure of variation in the time between consecutive heartbeats. Rather than the heart beating at a steady rate, the intervals between heartbeats naturally fluctuate. HRV is influenced by the autonomic nervous system (ANS), which is divided into two branches:

Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS): Responsible for the “fight or flight” response, it increases heart rate in response to stress or danger.
Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS): Often called the “rest and digest” system, it slows the heart rate and promotes relaxation.
HRV is a reliable indicator of the balance between these two systems. Higher HRV generally reflects a healthy, adaptable nervous system that responds flexibly to stress, while lower HRV can indicate stress, fatigue, or autonomic dysregulation. HRV training helps individuals enhance this balance, promoting resilience and emotional regulation, making it particularly beneficial for PTSD and anxiety management.

Alpha-Theta Neurofeedback (NFB):
Alpha-Theta Neurofeedback focuses on training two key brainwave frequencies—Alpha (8-12 Hz) and Theta (4-8 Hz)—which are linked to states of relaxation, creativity, and deep meditative awareness. During this training, an EEG monitors the brain’s electrical activity, and the goal is to increase the amplitude of these frequencies to foster relaxation, emotional processing, and creativity.

Alpha-Theta training is particularly useful for trauma and PTSD treatment because it helps individuals access deep emotional states and process traumatic memories in a calm, meditative state. It also promotes stress reduction, emotional healing, and enhanced cognitive function, making it a powerful tool for those suffering from PTSD.

Infralow Neurofeedback (ILF-NFB):
Infralow Neurofeedback targets very low-frequency brainwaves, typically below 0.1 Hz. These infralow frequencies are thought to play a crucial role in regulating overall brain function and stability. Unlike traditional neurofeedback, which focuses on faster frequencies like Alpha or Beta, ILF-NFB aims to balance basic regulatory functions such as mood stability, emotional regulation, and autonomic nervous system control.

ILF-NFB is especially beneficial for individuals with complex conditions such as trauma, chronic pain, anxiety, depression, and attention deficits. It helps stabilize arousal levels and reduces emotional reactivity in trauma survivors, aiding in the regulation of anxiety, hypervigilance, and flashbacks.

Current Research:
The Veterans Affairs office in Hawaii is currently conducting a long-term study on the effectiveness of neurofeedback for veterans with PTSD. This research is significant because it adds to the growing evidence that neurofeedback can reduce symptoms like hyperarousal and intrusive memories. Additionally, there is strong evidence that neurofeedback can effectively address related issues such as general anxiety and depression.

While the findings from studies involving PTSD veterans and trauma survivors are promising, there is still a need for larger, more comprehensive research to further validate neurofeedback as a mainstream therapeutic option. These insights are thoroughly explored in the Evidence-Based Practice in Biofeedback and Neurofeedback, 4th Edition, published by the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAPB). Ongoing research and documentation are crucial for advancing neurofeedback as a recognized treatment for PTSD and other mental health conditions.