Neurofeedback is a comprehensive system that promotes change at the cellular level of the brain and empowers the client to use his or her mind as a tool for healing. Trainees often report relief from symptoms related to depression, anxiety, PTSD, addictions and unresolved emotional issues. Neurofeedback training is also known to promote a state of focused relaxation that has benefited those with attention deficit disorder (ADHD), learning disorders, OCD, and traumatic brain injury. Other disorders that have responded well to neurotherapy include epilepsy, headaches, and chronic fatigue, etc.... A growing number of health care providers have made neurotherapy their primary treatment modality, whereas others have made it a part of a larger clinical practice.

Neurofeedback: enhancing communication between mind and body
 

"A pill for every ill" means that drugs are the primary source of enhanced mood and wellness. What if you could control the mind/body connection without pills? Neurofeedback teaches you self-regulation skills. Your mind becomes your medication. Businessweek magazine recently said that Neurofeedback is moving towards mainstream medicine. It has been successfully applied to such disorders as anxiety, depression, ADHD, minor traumatic brain injury and age-related cognitive decline. How does Neurofeedback work and what can it do for you?

BRAIN WAVES AND YOU

Each of us has a countless number of neurons in our cerebral cortex or brain. Brain Waves are associated with the electrical activation and deactivation of neurons. The electrical patterns produced by neurons are called brain waves. Electroencephalographic (EEG) equipment is used to measure brain wave activity. Hospitals use it to diagnose seizure disorders. At death the EEG becomes a "flat line." EEG-Biofeedback (Neurofeedback) equipment also measures brain waves but unlike standard hospital equipment it feeds-back information about those waves to a trainee.

Brain waves do not cause mental or emotional states; they only reflect what is currently happening in our brain. Much like a mirror reflects the way we look. If we look in the mirror and see something out of place, we make an adjustment. The mirror is a very basic piece of biofeedback equipment. EEG-biofeedback (Neurofeedback) equipment is like a mirror to the mind. It assists the viewer (or, trainee) to identify and then modify his/her current brain wave pattern. The power to adjust emotional and mental states without the use of drugs can not be overstated.

Brain wave patterns are a mixture of the brain waves listed below. Individual brain waves have been associated with the following characteristics:

• DELTA is associated with sleep.

• THETA is associated with creativity, spontaneity as well as distractibility and inattention.

• ALPHA is associated with meditation, inner peace, daydreaming and idleness of the visual system.

• SENSORIMOTOR RHYTHM (SMR) is associated with idleness of the motor system and relaxation.

• BETA is associated with focused attention and analytical thinking.

• HIGH BETA is associated with muscle tension, anxiety, over-thinking as well as Peak Performance.