A Very Brief Overview of Neurofeedback Therapy
While considered an alternative therapy, neurofeedback training has been around since the 1960s and its effectiveness is supported by extensive research. * Neurofeedback training alters brain activity to help children, teens and adults improve attention deficits, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), stress-related problems, insomnia and more.
Many Olympic athletes, elite performers and high achievers have been turning to neurofeedback to give them a cutting edge in competitions and high stakes situations.
In short, neurofeedback is performance training for the brain. A neurofeedback therapist monitors and measures brain waves and compares what the brain is doing to what you want it to do. During each session, the client is rewarded with a movie, music or video game when the brain is moving toward a desirable state. The reward stops when the brain enters a less desirable state (such as anxiety or inattention). The goal is to “train” the brain to reach a calm, relaxed yet attentive state. Over time, clients learn how to return their minds to this desired state on their own.
Neurofeedback Therapy in Orem, Utah
Aspen Valley Wellness offers SW Loreta neurofeedback.
This highly researched, network brain training neurofeedback is used to address many mental and physical issues as well as improve peak performance in athletes and high achieving individuals.
Each neurofeedback session is $120, and most people need 20 – 40 sessions to realize sustained changes. Discounts are available when multiple sessions are purchased in advance. Please call the office for details.
Our executive director, Jessica Harper, who is also a therapist, has received extensive training in neurofeedback and qEEG brain mapping. She is the supervising clinician for our neurofeedback therapy and reviews all progress with our clients. She is a member of the International Society for Neuroregulation & Research (ISNR) and is working toward certification through the Biofeedback Certification International Alliance (BCIA). Jessica is part of a large, worldwide mentoring network of neurofeedback and qEEG professionals that includes psychologists, neuropsychologists, neurologists, medical doctors, and neuroscientists.
More About Neurofeedback Therapy
Our brains are flexible. Neurofeedback teaches the brain to change itself through positive reinforcement. This therapy helps the brain improve alertness, attention, emotional regulation, cognitive function and mental flexibility. When practiced with a neurofeedback specialist, a measurable physiological effect on the brain is observed, which over time is likely to become the brain’s regular pattern.
Excessive fast or slow brain wave activity is associated with brain dysregulation and a variety of clinical symptoms. Neurofeedback brain training helps improve self-regulation. Changes in brain waves mean changes in brain timing, and this is what creates a more alert, stable and calm brain. Thus, neurofeedback improves behavior, mood and attention.
Brain training may be used alone or with psychotherapy and medications. As the brain becomes more stable and better regulated, therapy often become more effective, and an individual may be able to reduce or eliminate the need for medication.
* Links to neurofeedback research articles:
MIGRAINES/ HEADACHES:
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/155005941104200112
- https://behavioralandbrainfunctions.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1744-9081-6-9
ADHD:
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01712768
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1022353731579
EPILEPSY:
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10484-006-9002-x
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/155005940904000310
AUTISM:
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1750946708001335
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J184v06n04_05
ANXIETY:
DEPRESSION:
- https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0088785
- https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00296/full
SUBSTANCE ABUSE/ ADDICTIONS:
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/1097-4679(199509)51:5%3C685::AID-JCLP2270510514%3E3.0.CO;2-K
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/155005941004100313
TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY:
- https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/dc99/deb7eaa31df1c1a386f2f8b7e4349fdff24d.pdf
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1550059416654849
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10484-008-9056-z
POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD)/ TRAUMA:
- https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0166752
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1039856217715988
INSOMNIA:
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10484-011-9165-y
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1087079206000049
MOOD REGULATION:
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1053811909008465
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/hbm.20997
PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT:
- https://journals.lww.com/neuroreport/Abstract/2003/07010/Ecological_validity_of_neurofeedback___modulation.6.aspx
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0167876002000910
- https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/jsep/37/6/article-p626.xml
OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER (OCD):
