Neurofeedback allows you to create healthy brainwave states on demand. It’s used to treat a host of mental and physical disorders like anxiety, ADHD & more.
People have sought to refine and improve their mental function for thousands of years through methods like yoga and meditation.
Now you can learn to train your mental patterns with a technique known as neurofeedback.
Neurofeedback allows you greater control of your mind by teaching you how to bring about a preferred, healthier brainwave state at will.
It can help you be more relaxed, happy, and focused.
Moreover, research has proven neurofeedback beneficial for numerous mental health and stress-related conditions.
What Is Neurofeedback?
The body’s systems always react to changes inside and outside.
Your body adjusts things like breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, and temperature to keep balanced.
Surprisingly, your brain does this without your knowing.
Biofeedback helps you consciously reach balance.
It lets you see what your body is doing in real time.
By practicing, you can influence these functions to stay balanced.
Different biofeedback types track different body signs.
We’re talking about neurofeedback here, which watches brainwaves.
Practitioners call it neurotherapy, neurobiofeedback, or EEG biofeedback.
Neurofeedback: Training Your Brain Waves
To grasp neurofeedback, you must know about brain waves.
Brain cells use electricity to communicate, creating patterns called brain waves.
We measure them with EEG, which records brain activity using sensors on the scalp.
Scientists found five main brain wave patterns: alpha, beta, delta, gamma, and theta.
Each brainwave state corresponds to a different state of awareness as shown in the chart below.
Throughout the day and night, we cycle through different brainwave states.
It’s crucial to experience these states at the right times and for the right lengths.
Neurofeedback helps you control your brain waves consciously.
For instance, alpha waves happen when you’re relaxed.
It teaches you to slow down the stress response cascade by managing your brainwave activity.
Alertness links with beta waves, but too much can cause fear and anxiety.
Benefits of Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback offers a viable alternative for many disorders when prescription medications haven’t brought about the desired relief or you simply prefer a drug-free solution.
Neurofeedback has been used successfully to treat a wide range of mental health and brain-related disorders, including:
- anxiety
- attention disorders
- autism
- depression
- eating disorders
- epilepsy
- insomnia
- learning disabilities
- memory loss
- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- substance abuse
- schizophrenia
- traumatic brain injuries
Researchers conducted the first studies on neurofeedback using cats with epilepsy.
Researchers astonishingly discovered that cats could be trained to alter their brain waves, reducing the frequency of seizures.
If cats can do it, so can you!
Here are some of the major benefits of using neurofeedback:
- For many stress-related conditions, neurofeedback can help stop stress by teaching you how to reduce the stress response.
- Mental disorders like depression and anxiety have reached epidemic levels and the standard medical treatments — drugs and cognitive therapy — don’t work for everyone.
- Neurofeedback is a learnable skill that, once mastered, can help you for a lifetime.
- Improvements made through neurofeedback can carry over from one area of your life into others.
- Learning neurofeedback is empowering; it puts you in charge of your own mental health.
- Neurofeedback is not hard to do and can be learned by anyone from kids to older people.
Best Uses for Neurofeedback
Now let’s take a deeper look at the most common, evidence-based uses for neurofeedback.
1. Neurofeedback for Stress and Anxiety
If there is one specific area where neurofeedback shines, it’s stress reduction.
It’s useful for literally any condition with a stress-related component.
Learning how to manage stress is one of the best things you can do for your overall health, brain function, and mental well-being.
The typical stress-induced flight-or-fight response initiates a cascade of physiological changes you normally have no control over.
Your heart rate and blood pressure increase, your breathing becomes fast and shallow, and blood gets directed away from your brain and into your muscles.
Neurofeedback teaches you how to manage your brainwave activity to slow down the stress response cascade.
It’s particularly helpful for any health condition with a high correlation to stress like anxiety, high blood pressure, bruxism (teeth grinding), and digestive disorders like IBS and chronic constipation.
2. Neurofeedback for ADHD
The most studied use of neurofeedback is for ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).
It shows promise as a safe and effective drug-free treatment for children as well as adults.
In a meta analysis of studies on ADHD, researchers concluded that neurofeedback effectively reduces the symptoms of inattention, impulsiveness, and hyperactivity.
One review of large-scale clinical trials found that neurofeedback therapy induces a state of relaxed attention, modulates both over and under-arousal, and works comparably to the typical stimulant medications prescribed for ADHD.
3. Neurofeedback and Depression
Psychologist D. Corydon Hammond, PhD, is a recognized authority in the field of neurofeedback.
He has nearly 200 scientific publications to his credit and is the primary author of the recommended standards of practice for the clinical use of neurofeedback.
In a review of the current body of literature on neurofeedback for depression, he states that significant, enduring improvements occur approximately 80% of the time in patients who have a biological predisposition to depression.
Most patients notice a difference after three to six sessions, feel a very significant improvement after ten to twelve sessions, and usually complete their treatment within 20 to 22 sessions.
One study on depression found that the use of neurofeedback decreased depressive symptoms by 50%.
4. Neurofeedback for Peak Performance
Neurofeedback is also an effective technique to enhance overall performance.
It is used by Olympians, professional athletes, NASA astronauts, entrepreneurs, biohackers, and others who seek peak physical or mental performance.
The US military uses neurofeedback to treat soldiers with PTSD and brain injuries, and for general performance enhancement.
You too can use it to improve any area of your life — work, studies, relationships, health, and happiness.
5. Additional Uses for Neurofeedback
The list of uses for neurofeedback is so long that it reads like the table of contents of a medical textbook.
The International Society for Neuroregulation & Research has compiled a comprehensive bibliography of hundreds of scientific neurofeedback studies.
In this bibliography, you’ll find a list of research studies performed on the following conditions:
- addictions
- ADHD
- anxiety
- asthma
- autism and Asperger’s
- bipolar disorder
- cerebral palsy
- chemotherapy side effects
- chronic fatigue syndrome
- chronic pain
- cognitive decline, including dementia
- cognitive enhancement
- depression
- dissociative disorders
- eating disorders
- epilepsy
- fibromyalgia
- headaches, including migraines
- high blood pressure
- insomnia
- learning disabilities
- Lyme disease
- memory loss
- obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Parkinson’s disease
- post-traumatic stress disorder
- restless leg syndrome
- schizophrenia
- stress
- stroke
- tinnitus
- Tourette’s syndrome
- traumatic brain injury
Many studies have looked into using neurofeedback for better mental functioning.
It’s proven to boost creativity, memory, focus, attention, sports skills, and overall wellness.
Professional Neurofeedback Therapy
For effective therapy, it’s best to work with a certified neurofeedback professional.
They’ll tailor the therapy to your needs because it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution.
Diane Roberts Stoler, EdD, has both professional and personal experience with neurofeedback.
With 30 years as a neuropsychologist, she benefited from neurofeedback after a brain injury.
Therapists can use various neurofeedback approaches to customize treatment for each patient.
If you visit a neurotherapist, the types of neurofeedback offered may include:
- Low Energy Neurofeedback System (LENS)
- NeuroField
- Personal Roshi (pRoshi)
- Hemoencephalography (HEG)
- Heart Rate Variability (HRV)
- Bio-Acoustical Utilization Device (BAUD)
- Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation (CES)
- Audio/Visual Stimulation (AVS)
- Passive Infrared Neurofeedback (PIR)
- Protocol-Based Neurofeedback
- Infra-Low Frequency Neurofeedback (ILF NFB)
- Surface Z-score Neurofeedback
- LORETA Z-score Neurofeedback
- Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (TDCS)
Don’t be overwhelmed by this intimidating list of terms!
Your neurotherapist should easily be able to explain them and the differences between them to you.
Also, you’ll find simple explanations for many of these neurofeedback modalities at Stoler’s website DrDiane.com.
What Happens in a Neurotherapy Session
During a typical neurotherapy session, a clinician will place electrodes on your head to measure brain electrical activity.
You’ll see your brain activity displayed as a video game on a monitor.
Here’s an image of an actual neurotherapy session.
You’ll learn to interpret what you see on the screen.
With practice, you’ll control your brain activity to produce the needed brainwave state.
Neurofeedback is like playing a video game with your mind, harnessing neuroplasticity to modify brainwave patterns.
Even one session can lead to significant changes in brain plasticity.
Finding a Qualified Neurofeedback Practitioner
If you are looking for a qualified neurotherapist in your area, here’s a list of organizations with online directories:
- Biofeedback Certification International Alliance
- International Society for Neuroregulation & Research
- National Neurofeedback Network
- Psychology Today
Professional help is highly recommended if you are seeking lasting and truly therapeutic benefits for a physical or mental health condition.
Working with a professional will also help to minimize potential side effects.
Neurofeedback Side Effects
As with any treatment modality, there is the possibility of side effects.
This is especially true if you have a history of mental illness or enlist the services of someone who is not qualified to perform neurofeedback.
The Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback published a special report, Negative Effects and the Need for Standards of Practice in Neurofeedback.
Side effects of neurofeedback reported by clinicians in the above report included:
- worsening of symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders
- irritability, anger, and crying
- headaches, nausea, insomnia, and fatigue
- disorientation, cognitive decline, and brain fog
- loss of previous improvements
This is clearly an off-putting list.
But the authors, who include world-renowned neurofeedback authority Dr. Hammond (see above), attribute side effects largely to the increasing number of unqualified lay people who are inappropriately and illegally obtaining neurofeedback equipment and setting up shop.
Minimize Your Risk of Neurofeedback Side Effects
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to minimize your risk of side effects.
Here’s the advice of the study authors:
- Work with a licensed health care practitioner who has a certification in neurofeedback from an accredited organization such as the Biofeedback Certification Institute of America.
- Make sure your neurotherapist has your complete patient history, performs baseline brain mapping like QEEG (Quantitative EEG), and offers individualized treatment.
- Your neurotherapist should be carefully monitoring you for side effects by asking you during and after each session to rate any symptoms.
- Don’t be shy about speaking up! It’s your responsibility to accurately report any side effects.
Personal Neurofeedback Devices You Can Use at Home
While there are many benefits to working with a trained neurofeedback professional, if your goal is general relaxation or performance enhancement, it’s not always feasible or even necessary.
For about the cost of one neurotherapy session, you can purchase a neurofeedback device that you can use at home.
These devices are worn as a headset or headband with small built-in sensors.
They interface with your computer or smartphone to create real-time data on your brainwave patterns.
Some popular brands of at-home neurofeedback devices include:
- Bellabee
- BrainBit
- Emotiv Insight
- FocusBand
- Muse™
- NeuroSky MindWave
- Versus
There’s a lot of turnover in the expanding do-it-yourself neurofeedback market with companies rapidly coming and going, so this list is subject to change.
Prices for headsets range from just under $100 to over $300 and, generally, you get what you pay for.
BioZen is a free app developed by the US Department of Defense.
Provided you buy the appropriate sensors, it can be used to measure brain waves, skin temperature, respiratory rate, and more.
These products are in their infancy and will NOT deliver the same results you would get by going to a trained neurotherapist with professional grade equipment.
But if your main interest is relaxation, general personal improvement, or even curiosity, at-home neurofeedback can be a reasonable option.
Personal Neurofeedback Devices as a Meditation Aid
Another promising use for your at-home neurofeedback device is to help you meditate.
A big roadblock with meditation that many people, especially beginners, have is that they don’t know when they are doing it “right.”
By using a neurofeedback device, you don’t have to guess whether you’ve reached the desired meditative brainwave state (usually either the alpha or theta brainwave state).
A quality device can help you know for sure.
Once you’ve trained your brain to recognize what that brainwave state feels like, you can apply that knowledge to a traditional meditation practice.
Be aware that some companies selling binaural beats brainwave entrainment audios give the impression that they involve neurofeedback.
Listening to these audio files can alter your brainwave state, but it is a one-way street since there is no feedback involved.
Benefits of Personal Neurofeedback Devices
There are two big drawbacks to professional neurofeedback therapy — it’s expensive and time-consuming.
A typical session lasts 30-60 minutes.
Depending on your goals, you may need 10, 20, or possibly up to 50 sessions.
A course of treatment can easily run thousands of dollars.
And unless you have a serious medical condition, neurofeedback therapy will not be covered by insurance (and it may not be covered even then).
Personal neurofeedback can be done at your convenience for no cost beyond the initial investment of the device.
Most devices are portable so you can use them to relax anywhere, anytime.
You are totally in control and can use your device as much or as little as you feel is helpful.
And you can often share the device with friends and family.
Drawbacks of Personal Neurofeedback Devices
Keep in mind that if you have a physical or mental health condition, do-it-yourself neurofeedback is NOT a substitute for professional neurofeedback therapy.
This is nascent technology and these devices are not as reliable now as they may be in the future.
Take a look at product review sites and you’ll see that technical problems are fairly common.
Also, it’s important to have a professional monitor your results under certain circumstances.
It’s extremely important to see a professional neurotherapist if you have a psychiatric disorder such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia as personal neurofeedback can exacerbate your symptoms.
Neurofeedback can also alter the effectiveness of prescription drugs.
For example, neurofeedback is very good at lowering high blood pressure, but it can cause your pressure to drop too low when used in conjunction with blood pressure medication.
So it’s important that you work closely with your health care professional even if you are doing neurofeedback on your own.
A Handheld Option: emWave2
One disadvantage of personal neurofeedback devices is that they generally require wearing a device on your head.
This is not always convenient or comfortable.
An excellent alternative is HeartMath emWave2, the granddaddy of personal biofeedback devices.
This device is small enough to fit in your hand and you need only clip a small sensor to your fingertip.
It works based on heart rate variability, not brain waves, making it a biofeedback rather than a neurofeedback device.
Heart rate variability (HRV) describes a naturally occurring fluctuation in heartbeats.
HRV devices work on the concept of coherence — the synchronization of your heart rate variability, breathing patterns, and other body rhythms — to achieve optimal function and performance.
The underlying concept is that, just as your car will ride smoother when your tires are properly aligned, your body will work better if all these rhythms are aligned.
You’ll find a comprehensive collection of research studies in the HeartMath Institute Research Library.
EmWave2 is an effective, affordable alternative if you’re looking for a small, unobtrusive device you can hold in your hand.
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