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Also called…
•EEG Biofeedback•Brain training •Neuro-therapy•Neuro-training•Attention training•Peak performance training
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BIOFEEDBACKUsing information about how the body
is working to alter what’s going on
Biofeedback was popular in the 70’s for managing anxiety.
The client got sound tones for rewards when his GSR (Galvanic Skin Response) met the pre-set levels.
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We now know our brains are much more “plastic”
than we used to think.
Our brains can
• learn, • change, • improve, • heal…
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When you have information what your brain waves are doing, your brain can use that information to
change how it works.
THE BIG
IDEA:
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By age 5, the brain is about its
full size and weight –
about 3 pounds (about 2% of adult body weight).
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Fortunately, those 100,000,000,000 neurons are a generous supply!
As many as 10,000 brain cells die every day after age
20.
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Every neuron
is connected to
other neurons –
we have an estimated 1,000,000,000,000,000 connections in our brain.
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Our Synaptic Self*
• Communication between brain cells is a bio-chemical event across tiny spaces called synapses.
Our thoughts, feelings, actions, memories & imaginations are the result of what happens in our synapses.
Synaptic Self – How Our Brains Become Who We Are by Ernest LeDoux
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What makes us who we are?
LeDoux believes it is all in the synapses that the essence of our personalities is encoded – including the basis for mental health and self-awareness – and mental illness, addictions and other brain-related problems.
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PERSONALITY is a complex interaction between nature (our
“hard-wired” responses) and
nurture (our unique personal experiences)
– all encoded in our synapses.
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These electrodes pick up information about brain waves --similar to the way stethoscopes pick up information about our hearts and lungs.
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This electrical signal is then magnified by some kind of amplifier, which is then fed
through a computer. BrainMaster
Pocket 1-W EEG
Wireless Pendant
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Computers can filter out the various brain wave frequencies &
provide us with this information in a usable form.
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The patterns of brain wave activity varies, depending on where on the
brain we are looking, and what kinds of things we are doing. In different
mental states, different types of brain waves dominate.
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Normal Brain
•Good balance of brain waves
•Ability to shift easily from one brain state to another
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Neurofeedback works by helping to restore a
better balance of waves in
various parts of the brain.
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May have• too much of some frequencies over others• unstable frequencies• an impaired ability to shift from one mental state to another.
Dysfunctional Brain
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Attention Deficit Disorder
The brain produces fast beta waves
when the person is actively mentally
involved in a language-based task
…
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For under-powered brains a fast-wave task like school work ends up causing the brain to start into beta—then collapse into slow drowsy waves.
Stimulant meds can stimulate the brain-– until the meds wear off.
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NF works by re-training the brain to produce the beta waves on its own – and many people continue to improve after the training ends!
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BRAIN WAVE FREQUENCIES
Each brain wave frequency can be
measured in terms of:• Microvolts (µV) =
Amplitude/Height of the wave• Hertz (Hz) = Frequency/Speed
of the wave per second
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FREQUENCY
• The speed of electrical undulations, measured in cycles per second, or hertz (hz).
• The frequency defines the brainwave bandwith:• Delta, Theta, Alpha = Slow• SMR, Beta, High Beta, Gamma =
Fast
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AMPLITUDE•The power of the electrical
impulse, measured in microvolts. (µV)
•Like volume is to sound •Slower waves have higher
amplitudes. • It takes the brain a lot of
energy to produce the faster waves, so amplitudes tend to be lower.
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FREQUENCY BANDWITHS• Single frequencies organized into
discreet groups• Each bandwidth is associated with
specific characteristics• The amplitude and microvolt
readings reflect all of the activity within the bandwidth
• NF training is aimed at changing the amplitude of a selected frequency bandwidth
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Cortical and Subcortical Processes
Regulation of basic life functions
Has a role in sexuality, memory, and processing emotional information
Used for thinking, talking, hearing, seeing and creating
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DELTA
• 0.5-3 Hz (cycles or waves per second)
• Sleep State• Regenerative State• Complex problem solving• Consciousness completely
internalized• Transcendental states • Dominant wave form in infants up
to 6 months old • 40% of the amplitude in infants• <5% of the amplitude in a “normal” adult
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High Amplitudes of Delta
•Learning Disabilities•“Sleepy Brains”
•Brain Injuries•Eye Blinks and Eye Movement
Artifact
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THETA
• 4-7 Hz (cycles or waves per second)
• Trance State• Intuitive, Creative • Internal Focus• Thoughts in Theta are
visual/emotional
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High Amplitudes of Theta• Learning Disabilities
• Foggy Brains• Filtering Problems (ADHD)• Processing Problems (ADD)
• Slow Reaction Time• Lack of Oxygen and Blood Flow• Depression• Anxiety
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ALPHA
• 8-12 Hz • Alertness• Peacefulness• Readiness• Meditation• Alpha Peak Frequency
>10 µVSuggests Superior Intelligence
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High Amplitude Alpha• High Anterior (Frontal) Alpha
• Daydreamers• ADD/ADHD• Depression• Traumatic Brain Injuries• Marijuana Use
• High Posterior (Rear) Alpha• Anxiety• Insomnia
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SENSORIMOTOR RHYTHM(SMR)
• 12-15 Hz• Relaxed yet focused • Stillness: Calm Mental State• Reflecting-before-acting• Sleep Spindles (12-14 Hz)
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High Amplitude Beta15-22 Hz
• Left Hypo-activation = Depression
• Right Hyper-activation = Anxiety
• Anxiety Disorders• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder • Sleep Disorders• Bruxism
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High Amplitude High Beta
• Epileptic Auras• Cortical Irritability• Hyper-vigilance• Overthinking• Ruminations• Obsessive Compulsive D/O
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GAMMA
• 35-42 Hz• “The Binding Rhythm”
• Important to learning by bringing together different aspects of an object into a single precept.
• Associated with transcendent experiences
• Found throughout the scalp rather than one discreet location
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OVER-AROUSAL is the problem with anxiety disorders (includes panic
attacks, PTSD, agoraphobia, etc.)
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although they can sometimes be immediate, such as in relieving a migraine headache.
Usually the effects are gradual,
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For really entrenched problems – e.g., Asperger’s & other autism spectrum disorders – 100 -200 sessions may be needed, and results may not be as complete.
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NF can change the face of mental health treatment – and offer
resolution of symptoms rather than the temporary relief of
medications.
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