Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback is a quick, noninvasive, cost-effective treatment for a wide variety of disorders that affect not only children, but also adults. So without years of medical treatment, talking pills, or managing difficult diets, without months or even years of traditional therapy or behavior modification, we can successfully treat disorders like autism, ADHD, learning disabilities, and emotional/behavioral problems. In this book, we give you a number of case studies on a variety of disorders, but here are two cases from our practice that show neurofeedback in action.
Seth, nine years old, was failing every thir-grade subject and had not friends. His mother gave him a birthday party and only two children showed up. Seth had been on Ritalin for several months. Not only did the medication not seem to make any difference, every afternoon he would become more difficult and irritable (Ritalin rebound). We started neurofeedback treatment in the late spring and continued it through the summer. Although Seth had to repeat the third grade, his grades jumped to the B range and he cultivated “lots of friends”. Eight years after treatment, his parents report he is doing very well academically and socially.
Carolyn was a quiet, shy, sad-looking child. She was failing the sixth grade, was mildly oppositional and “stubborn” at home, and she had only one close friend. She was not diagnosed with ADHD but should have been. She also suffered from a chronic low-grade depression. In this case, we could not distinguish which came first, the depression or the inability to attend. We saw both symptoms as well as others as part of a cluster of problems. In just twelve weeks of neurofeedback, Carolyn’s sad personality began to brighten, her grades improved, she stopped writing gloomy poetry, and she started developing new friends. It took a lot more training, but the palpable sadness began to lift after a few sessions.
These are just two cases out of hundreds we have treated. There were no medications, no major dietary changes, no endless behavior modification or psychotherapy–just neurofeedback. Neurofeedback is a simple treatment that generally involves two sessions a week. The patient is connected to a specialized EEG (electroencephalogram) computer system. By watching a monitor, the patient can see what his or her brainwaves are doing through training can learn to change dysregulate brainwaves to more functional and flexible brainwave frequencies. The feedback is presented in the form of a sophisticated brainwave-oriented game. The treatment is easy, quick, and not costly. It involves no pain or discomfort–just watching a computer game or movie with your brain.
Autism and ADHD are certainly the disorders of public note in the last decade. Because these two disorders are so often talked about in the media, everyone acts as tthough they are expert in the field. Children who are quiet and socially unattached are at risk for being diagnosed with autism or Asperger’s disorder. A child who misbehaves, is rambunctious, acts bored, or underachieves in school is now at risk of being diagnosed with ADHD. The vast majority of these children are quickly placed on medications by well-meaning clinicians. These two disorders are very real and must be treated. Our concern is that professionals–rather than family, friends, or teachers–need to make these diagnoses. If these children are not treated, we end up with adults who procrastinate, are disorganized, or who have problems that interfere with living a normal, productive life. Countless adults have come to our clinics, self-diagnosed with a disorder, wanting medications. In many cases, they are correct about the diagnosis. Rather than offering them medications, however, we offer neurofeedback as well as help with emotional problems.” From Healing Young Brains by Eduardo Castro, M.D. and Robert Hill, Ph.D.
A copy of this book is given families of our neurofeedback patients as they want to know more about how we achieve the improvement without drugs. Research shows the improvements last over 30 years and the average IQ goes up over 10 points.
