Top 5 Reasons to Use Neurofeedback With Your Clients
Neurofeedback is the latest trend in biofeedback, a tried-and-true method that uses visual and audio information to teach patients how to get in tune with their bodies and reduce negative symptoms.
If you're looking to expand the services offered at your clinic, neurofeedback training makes an excellent choice for multiple reasons: for one, it's grounded in research. Additionally, it has many applications and lacks any serious side effects.
Below, we'll take a look at 5 reasons why it's a great idea to add neurofeedback training to your clinical repertoire.
1. It's Effective
Neurofeedback has been shown to cause lasting, positive changes in patients who suffer from anxiety, depression, and ADD/ADHD, among other conditions (see the studies linked to below). It's also been shown to help those who experience symptoms of autism that have a negative effect on their quality of life. Why does neurofeedback seem to help where other interventions have failed?
Well, because it directly tackles the root cause of these conditions: brain function that's become dysregulated and moved away from healthy, baseline operation. This dysregulated operation is shown through brain waves measured on an electroencephalogram (EEG), which patients learn to respond to and alter. That's why we refer to it here as neurofeedback training, not neurofeedback treatment.
Let's look at an example: a child experiencing ADHD may have an abnormal amount of theta brain waves. These brain waves usually show up when we're falling asleep, and so too many theta brain waves during waking hours will result in the lack of focus that's a hallmark of ADHD.
The opposite of theta waves are beta waves - these are produced when we're concentrating intensely. After a sufficient amount of neurofeedback training sessions, the idea is that the child with ADHD will be able to voluntarily increase the amount of beta waves produced by their brain. They'll be able to apply this skill when needed, for instance, when in class.
As alluded to earlier, the great thing about neurofeedback is that you're helping patients learn how to deal with their own symptoms as they arise. In this way, abilities learned through neurofeedback training can be applied by the patient as needed for many years to come.
2. Patients Can See Results Fairly Quickly
While traditional talk therapies for mental conditions can take years to show desired results, neurofeedback is something that can result in positive progress very rapidly. In a few sessions, patients report finding themselves feeling more relaxed, more in control of their own thoughts and feelings. That being said, the training is cumulative - each session builds upon the last and, as with any learning process, some will intuitively "understand" neurofeedback faster than others. Ten to twelve sessions are usually enough to determine whether or not the patient will benefit from ongoing training.
How long a person should continue with neurofeedback depends on a few factors. These include, for instance, the length of each training session, how often the patient is undergoing a session and the type of training. Three sessions per week is ideal, though some professionals recommend and offer daily sessions.
3. Neurofeedback Helps With a Wide Range of Disorders
Research indicates that the applications of neurofeedback training are incredibly versatile. Neurofeedback can be used to reduce symptoms of various conditions, including:
Autism spectrum disorders, including Asperger's
Neurofeedback training isn't meant to be a standalone therapy - on the contrary, it forms a helpful adjunct to other approaches. For instance, it may provide calm and clarity that helps the patient get more "out of" psychotherapy, much as a regular meditation practice might.
Neurofeedback can also help people who don't suffer from disorders, but just have unwanted behaviors - for instance, maybe they often lack motivation and procrastinate. Neurofeedback can help them understand exactly what's happening in their brain that's causing those behaviors and, more importantly, how to deal with them.
It's this aspect of neurofeedback training that makes it popular with executives, athletes, and other people with a desire to drive peak performance.
4. Neurofeedback Has Few or No Side Effects
You'll probably know firsthand that many patients are reluctant to take medication. They worry about a long list of both physical and mental side effects, or perhaps they've even experienced them before.
Neurofeedback usually comes without any side effects, although some patients report feeling tired or mentally fatigued for a few hours after sessions (this usually goes away on its own after the session, or in full as they become used to the neurofeedback training). Just like feeling tired after a physical workout your brain may feel tired too until your brain and body become more used to the brain “workout” it is experiencing.
Ultimately neurofeedback offers an organic method that can provide similar results to, or even be more effective than, medications, all without creating any dependence or side effects.
5. History, Theory, and Clinical Application of Neurofeedback are Easy to Learn
Overall, neurofeedback is actually a very simple method, both theoretically and in practice. The best place to get a certification is from the BCIA - the Biofeedback Certification International Alliance.
To get a neurofeedback certification from BCIA, you must learn about neuroanatomy as well as enroll in a 36-hour program that'll teach you about the history and theory of neurofeedback.
Finally, you'll undergo 25 hours of mentorship with a BCIA-approved mentor. You'll go through neurofeedback training yourself, just as a client would, and then move on to applying it to clients, all under the mentor's supervision.
Final Thoughts
Becoming certified is well worth it - as you've seen, neurofeedback comes with many benefits. This is why it's becoming more and more popular.
For all these reasons, it makes sense to add this technique to your clinic: by helping clients deal with their most difficult symptoms, you'll be able to attract more patients and grow your practice, a win-win situation.