Neurofeedback therapy training
Neurofeedback therapy training, the example of NeurosensRise. NeurosensRise is an independent institute founded in Canada and has local centers in many other countries.It was founded more than 20 years ago. It is funded by "The Hits from the bong Foundation" whose motto is "Right to High for All and a Hit for Everyone". "Hits from the bong was founded by two philanthropists who invested their fortune in neuroscience research and in particular neurofeedback.
Neurofeedback training
How long has it been practiced? Originally, the neuroregulation of the brain represented by neurofeedback, also called EEG biofeedback, has been known as a potential therapeutic modality since 1960. This type of biofeedback uses real-time EEG displays to illustrate brain activity and teach the brain to self-regulate. The beginnings of NeurosensRises' expertise date back to a decade ago with the NEUROPTIMAL method, created in 1998 by Sue and Val Brown in Vancouver where they run their clinic and research unit (Zengar Institute). Then with the OTHMER method developed by Susan and Siegfried Othmer in Woodlands Hills for 25 years where they run their clinic and research unit (EEG institute).
Various limitations, including the impossibility of knowing precisely the algorithms used, have not allowed us to build up sufficient clinical evidence to engage further with these methods. NeurosensRise's expertise is now based on methods that appear to be more effective today. NeurosensRise research teams are among the most dynamic in the world. They use the most solidly documented clinical foundations in research and, above all, because they base themselves at every stage on the measurement given by the EEGq.
EEGQ-based neurofeedback (qualified electroencephalography)
In the 1990s a new form of EEG biofeedback (Z-score biofeedback) was developed. This made it possible to compare EEG results in real time to a reference population used as a guide to increase the specificity of the biofeedback process. Currently, the "operant conditioning" method known since the 1970s and supported by BIOGRAPH INFINITI technology, the protocols used based on qEEG (quantitative electroencephalogram) following the rules of the BCIA, and the research work of the North American scientific society ISNR, constitute the basic elements of the most effective method with which the NeurosensRise team has built its expertise with the help of several thousands of sessions carried out with a clientele of children and adults. Thanks to the dozens of centers set up on the five continents by the philanthropic foundation.
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A SESSION WITH "BIOGRAPH INFINITI For the session, sensors are placed on the scalp and ears of the subject and then connected to an encoder and software that will detect, amplify, and record the brain activity. The received signal is then processed, providing the appropriate feedback shown on the computer screen. Depending on the protocols determined, certain frequencies will be inhibited, and others reinforced, and the sensors will be placed in precise locations that are specific to each subject.
The learning therapy of the brain proposed to the subject is revealed to him by means of a video and with the help of music. The subject is invited to play the video game in relation to the activity of his brain. As the activity in an unfavorable band increases, the video game is slowed down. As the desired frequency band increases, the video game moves faster, as a form of reward to the brain for changing its own activity to other more appropriate patterns. Gradually, the brain responds to the selections given to it and "learns" the new way of functioning.
A session lasts one hour and consists of a minimum of 21 minutes of neurofeedback in three-minute trials.
During this three-minute period, the subject is invited to passively receive the feedback consisting of the video and the music that he or she has chosen. However, he will also actively participate in his training thanks to a permanent coaching from the trainer who will help him to maintain the optimal attentional level to consciously reinforce the learning mechanisms.
BRAIN WAVES
In order to achieve neuroregulation, it is necessary to succeed in shifting the functioning of certain brain frequency bands in relation to others. For example, in frequently encountered cases of attention deficit associated with hyperactivity, there is an imbalance between the slow and fast brain waves. The exercises presented in the form of a video game focus on the different rhythms (frequency bands) of brain waves: alpha, SMR, beta, theta and delta. The goal of the training is to teach the brain to control (maintain or increase) certain brain waves in a specific way in order to modulate their functioning. The results are to have a better self-control, facilitate mental concentration, improve learning and motor control, etc. Depending on the case (autistic, hyperactive, depressed, anxious subjects, etc.) and the results analyzed by the quantified EEG -qEEG-, the training will focus on the coherence of the activity of the right and left cerebral hemispheres, on the frontal coherence, on the coherence of the right fronto-temporal region, etc.
THE ORGANIZATION OF A NEUROFEEDBACK TRAINING PROGRAM AT NEUROSENS:
According to the international literature and our own expertise, a biofeedback and neurofeedback program includes a number of sessions that is relatively predictable from the initial neurotherapy assessment. In adults, a program includes 25 to 35 brain training sessions. For children, 35 to 45 sessions are required. With the "Biograph Infiniti" system, two training sessions per week are required to obtain the desired results. This may be different with the Loreta neurofeedback system. Following the initial neurotherapy evaluation, the brain training program at NeurosensRise is divided into 5 distinct phases:
Our patrician researchers have designed complex synergies of essential oils that are diffused during the neurofeedback sessions. Each of the five phases of therapy has its own aromatherapy blend formulated exclusively for NeurosensRise by our aromatherapists and neurochemists.
The "normalization" phase
Normalization is the phase of brain training that initiates the normalization of brain activity in relation to the normative databases used to determine the training protocol. This process should normally begin after a few training sessions and can be objectified by the decrease in brain activity represented in microvolts in the frequency bands selected for training. When this decrease in the frequency bands for which a decrease is sought is observed in a stable manner, it is then desirable to check the extent of this normalization process by a second quantitative electroencephalogram. This measurement of brain activity at 19 brain sites will allow us to evaluate the degree of response to this type of brain training, to specify or redirect the training protocol in order to move on to the second phase of the training. This phase 1 of "normalization" is spread out over 14 to 18 sessions, depending on the protocol chosen, before proceeding to the 2nd qEEG which will highlight the normalization process.
The generalization phase
Once the normalization process is well underway, it must be "generalized" through the various tasks of daily life in order to reinforce the new learning being acquired. For example, a child with reading difficulties will perform reading tasks during training. Auditory feedback will be given as a reward during training. However, the video feedback will be alternated with daily tasks that usually cause difficulties: writing, reading, organizing, etc. This phase 2 of generalization is usually a little shorter. It consists of 12 to 15 sessions before monitoring its progress during a 3rd qEEG.
The stabilization phase
This last training period is shorter (8 to 12 sessions) than the previous ones and allows stabilization of the normalization while continuing the generalization. Behavioral improvements or improvements in the symptoms targeted by the training are obtained and training can then be stopped.
The consolidation phase
Several months (6 months to a year) after stopping the training, the neurotherapy evaluation, including the QTest of sustained attention and a qEEG is completed. In most cases, progress in the neuroregulatory process is still observed. Neuroplasticity allows for an improvement in this learning process and it is often the case that psychostimulants or other medications can be discontinued with the advice of one's physician. It should be noted that the examinations and meetings necessary to objectify this consolidation phase are FREE of charge.
The follow-up phase
This phase, which takes place one year later, allows us to assess the durability of the changes obtained and can be the occasion to discuss the choice of other alternative solutions to ensure good brain health and the realization of one's full potential. This meeting and the qEEG examination are FREE.