For Sebern Fisher fans and those interested in neurofeedback here is my last in a 3-part series based( part 1, part 2) on a phone interview, her book and the webinar video series. These are my notes and it was a live webcast. Any errors are mine.
How do you think of attachment repair in neurofeedback?
What I have seen, people, those attachment circuits, whatever they are, that’s in wait for a regulated brain, that we don’t ever seem to stop wanting relational connection. If constantly living in fear difficult to imagine relationships as part of life. We are social. That’s our safety. That’s our harbor. When you quiet the fear-driven brain what emerges quite spontaneously are these attachments.Q)How often do you see people?A)If I can I see them at least 2X a week. You are really trying to train brain to pattern itself differently. At same time I want to know what’s happened over a few days. Typically doing 20 minutes and rest of session (40 minutes) is talking. Takes 5 minutes to get stuff on and off.Does insurance pay for it?A)Increasingly so. There are codes for biofeedback assisted therapy.Is it used frequently with veterans/military?I wish more frequently. Military is investigating. Michael Villaneuva – http://alphathetacenter.com/michael-villanueva-phd/ He’d be great to interview. He was pleased with the outcome in the field.Q)Is it good with talk therapy?A)A good number of people come to see me, therapy has failed or just caused more trouble. Usually within ten sessions they are wanting to talk. Their level of arousal is such that they can talk and it becomes talk therapy as well as biofeedback to brain.
Patients you wouldn’t use it on?
I can’t, if someone has a seizure disorder… I refer them. That being said, seizure like activity in the brain with those with developmental trauma – it’s all same brain being dysregulated by history. As long as I’m not stepping outside of scope, making claims of cure… Seizures, anxiety, Asperger’s, anything that begins in the brain can be addressed in neurofeedback.
Chronic Pain?
Not an area I’m too familiar with. Where there is chronic pain – there are people – where chronic pain shows up in an FMRI scan – part of brain shows up is amygdala – it’s as if the mistake that’s been made in chronic pain – if I don’t stay in pain, I’m in danger. Amygdala is not the smartest part of our brain. But it’s devoted. Devoted to keeping us alive. If switch thrown, I need to feel pain in order to survive, in process of quieting fear circuits – it’s in quieting those you’re going to get best results. </strong>Learning Problems? Used widely for learning problems. Learning disrupted because no cause/effect. That’s right hemisphere learning. It’s a random universe and not predicatable encoding.Cause and effect, pretty important for learning, right hemisphere learning disruptions, i.e. dyslexia, how brain communicating to tself within patterns that underlie every activity. Reading.
SchoolsI’m about to go to Baltimore – where they are interested in bringing to school. In my way of thinking that’s where it should be so their development is enhanced from whatever age.AutismUsed widely for autism. They get better. Are they free of autism? Some are. But I think with lower level functioning it’s helpful. Whether it cures – I don’t know. It’s not a word I’m comfortable with.
Weight Loss?
If anxiety is reason for eating. And anxiety goes down. Yes to weight loss. In as much as food is attempt to regulate self. Better chance of losing weight. But I would not say everyone loses weight. If they did – I would be on a world tour.
Alzheimer’s
A woman with home training system uses it for father. He, according to doctors, has progessed more slowly into disease, stopped wandering and more pleasant. Quality of life enhanced but he still had it. Claims that people training regularly can stay ahead. I don’t know that for a fact.
If you think about Alzheimer’s think of nuns with diseases but functioning well – they were asked to function and had to function – cognitively challenged every day and symptoms not apparent – I think neurofeedback is a challenge/learning for the brain.
I hope it will prevent Alzheimer’s in me since I train regularly (and I’ve had a lot of head injury so that’s a risk, all signs of TBI – gone.
Immune Function
Yes. High correlation between stress and immune problems. whether PTSD or daily stress we’re making a system more stress resilient. Whatever way you go about it.
You Matter Mantras
- Trauma sucks. You don't.
- Write to express not to impress.
- It's not trauma informed if it's not informed by trauma survivors.
- Breathing isn't optional.
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Thanks for this great series on Sebern Fisher and NFB. After reading Bessel van de Kolk’s “The Body Keeps the Score”, I became encouraged about the new research indicating that NFB can assist those of us with Developmental Trauma Disorder to retrain our limbic system responses.
Eight years ago my husband and I invested in a ‘one week intensive’ series of neurofeedback sessions. It was very expensive, and we had to travel out of state in order to access any practitioners. I had been experiencing an ever-increasing sense of ‘overwhelm’ in my work life, and my husband was interested in the possible ‘life-enhancement’ aspect of the sessions. The treatment began with qEEG’s to get an idea of how best to proceed.
Following the initial qEEG, I remember feeling confused when the technician, (because that’s what she was) handed me a book on sensorimotor methods of trauma recovery. After years of CBT, I was certain I had healed to the extent possible, and couldn’t understand why she felt it necessary to encourage me to ‘revisit’ that stuff. Now I think she probably saw all the markers for developmental trauma on the initial qEEG.
We both benefited markedly from our neurofeedback. I recall experiencing the absence of anxiety that had been my normal state. This allowed me to return to work with a completely fear-free frame of mind, and my first day back on the job proved that my ‘productivity’ had increased dramatically. Sadly, the effect was not lasting, and I descended once again into a hellishly anxious and stressful ‘norm’. At the time there were no local options for further neurofeedback training, and I trudged on. White knuckling sucks.
I wasn’t able to pursue further sessions at that time, but am beginning with a local therapist who offers NeurOptimal training next week. I have some doubts about this system – it’s a ‘one size fits all’ approach, without any specific protocols for elevated limbic activation, BUT, it has shown promise for folks with anxiety, poor impulse control, etc.
I’m currently reading “Neurofeedback in the Treatment of Developmental Trauma, Calming the Fear-Driven Brain”, and I have to agree that Sebern is able to articulate this complex topic with ease and clarity. Just reading the book is filling me with renewed hope, and if I have to keep searching for a more sophisticated NFB provider, I will.
Just found your blog today, and am looking forward to reading all of your posts. I can see that you have much wisdom to share. Thanks for being there!
Heather