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Much of our suffering comes from pervasive recurring thoughts and feelings in which our minds become emotionally stranded or cognitively “stuck”. Neurofeedback prompts the brain to draw from its existing resources and pull itself out of these mental “ruts”. The result is a more open and positive mindset in which obstacles are more manageable and problems more resolvable. Neurofeedback re-trains the subconscious brain from a stressed and reactive state to a more relaxed and adaptive state that is much more productive, joyful and healthy. 

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Much like a mirror that helps us to self-correct, the NeurOptimal neurofeedback program monitors your brain waves and then provides “feedback” to your central nervous system about what it has just done. When the software detects instability and turbulence in your brain wave pattern, it sends an audible signal that encourages the brain to “reset” and self-correct. AS the brain gets feedback it starts to create its own stability and you get to live in a "new normal"

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A more technical explanation, if you're interested...

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Once we are old enough to control or thinking, our conscious mind takes control and trains our subconscious mind. Innocently we've all trained our subconscious to overthink, avoid and protect us from anything "bad" happening in our lives. This is like trying to live our life while carrying around 50 pounds of armor, it may be useful at one point in our life but makes the rest of it miserable. Brain training simply returns our subconscious to its natural and high functioning state. This means clearing the brain of what it no longer needs so it can focus fully on the task at hand, whatever that may be. By removing learned patterns such as stress, worry, negativity and overthinking that paralyze the brain, it feels as if a weight has been lifted, and our brain can take a deep and relaxing exhale. 

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What happens during a session

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During a session, the sensors on your scalp read your brainwaves, then sends those readings to the training software.  Because we're so used to our normal, sub-optimal level of functioning, our brain is rarely interrupted in those states.  Using interruptions in the music you listen to (in the form of clicks or skips in the music, although much of it is inaudible and registers at a subconscious level) the habitual processing of our brain is interrupted. The brain then uses this information to assess its own functioning and improve where necessary. It's similar to putting a mirror up for the brain to self-correct. This effectively brings us into the present and allows us to automatically let go of what no longer serves us.  This is similar to the process of meditation except it's unconscious and much faster and easier than conscious practices such as meditation.

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How neurofeedback trains your brain

 

Neurofeedback simply means giving the brain information about itself. The same as your eyes giving feedback as to how you look, or your ears giving feedback as to how you sound. So neurofeedback is simply signaling the brain about its own activity.

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NeurOptimal Neurofeedback works by reading the brain's activity through sensors on the scalp, interpreting the brain's activity and signaling the brain at the precise time when to observe its own activity. Then the brain decides to adjust itself or ignore the signal, and this happens hundreds of times per second!

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Our brains have an orienting response that knows how to re-organize and adapt to function at its best. Similar to how our bodies know what temperature to maintain or how to heal a wound without any conscious thought or effort. As long as the brain knows what it's doing it is able to fix itself. The brain can get information about itself through quiet awareness like meditation, but few things are as fast or efficient as neurofeedback for giving the brain this vital information.

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Why do our brains need training?

 

Our brains are not able to function properly, reorganize or adapt if they are constantly under stress or absorbed in constant thought. Rest and relaxation is very important for our body's overall health and functioning. Stress has become so "normal" as a part of our daily life that we no longer see it as the major health concern that it is. We are accustomed to a "fight or flight" response that it is usually trained into our subconscious mind as an automatic response. This means our brains don't adapt to what action needs to be taken when a problem arises, we just go straight to fight or flight mode.

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This is one of the more prevalent reasons we benefit from neurofeedback: to clear out our unneeded brain patterns that we would like to change but maybe didn't know how (or didn't know was a problem). Many common interventions focus on how our brains got to where they are.  In neurofeedback, how we got here is not as important as our commitment to better our current state and teach our brain to get into the habit of going back to that optimal state.

 

How does the brain function after neurfeedback?

 

During the series of neurofeedback training the brain is eliminating the unwanted and unneeded patterns from throughout our entire lives. From birth until now the brain has done its best to protect us, while adapting to our thoughts and beliefs to best serve us as we navigate through life. After a complete series of neurofeedback our brains can clear out patterns of redundancy, worry, stress, fear and stagnation that have kept us from being our best selves.

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Some more direct effects can be noticed early on like relaxing more easily to fall asleep (and more restful sleep), better memory and focus, and more joy and connection with loved ones and peers. Although, as worry and fear start to fade away and confidence grows, this is where the real transformation happens in our lives.

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Maybe the courage to switch to the career choice we've always wanted comes through. Or the motivation to start eating healthier and exercising is now present. When overactive patterns of fear and worry no longer cloud our decisions we are free to start living the way we truly want to.

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