Memory When I see an adult, especially mid-40s and beyond, with fogginess and memory issues, I would look at levels of frontal alpha and look at alpha frequency distribution.  If the alpha levels in the front are relatively high–as high or higher than theta levels–then I would train them down.  If the slow alpha to […]

Menopausal Symptoms Doing an assessment and working from a training plan would be a good guide to dealing with lots of things, but specifically for the hormone-related symptoms.  The Othmers claimed to have gotten good results. They did C3/C4 one-channel bipolar training to reduce the amplitude of the whole EEG (squash) and increase amplitude in […]

Migraines Migraines are parasympathetic rebounds of the autonomic nervous system.  They occur when a client has experienced (or created) a fairly chronic level of stress over a significant period of time, changing the Tone of the ANS, which is responsible for maintaining the internal environments of our bodies and linking them with our emotional states.  Migraines […]

Motivation I have personally found Fp01 (referenced either to F3 or F7) beta up and theta down in a (relatively) normal adult male can have a galvanizing effect on motivation (one of the functions of the left orbitofrontal cortex). The only negative I’ve experienced doing it has been that I never finish a session–end up […]

Narcissism The problem with narcissism is, “what exactly IS it?”  A quick run through Google indicates it is “An excessive preoccupation with one’s own personal importance, or with achieving one’s own chosen goals rather than bonding with others, or with associating only with others whom one chooses.”  So, what is excessive here?  An excessive lack […]

Obsessions and Compulsions The OCD patterns in your clients are tertiary–they’re defenses against emotional drive issues. In neurofeedback we would focus on resolving the emotional drive, then the OCD may melt away or be easier to train away. Obsessive thought and compulsive behaviors are often used as a way of covering over either anxiety or […]

Oligophrenia/Low IQ If the IQ score is below about 85, it is very unlikely that neurofeedback will help a person. Joel Lubar told me this many years ago, and I was too smart to believe him until I had tried with three clients. Then I believed him. The US Army has done comprehensive work in […]

Oppositional Behavior Wolf packs are remarkably stable in their roles, with the alpha male and female maintaining tight control. It is interesting to note that experiments looking at brain activation found that the alpha males produced dramatically higher alpha levels than the other wolves in the pack and, in fact, there appeared to be a […]

Night sweats Sweating is an autonomic response–sympathetic rebound. When you are very tired, then it’s easier to go through theta and into delta at the beginning of sleep. The very fast EEG, however, probably results in waking up when your brain tries to enter REM. The beta that characterizes REM can be too much and […]

Pain/Fibromyalgia See also Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Often chronic fatigue, chronic pain and fibromyalgia are very wound-up Tone issues. There is a major sub-cortical drive related to long periods of unremitting stress, but the brain responds to it by wrapping itself in cotton (alpha) to anesthetize. The client doesn’t “feel” the emotional material, but it […]