Stuttering Stuttering is usually a clue that F7 and F8 are competing over dominance for language.  F8 (the analogue to Broca’s Area at F7) is supposed to be like an understudy for the main character in a play.  It walks around back-stage, mouthing the words to Hamlet’s soliloquy while F7 is out on the stage declaiming it.  When F8 loses sight of that role, it stands in the wings and speaks the lines in full voice, causing poor F7 to […]

Substance Use/Abuse See also The Impact of Medication and Drugs on Neurofeedback Training I generally sit down with a new client who is admittedly–or appears possibly to be (on the assessment)–using drugs or alcohol and try to get him/her to specify what they get from using.  Also what they hope to achieve through training.  It is important to do this between you and the client only.  Then I explain that the substances change the way the brain works…temporarily…so that they […]

Tardive Dyskinesia I would expect, in any kind of movement control issue, that SMR would be an important place to look in your training plan. If you have a disconnect in the assessment, and you see it both in the amplitudes and in the percents, then that is a good place to test first. But surely there will be other options to put on your list as well. If SMR level at C4/A2 with eyes open is below 10%, I’d […]

Tics Tics aren’t necessarily a physically-located thing, they are usually related to Filtering/Control problems–not necessarily to autonomic tone.   You pretty much train to get the brain able to produce better and longer bursts of SMR in the sensory-motor cortex.   I’ve never been clear on what the particular rationale for C4/P4 (or Pz) was. SMR training is generally good for physical control issues.   It can also be helpful for difficulty falling asleep.   It can be a little tricky […]

Tourette’s Tourette’s would actually usually be a combination of Filtering and Blocking:  ADHD with OCD features.  It is usually characterized by too MUCH dopamine, rather than too little.  Tourette’s often represents a very immature brain in terms of frequencies (tendency for many bands to be slower than you would expect for the chronological age), so you will want to look at the effective SMR frequency for your client. If you find lots of fast activity at Fz, you may want […]

Tinnitus Tinnitus is one of those things that sometimes responds to NF, sometimes doesn’t. It is often related to high levels of sustained stress, so T3/T4 would be a reasonable starting place. Same as always with T3/T4: very low frequencies (2-5 Hz) down and starting with SMR as your augment and reducing the training frequency until you find something that feels like it works. Tinnitus may be related to problems with the auditory nerve and brain training won’t have much […]

Trauma I don’t worry too much about looking for trauma indicators, since I agree with Von der Kolk:   I don’t know that I’ve seen more than a few clients who wouldn’t qualify as having trauma experiences. If trauma is defined as a situation where the brain enters fight-or-flight mode but can’t run away and can’t fight–in other words, it is limited to a freeze response–and perhaps where this experience is not followed by an episode of trembling–then who HASN’T experienced trauma?!  […]

Vertigo Although there are anecdotal reports of effects on balance and gait from training below O1 and O2–about level with the inion, that’s all I’ve ever seen.  Theoretically, since the Cerebellum, which is the area you are speaking of, has no pyramidal cells, it should not produce an EEG signal, and thus feedback shouldn’t “catch its attention.” Vertigo can be related to many things and can come from lots of different problem areas. Assuming it’s not an inner ear thing, […]

Vision Issues Fritz Perls among others asserted that many vision issues were related to brain states. An anxious person, for example doesn’t want to see very far, etc. He used to use Gestalt therapy to change people’s vision, and I’ve seen it happen a number of times over the years. I’ve worked with several clients who had glaucoma, usually also had tone issues that resulted in high blood pressure and other issues. As always, looking at the whole client rather […]