Overview of the Brain’s Electricity This section explores what electrical frequencies are, plus neurofeedback terminology that is related to frequencies. About the Brain’s Electricity Each brain develops what we could call stable activation patterns–basically energy habits.  Using the right hemisphere to do left hemisphere tasks, establishing very sensitive warning systems, locking functions together instead of letting them flow are examples of these. I believe that these energy strategies were adopted by the brain at some time of high stress often that […]

What the EEG Captures The EEG is a summation of positive and negative signals at one point subtracted from the summation of positive and negative signals at another point–NOT just the number at a single point.  What’s more, Tom Collura and Val Brown did an excellent presentation at WinterBrain several years ago, demonstrating that the EEG we measure is primarily measured from pyramidal neurons only (they have a positive and negative end, so there is a difference in the reading […]

Visible and Invisible Structures in the EEG Signal It probably would be useful to talk about visible and invisible structures. The cortex, the hippocampus (inside each temporal lobe) and the cingulate are all composed with pyramidal neurons, so they produce a signal that appears in the EEG.   Most of the primary sub-cortical players (thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, basal ganglia, etc.) are composed primarily of stellate neurons, which don’t produce a visible EEG signal. Obviously most of what we see in […]

Deep Brain EEG Measurement The cortex is the “bark” on the outside of the brain–about a quarter-inch thick. There is no “deep-brain cortical structure.” There are a number of structures in the mid-brain which are heavily involved in how the brain works, but there’s a problem. EEG is produced by one (of many) type of neuron called pyramidal. The cortex has a high concentration of pyramidal neurons, and it is on the surface of the brain, so we can record […]

Hearing the Signal The skull is a very poor conductor of electricity; it tends to “smoosh” (to use a technical term) the EEG from a fairly broad area–about 10 square centimeters of brain surface.  That’s one reason why it’s not absolutely critical to be in an exact site to train a specific area of the brain. Also, neurons tend to work in pools (like synchronized swimmers), so we aren’t really looking at the summed results of a bunch of individual […]

Activation Patterns Once again let me make a point for my own personal prejudice in training. First, very few brains that we are likely to see in training have a problem with too LITTLE activation.  A very large majority will actually reduce activation in ALL bands as they improve. Second, when you train ANY frequency to increase amplitudes, it is very likely that ALL frequencies will increase amplitudes.  When you train any frequency to DECREASE amplitudes, it’s likely that all […]

Energy Patterns/Exercise Analogy There are energy patterns that are very costly–lots of fast activity–and others that are very “cheap”–lots of slow activity. It seems possible in some cases for a very costly pattern to reset itself in a single session, often an extended session to a much more sustainable level of activation. I’ve seen this happen a number of times with patterns like hot temporal lobes. In one session the client may experience a dramatic improvement that lasts for some time. Anxiety levels […]

Peak Frequency Peak frequency is a statistic that tells us what the frequency within a band was that had the highest amplitude.  For example, in the alpha band (8-12 Hz), 10 Hz should be highest in most adults.  Values rising above that may result in problems experienced by the client, depending on where we see this, and peaks below 10 can often result in cognitive difficulties, word-finding problems, etc.  The TQ8 shows you peaks in alpha, beta and the overall […]

Frequencies Below 1 Hz Any EEG value below 1 is not AC EEG that we train.  It’s DC. It’s not produced in the cortex, nor even in the brain’s subcortical areas, as are the AC frequencies.  It appears to be a signal from the brainstem.  The published research that’s been done, or at least what I’ve seen, has been done on Slow Cortical Potentials (SCP) which range from about .3 to about .8 Hz, and it was done by serious […]

Delta Delta is the slowest electrical frequency that may sometimes be trained using neurofeedback. The rhythm generator for the delta rhythm is the brain stem and hind-brain—so it does not part of the autonomic nervous system.  Delta is unconscious. Generally, delta in the 0-2 Hz range indicates that part of the brain is in a state of deep sleep. At times this is not good.  Delta in the range of 2-5 Hz indicates drowsiness and may be the result of […]