What Is Neurofeedback Therapy?

Neurofeedback therapy claims to help you change behaviors by monitoring your brain waves - but how does that actually work? And what does the science behind it look like?

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[mikecole]

I’m very troubled by this video. I am a trauma and abuse survivor, and neurofeedback therapy quite literally saved my life. I went from experiencing depression, addiction, psychological meltdowns and the need for inpatient hospitalization for an eating disorder to becoming a strong, centered and happy person at peace with myself and others. I am fundamentally and permanently changed. And I honestly owe it all to the NF training. All I want now is for other people to be able to experience the same thing and be saved if they need it. And no I am not paid by the NF “industry” or whatever hahah... I thought it was hoaky too at first - but if I had not done it, I would probably not be alive today. That is the reality. The truth is that the keys to the treatment being successful are to have a NF practitioner who is skilled and experienced in trauma and/or psychology and who actually knows what he or she is doing - and to make the treatment more accessible via insurance coverage, affordability, and awareness etc. I just wish people would refrain from posting videos that like this that paint a skeptical and misleading picture of NF, as doing so may dissuade people from pursuing this option in the first place. If I hadn’t done so, I shudder to think where I would be now... and I don’t want that for anyone else. So while there are no absolute guarantees, there is a lot of reason for hope, people!! 😃

[userMB]

Neurofeedback did wonders for my ADD. I couldn't focus even if my life would depend on it. I f i try to read a book or an article, i would doze off pretty quickly and had to reread everything. About 35 sessions of neurofeedback changed this completely. I can't say that it will work for everybody but is sure worked for me. Now i read everyday and couldn't be happier.

[EveloGrave]

What is Neruofeedback Therapy? Well it is the therapy I have been using for the past 2 years for anxiety, ocd, and depression. Results for anxiety are amazing, still working on the other two.

[Submersed]

I had a neurofeedback session today and I had an anxiety attack while I was doing the initial part and the feedback greatly reduced my anxiety. It was super obvious the effects for the rest of the day. My reading speed went way up and I felt no anxiety in environments with lots of loud shouting (my brothers debating politics). It believe does really matter the dr though. I went to one of the best there is. Decyphering the waves is more art than science at the moment and some neurofeedback practioners run the program and don't read raw QEEGs

[silverandexact]

I did neurofeedback and biofeedback (brainwaves and heart rate) for anxiety/PTSD and it worked!

[Babarudra]

you mean plastic as in plastic, but not plastic.

[JSTUPRODUCTIONS]

My girlfriend is about to start neurofeedback so I wanted to research it a bit. This video admits some Analyses has found it to be effective but DOESN"T spend one second breaking down their findings yet they fully explain the results from those who say it doesn't work. Moving on to the next video.

[evelynellsworth]

I did neurofeedback therapy after a traumatic brain injury and it was really nice. During the therapy I could sit, listen to the calming music, do homework or read or work on personal writing projects, and relax for a while. We saw some definite improvement/difference in whatever the neurofeedback was measuring for. I also did hyperbaric oxygen treatment, another slightly-controversial treatment for brain injuries, and that one had great results too. I don't know which of my many therapies helped to what degree, but I'm very glad I did them all because I was able to heal :)

[jameschristensen]

Would love to see a video on Low Energy Neurofeedback System (LENS). It does away with the whole objective brainwave/reward thing and focuses on electrical feedback. It helped ridiculously well for my ADHD.

[RemizZ]

How are there even that many studies without a placebo group? Why would they even do them if they're flawed from the beginning?

[NewMessage]

Maybe I should try it.. because my wife's strategy of retraining me with audio feedback just isn't working.

[rea]

I had to do neurofeedback therapy for a while, and it was awful. It just wouldn't work for me, and the staff couldn't tell me what I was doing wrong, just that I was terrible at it. Glad to know that maybe that wasn't all on me

[StepBackHistory]

I was a guinea pig for a Neurofeedback study in grad school for my ADHD. I agree about the ambiguity of whether it worked.

[lindenbree]

1:43 That sounds like a very expensive and complicated way to basically just... meditate

[Rasecz]

May work if you could identify wave patterns associated with the symptoms being treated in a patient. For that you’d need a portable EEG though to monitor activity in your daily activities.

[Geminellie]

Glad to see this. Would like to see a video on brainspotting and emdr too

[zenfire]

I did my second session yesterday. They put a device on my head that looks like that thing off of back to the Future. Then I watch TV shows and if my mind wonders the show goes off. It's only been two sessions but I'm still depressed, anxious and fearful. Time will tell. I've tried everything else over the year's. I'm hoping in the long run it will bring me a better quality of life. Much love to all.

[Rajvosa-wgpu]

I had problems with overthinking. I would think about the same thoughts the entire day. Neurofeedback literally saved me. It's very expensive but personally I was lucky that my mom is a neurotherapist so I do neurofeedback at home for free. Even though it's expensive it really pays out and I recommend it to everyone.

[Wingedmagician]

Nothing wrong with more research but it would have been cool to see a video that speculates about this and its potential a little more than the criticisms

[coffeediction]

Can you make a video to ASMR and the science behind it? Like how does it work and why?