Lora Lonsberry, Ph.D.

Greetings,

In evaluating clients with ADD, it’s been found (Lubar, 01) that the basic issue for these children or adults is their inability to maintain beta concentration states for sustained periods of time together with excessive theta daydreaming brainwave activity. Brainwaves are amenable to training, and we can actually train them to be more active where they need to be and calmer when they should be.

ADD may not make someone look different, but you can see it plainly if you know what to look for. Downstream from the brain’s patterns of firing, are the symptoms of suffering we see everyday in our offices. ADD affects many areas of the brain, primarily the prefrontal cortex (the brain’s controller of concentration, attention span, judgment, organization, planning, and impulse control), the anterior cingulate gyrus (the brain’s gear shifter), the temporal lobes (where the brain houses memory and experience), the basal ganglia (which produce the neurotransmitter dopamine that drives the prefrontal cortex), and the limbic system (the brain’s mood control center). Effective training engenders improved brain function and gives sufferers more access to their own abilities. Brain training removes barriers restricting them from being the unique people they already are.

Neurofeedback, like biofeedback, is based on the principle that if one knows the activity in a certain bodily function, then one can learn to enhance or optimize that activity. Basically, the neurofeedback biological training technique asks the client – child, teen, or adult – literally to play mind games. The client’s brain is hooked up to the computer equipment through sensors placed on the head. The computer feeds back to the client the type of brainwave activity its monitoring. The patient is rewarded for producing concentration or beta waves, and the more beta states she or he produces, the more rewards accrue. Children find the screen fun and many are able to gradually shape their brainwave patterns to more optimal ones.

With neurofeedback and ADD, many people are able to improve their reading skills, raise their IQ scores up to 15 points, decrease impulsivity and aggressiveness, and instead more frequently inhabit that “in-the-flow” brainwave state of calm, centered focus. It is a powerful tool, in part because we are making the client part of the training process and giving them more control over their own physiological processes. By teaching people to self-regulate their internal states automatically, we can save them from creating or experiencing many painful life experiences.

ADD has been described in the medical literature for about one hundred years. It affects about 7% of the population, and many people with ADD are never hyperactive. But it is a serious societal problem:

35% never finish high school, 25% repeat at least one grade

Over 52% of untreated teens and adults abuse drugs or alcohol, and 19% smoke cigarettes

43% of untreated hyperactive boys will be arrested for a felony by age 16

Over 75% of inmates have been found to have ADD

They have many more medical visits and emergency-room visits

Parents of ADD children divorce three times more often than the general population

73% have interpersonal problems, untreated ADD sufferers have a higher percentage of motor vehicle accidents, speeding tickets, citations for driving without a license, and suspended or revoked licenses. (Amen, 2001)

For those of your clients who would rather avoid the pharmacological approaches to treating ADD, neurofeedback teaches the brain to heal itself, so improvements continue even after treatment is ended. A comprehensive review of the research on EEG neurofeedback has recently been published in a special issue of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America devoted to Emerging Interventions. In the introductory chapter, the volume editors assess the degree of scientific support for neurofeedback using standards developed by the child psychiatry professional organization (AACAP). They conclude that neurofeedback meets the same standard as that for stimulant medication.

“EEG biofeedback meets the AACAP criteria for clinical guideline for treatment of ADHD, seizure disorders, anxiety (OCD, GAD, PTSD, phobias), depression, reading disabilities, and addictive disorders. This suggests that EEG biofeedback should always be considered as an intervention for these disorders by the clinician. Due to this high level of empirical support, the use of EEG biofeedback for ADHD will meet the most stringent APA criterion of efficacious and specific.”

Empirical studies in other areas of treatment are currently under way and a comprehensive review of the literature is available on our web site: www.affectiveneurosciences.com. Please feel welcomed to call to discuss treatment or training issues with Lora Lonsberry, Ph.D. 752 6634.

Sincerely,

Lora Lonsberry, PhD

www.affectiveneurosciences.com