What do clients often say about neurofeedback?

Here’s a mix of comments from clients. Not everyone reports these kinds of successes, and they are pretty common kinds of comments. Hundreds of clinicians report similar stories. There’s also a discussion of some of the challenges clients face at the bottom of the page .

From a 52-year-old male – a successful executive who struggled with ADD his whole life: After the 5th neurofeedback training, he said, “I feel more like myself than I can ever remember. . .” He went on to explain that on his Dexedrine medication, he never really felt normal. He periodically went off the Dexedrine. When he cut Dexedrine this time, he felt incredibly clear and calm – very different than before.
From a 45-year-old woman who had a brain hemorrhage three years before coming to neurofeedback: “You’ve saved my life. I couldn’t even read a book before, or do any of my chores, or talk to my friends… I can feel that my brain is starting to work… I’m starting to live again.”
From a 57-year-old woman who suffered with very deep depression for many years: “Why didn’t I do this before? I can’t believe I can feel this good. I’ve tried so many medications . . . They never made me feel this good.” Throughout her sessions, she’d say with sadness, “why didn’t anyone ever tell me about this?”
From a mother of a 9-year-old autistic boy: “He looked me in the eye and smiled at me. Then he said, “Is mommy OK?” He’s never done that before – in his whole life. This was said with some tears. Note that autistic children have severe problems with empathy or interpersonal communication. They are in their own world.

Challenges

Every clinician who uses neurofeedback has heard comments from patients about how much their life has changed. But other clients struggle to notice changes, the kind of subtle and not-so-subtle change that occurs after training. Here’s a typical example. A woman had struggled with migraines for 20 years. After the 20th neurofeedback session, she was asked to assess whether there was any change. She said it helped “maybe a little.” When the clinician reviewed the original intake, the woman reported 2-3 migraines a weeklasting 4-6 hours at a time. After 20 sessions, she reported upon questioning that she now had one migraine a week lasting 2-3 hours and with less intensity. Was she making progress? “After discussion, she realized she was.

Parents brought their 8-year-old with ADD for training. At 20 sessions, they were unhappy with progress. They said he’s not minding us at home. He’s not making better grades. This was a child who couldn’t sit in a session for more than 5 minutes initially. He had built up to sitting quietly for 25 minutes through a whole training session (kind of amazing). The parents admitted after discussion that the daily calls from school had been reduced. But they were obviously anxious for faster progress. Sometimes progress is rapid, but it more usually comes one step at a time. You can’t always pick the order of improvement. Grades and home behavior hadn’t changed yet. The parents may have compounded the problem. Their style for encouraging better behavior at home was not consistent. The changes that we saw didn’t seem that important to them. Neurofeedback is NOT an instant fix. The brain takes times to develop.

Difficulty noticing change

Why these examples? It’s difficult for many people to notice change in themselves. The absence of a symptom is hard to note. This woman with migraines knew she was still having them. She hadn’t yet identified the overall change happening until it was pointed out.

Therapists often say patients don’t attribute change to the neurofeedback. They hear parents report that in the last 2-3 months, their child has matured greatly. Yet for years, other modalities may have never come close to that level of impact. All of a sudden, when those modalities start to work, parents and clients don’t see the connection. Therapists do, which is why they continue to expand the use of this tool. Other modalities do seem to start working better after the brain is working better. Therapists have seen it occur with so many kids and adults, that it’s clear neurofeedback greatly accelerates the process. Because the changes happen over several months,  it can be hard for many people to attribute the changes to the brain training, so they attribute it to other nonrelevant factors.

All experienced therapists, some who’ve worked with the same clients for years, report that neurofeedback accelerates change, and that they see changes in clients that never occurred before they added neurofeedback. Their challenge, at times, is to convince the client that the neurofeedback is playing one of the biggest roles.

Part of the challenge is that most of us don’t typically connect the brain with our behaviors, thoughts, and emotions. When the brain works better, those things start to improve. But how could just playing a computer game have that impact? Good clinicians help clients understand by educating them about the role of their brain.