School-based Brain Training Shown to Alleviate ADHD
by Siegfried Othmer | February 19th, 2014A recent study shows that neurofeedback is effective in improving symptoms of ADHD, and outperforms cognitive training.
Updating the Analysis of the Continuous Performance Test
by Siegfried Othmer | February 1st, 2014by Siegfried Othmer, PhD
For more than twenty years we have been using either the TOVA or the QIKtest with anyone who is able to take the test, in order to track progress in training. Both tests yield an incredible amount of information that is directly relevant to our project of training the brain toward improved stability and self-regulatory competence.
Structural Brain Change after Neurofeedback
by David Kaiser | January 31st, 2014Why sham feedback fails as a placebo
by David A Kaiser, MFA, PhD
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In a recent study, truthful feedback is compared with false feedback using MRI and DTI analysis (Ghaziri et al., 2013). After 40 sessions of EEG training, both forms of feedback were found to increase gray matter volume in the brain, but veridical feedback produces twice as much new gray matter for select brain areas. Accurate feedback also increases white matter volume, strengthening connections between brain areas, while false feedback revealed no impact on connections in this study.
We Have Black Swans
by Siegfried Othmer | January 3rd, 2014by Siegfried Othmer, PhD
An advertisement prepared by a company that manufactures large video monitors recently went viral. It showed an interview situation in which aspirants were interviewed on the upper floor of a high-rise, where they had a view of the city through a large picture window. In mid-interview, the sky suddenly discolored and the city was struck by a meteorite, spreading destruction that was threatening to engulf the building. The interviewees panicked and sought cover, even as the interviewer appeared to remain oblivious. The subterfuge had been pulled off with the company’s new realistic large-screen video monitors.
A Mom’s Journey Through ADHD
by Siegfried Othmer | November 27th, 2013by Lorrie Fisher
ADHD? How could that be? My son would engage in video games for hours with no break in concentration. Robert wasn’t wiggly in class like the other ADHD kids. In fact, I suspected that ADHD might be a myth — an excuse for poor teaching or lack of parental discipline. I couldn’t understand how parents would let anyone put their kids at risk with narcotic drugs, no matter how unruly their behavior. All in all, I held a fairly typical attitude.
Restoring Mental Health in Long-term Veterans with PTSD
by Siegfried Othmer | November 8th, 2013by Carol Kelson, MFT
Something exciting is happening at The Salvation Army Bell Shelter in Los Angeles that I want to share with you this Veterans Day. It started this past May with a small group of veterans who volunteered to be part of a neurofeedback pilot study. The veterans were randomly selected to be either part of the treatment group or the non-treatment, waitlist group. For four weeks during the month of May, the veterans in the treatment group were given five 30-minute neurofeedback sessions. At the end of 20 sessions, five veterans in the treatment group were compared to five veterans in the non-treatment group. I am happy to report the results were astounding.