Frequently Asked Questions

Low Energy Neurofeedback is a kind and powerful way to help your brain find its optimal balance. It uses gentle electrical signals to encourage the brain to change its own patterns of activity, which can help with many mental health issues like depression, anxiety, ADHD, and PTSD, and many more, all without using medication.

Here’s how it works: During a session, an EEG captures your brain’s electrical activity and brainwaves. We mirror this information back to your brain in real-time using extremely low-intensity and safe electromagnetic signals. This feedback allows your brain to identify and adjust dysregulated patterns without any conscious effort on your part. The intensity of these electromagnetic fields is far lower than that emitted by everyday devices like cell phones, making them imperceptible to human senses. However, these subtle signals are effectively perceived by the brain. While you won’t consciously detect them, your brain responds to these signals, aiding in the enhancement of your mental health. This approach nurtures the brain’s natural ability to self-regulate, encouraging a state of calm during rest and increased adaptability during more active phases.

Traditional neurofeedback typically uses visual or auditory feedback based on EEG readings to train the brain. Low Energy Neurofeedback distinguishes itself from traditional neurofeedback through its quick results and passive approach. Without requiring active participation, Low Energy Neurofeedback simplifies the therapy process, making it more accessible and cost-effective. Coupled with its safety and compatibility with psychotherapy, it offers a comprehensive, efficient treatment option, particularly appealing to those seeking minimal effort and quicker therapeutic outcomes.

Low Energy Neurofeedback is trusted by hundreds of thousands of people to help with a wide range of health concerns. It has been used to address a variety of conditions including:.

● ADHD/ADD

● Anxiety and Depression

● Insomnia and Sleep Issues

● Autism Spectrum Disorder

● PTSD and Trauma

● Brain Injuries (TBIs) and Concussions

● Migraines and Headaches

● Memory and Cognitive Issues

● Stress and Burnout

● OCD

● Brain Fog/Mental Clarity

● Optimal Performance/Executive Functioning

● Seeking Peak Athletic Performance

● Mood Issues

● Energy and Focus

Yes, Low Energy Neurofeedback is FDA approved and considered safe. It is non-invasive, uses very low energy levels, and is generally well-tolerated by clients. The intensity of the electromagnetic field used during therapy is extraordinarily low, significantly less than that emitted by common devices like cell phones, ensuring a safe environment for your brain’s journey towards balance.

Our process is completely safe and gentle. There are no needles, shocks, or anything invasive. The equipment we use is designed to listen to your brain’s natural electrical signals from specific spots on your scalp via two small sensors placed on your head and two small sensors clipped to your ears. After a brief assessment, it sends out very faint electromagnetic feedback signals. These are signals your brain uses in beneficial ways to improve its function.

During your session, we invite you to relax with your eyes closed, sitting calmly. You won’t need to do anything; just let your mind rest. The feedback works in the background, guided by your brain’s signals. You won’t be asked to focus on specific thoughts or learn new tasks. Instead, we’ll check in with you to see if you notice any changes from the feedback, helping us tailor the sessions to you. This process is passive, focusing on your comfort and noting any improvements or sensations you experience during and after the sessions.

Navigating the journey to wellness is uniquely personal, with the number of sessions required varying from one individual to another. Many of our clients start to see an improvement in their symptoms within just a few sessions, which serves as a hopeful indicator of progress. Based on our extensive experience:

• For Recent Challenges: Individuals facing new challenges after a period of stability may find that an average of 10 to 12 sessions helps alleviate or improve their symptoms.
• For Persistent Issues: Those who have been dealing with complex, long-standing issues may benefit from around 20 sessions to achieve meaningful transformation.
• For Special Cases: Individuals recovering from strokes, dealing with severe injuries, or managing genetic conditions might find their path to wellness extends beyond 20 sessions.

Our approach at Extending Hope is rooted in collaboration. During each session, we check in with you to gauge the shifts in your experience, understand the changes you’ve noticed, and assess progress towards your goals. This ongoing conversation allows us to tailor the number of sessions to your evolving needs, ensuring our therapy aligns with your personal wellness journey. Our goal is to provide a flexible, adaptive treatment plan that reflects your unique path to mental well-being, underscoring our commitment to a therapy process that’s as individualized as you are.

As you find your footing and experience improved well-being, we’ll discuss transitioning to a continuity plan or concluding your sessions. This decision is a collaborative one, made with your neurotherapist, ensuring your journey is tailored to your evolving path toward healing.

When it comes to Low Energy Neurofeedback, it’s encouraging to note that most clients experience no side effects. A common observation is a sense of relaxation or tiredness following a session, which generally indicates that the therapy is effectively engaging the brain, encouraging it to adopt new patterns of activity.

On the rare occasion that side effects do arise, they tend to present as conditions or sensations clients have encountered before, making them manageable within the context of their past experiences. This sense of familiarity can often provide comfort, serving as a reminder that the therapy is actively working towards recalibrating neurological patterns. Our dedicated team is committed to guiding you through every step of this process, ensuring a safe and supportive journey.

Absolutely, neurofeedback can be effectively integrated with other treatments and therapies to provide a holistic approach to wellness. It’s crucial to have open discussions about any concurrent treatments with your neurofeedback therapist.

At Extending Hope, we believe in the transformative power of neurofeedback for enhancing mental well-being. Yet, we also recognize that the most effective path to wellness can sometimes require a combination of therapeutic approaches. In certain cases, integrating neurofeedback with counseling or other modalities can offer a more comprehensive healing experience, addressing both neurological patterns and emotional health concurrently, ensuring a balanced and effective path to recovery.

During neurofeedback sessions, it’s quite common for clients to feel nothing at all, given the very low level of energy used in the process. However, some individuals may notice a sense of relaxation or slight changes in their sensory perceptions. These experiences are gentle and typically contribute to the therapeutic process, indicating your brain’s engagement with the treatment.

Each session is generally scheduled for 30 to 40 minutes, tailored to fit the specifics of your individual therapy plan. For appointments that include a comprehensive brain health assessment or a review of your progress, we allocate a full hour to ensure a thorough and unhurried experience. Your therapist will keep you informed in advance about the expected duration of each session, so you can plan your time accordingly.

The majority of our clients begin to observe improvements in their symptoms within just a few initial sessions. While individual results can vary, a significant number report notable enhancements in areas such as decreased anxiety, heightened focus, improved sleep quality, and an overall boost in well-being.

It’s crucial to approach neurofeedback with realistic expectations, recognizing that while results may not be instantaneous, they are often profound. Additionally, most clients find these positive changes to be long-lasting, with benefits sustained over time. This sustained improvement underscores the potential of neurofeedback to effect meaningful, enduring change in one’s mental health journey.

We recommend keeping your prescribing physician informed about your engagement with our neurofeedback program. It’s important to note that some medications may impact the pace at which you experience the therapeutic benefits of our therapy. Although medications can influence the speed of your progress, discontinuing any medication without the express approval of your doctor is not advised.

As many of our clients advance through our program, they often discover a reduced need for medication. We are committed to working closely with your healthcare provider to appropriately adjust medication dosages, if necessary, ensuring a cohesive approach to your overall wellness journey.

The benefits of Low Energy Neurofeedback are built on the brain’s natural ability to adapt and change, a quality known as neuroplasticity. Because this therapy leverages these inherent properties of the brain, the improvements gained from each session are cumulative and tend to grow stronger over time. Importantly, as this method does not rely on active participation from the client, the positive changes are generally not prone to deterioration.

However, life is dynamic, and new stressors, injuries, or life changes can influence one’s neurological health. In such cases, the flexibility of Low Energy Neurofeedback allows for adjustments. Should you experience a setback or encounter new challenges, it is easy to return for additional sessions. Our continuity plans, including session bundles and prepaid packages, are designed to provide the flexibility to manage the frequency and cost of ongoing care effectively. We encourage you to inquire at your local Extending Hope office for more details about these options, ensuring that you can maintain and extend the therapy’s benefits according to your individual needs and circumstances.

The investment in our therapy varies across our different locations, reflecting the unique services and offerings available at each. To support accessibility, we provide prepayment savings and special package options tailored for families, corporate groups, and athletic teams. Additionally, each location might offer its own set of unique promotions and discounts. For a detailed understanding of costs, we encourage you to contact the specific location of interest directly.

Although we do not accept insurance, we are equipped to accommodate Health Savings Account (HSA) payments. We can also provide clients with a Superbill. This can be submitted to your insurance company for potential reimbursement, subject to the benefits outlined in your policy. Our aim is to ensure our services are within reach, and we are dedicated to assisting you in finding the most suitable payment options to meet your needs.