Neurofeedback Versus Drugs for Mental Health
The pharmaceutical industry has done a remarkable job of portraying mental illness as a disorder of brain function as opposed to moral problems such as character flaw or even demon possession. However, the drug treatments currently available leave much to be desired.
The blood-brain barrier makes it difficult to create drugs that can reach the brain at all and there is no way to target specific neural circuits.
A different approach is neurofeedback, also called EEG biofeedback. EEG is short for electroencephalography, which is a technique for measuring electrical signals from the brain. These signals were first noted in 1875 and have been extensively studied over the last few decades.
Computer technology makes it easy to analyze the EEG signal as a frequency spectrum, where various parts of the spectrum are associated with different brain activities: sleep, attention, learning, complex problem solving, creativity, cognitive processing, hyperalertness, etc. Abnormalities of the EEG spectrum are noted in disorders such as epilepsy, attention deficit (ADD or ADHD), depression, posttraumatic stress disorder and anxiety.
Neurofeedback therapy is like physical therapy for the brain.
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How is the neurofeedback working? I've heard that there can be great results.
It's working great! My EEG signal in the delta and theta bands is way down from where I started, and now I don't feel so dizzy, like I'm passing out.
I’ve heard about neurofeedback days ago from my friend but I just ignored it. But upon reading this article, I got very curious. Well, you see, I have friend that suffered from mental illness. But with the present situation of our economy and the Health Care issue, it seems impossible for my friend to have medical treatment. Money matters, right? Especually now that many are still jobless because of the job closure brought by the economic recession that hits our country. Well, from our experience, it isn't easy to get financing from banks, especially if you don't have perfect credit – and they don't want to finance anyone unless they're so rich they don't need any financing – and that's why some people look into installment loans for bad credit. Installment loans for bad credit mean loans that come with a plan for multiple payments – and it could mean anything from a large-scale business loan or mortgage, to a short term loan to float you in between paydays. There are online lenders out there – if you need a company that can direct deposit the funds quickly. There are plenty of companies that offer installment loans for bad credit that you can apply for a loan through.