Neurofeedback is a relaxed, comfortable process. Adults usually experience it as pleasant; children usually have fun.
The first session will be a detailed intake evaluation, during which you will have ample time to ask questions and have any concerns addressed. To learn more about how your particular brain works, some of the forms you have filled out are reviewed in more detail. An evaluation called the QIK test, a specially designed CPT (Continuous Performance test) is administered, to provide a baseline assessment for Neurofeedback training.
To begin neurofeedback, you sit in a comfortable chair at a computer monitor as we set up the feedback mechanism. Next, 3-5 electrodes are placed on your scalp with a special conductive paste that is easily washed off with water.
It’s natural to feel a little nervous about being hooked up to a computer, but the procedure is entirely benign. Though the word “electrode” can trouble some people, electrodes are just sensors that detect brain activity. They are exclusively one-way—that is, they relay brainwaves to the computer, but they can’t send any information (or electricity!) back to the brain. They don’t reveal your thoughts. They don’t hurt.
The therapist sits at another screen that displays the relevant sample of your brainwaves. Specialized computer software translates this brain activity into a signal that drives a video game on your screen. You play the game without a mouse, making it work entirely by brain activity. Without conscious effort on your part, your brain receives constant feedback to help you succeed at the game. Your brain begins to learn how to function in a more beneficial way. With practice, this new way of functioning becomes more and more natural.