Effective, evidenced-based approaches for individuals struggling with addictions, ADHD, anxiety, depression, and other mood disorders offered by a seasoned Clinical Social Worker with over 30 years of clinical experience. Traditional psychotherapy is augmented with cutting edge interventions from neuroscience to significantly improve treatment outcomes.
“Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. Dysfunction in these circuits leads to characteristic biological, psychological, social and spiritual manifestations. – American Society of Addiction Medicine
Successful addiction treatment goes beyond simply addressing the addictive behaviors and their social consequences, by identifying and addressing the underlying brain dysfunction. Beginning with an in-depth psycho-social assessment and advanced neuroimaging to identify the underlying patterns of dysfunctional brain activity that give rise to these behaviors, we develop highly individualized treatment plans to address these issues. These plans may include recommendations for an inpatient detoxification and stabilization program; consultation with your medical doctor for highly-targeted, medication-assisted treatment; or participation in one of our outpatient programs, offering trauma-informed, Cognitive Behavioral therapies combined with Neurofeedback training.
Individuals suffering from the debilitating experiences of chronic Anxiety and Depression, PTSD or other complex traumas, often turn to alcohol or other psychoactive drugs for relief. While this relief is often realized by their initial use of substances, they typically develop a tolerance to their preferred drug of choice. Increased consumption soon follows and becomes a problem of its own. Often, when an such an individual attempts to curtail their substance use, either in treatment or independently, the underlying mood or trauma-related symptoms quickly re-surface and propel the individual toward relapse.
Most relapses occur within the first eighteen months of recovery, with most of these happening within the first six months after an individual leaves primary treatment. Interventions that can assist clients in developing their capacities to adaptively regulate their behavior and emotions can have a significant impact during these early recovery months.
Several studies have demonstrated that the addition of the direct training of the brains self-regulatory system through Neurofeedback leads to improved outcomes.
This approach, increasingly being offered by the leading recovery centers around the world, changes the nature of a substance abuse diagnosis, matching symptoms with measured brain function, identifying cause, and informing treatment.
Desired Brain Activity Linked to a Reward
Neurofeedback is based on the process of rewarding particular patterns of brain activity to reduce or eliminate symptoms. QEEG data is recorded and analyzed in real-time. As the data comes in, a program adjusts the brightness of a television screen higher (to reward) or lower depending on the brain activity that is desired. activity of your brain. Your brain’s electrical activity is monitored in real time while you watch a movie, with computers programmed to reward improved brain activity by simply brightening or dimming the screen - teaching your brain to improve its own functioning. We use the latest and most effective neurofeedback systems available, allowing us to train the brain in 3 dimensions and target small dys-regulated regions, or entire functional networks.
Electro-electroencephalography; or EEG, is the measurement of brain activity obtained by placing small sensors on the scalp - a technique that’s been used for almost 100 years.
Quantitative EEG (QEEG) is radically more advanced. QEEG measures actual brain function, comparing it to databases of normal brain function used by hospitals and clinics all over the world. By seeing how an individual differs from this norm, we can diagnose and predict difficulties with incredible accuracy. This allows us to create individualized treatment plans, customized for success.
As neuro-imaging becomes increasingly refined, it reveals the complexity of human attention and cortical self-regulation. It shows that the difficulties commonly described as “ADHD” can be caused by an almost infinite number of issues, only a few of which are improved by ADHD medications.
It is only with functional brain imaging (QEEG) that we’re able to identify the specific brain regions (or networks) that are dys-regulated, and target them precisely with neurofeedback to normalize their function. When this is done correctly, an ADHD diagnosis is simply a starting point for treatment and resolution, rather than a statement of limitation.
The difference between treating ADHD with medication, and fundamentally improving brain function with neurofeedback, are profound:
ADHD Medication
The brain is chemically altered from the outside
Affects entire central nervous system
Dependency and rebound effects
Appetite loss, sleep issues, irritability
Improvements require continuing treatment
No long term evidence of efficacy
Neurofeedback
The brain is directed to change itself
Targets specific brain areas and networks
Gradual but progressive change
No side effects
Improvements continue after treatment
Improvements appear to endure
Anxiety is readily seen with qEEG, which shows the “racing” brain’s hyper-arousal, with abnormal amplitudes of faster, beta brain waves in the high beta EEG bands.
This hyper-arousal is often related to a history of traumatic events and usually responds very well to neurofeedback training providing sustained relief from this habituated arousal pattern. When needed, psychotherapy is often added to integrate these positive changes into daily life.
According to the Center for Disease Control, one in ten U.S. adults take antidepressants at any one time. For women in their 40’s and 50’s that number is one in four. The prescription of antidepressants in the U.S. has increased 400% since 1988. Sadly, antidepressants are effective for only around 30% of those who take them.
While qEEG shows great promise in predicting antidepressant medication response, often ending the need for lengthy “medication trials”, neurofeedback has been repeatedly found effective in activating brain areas responsible for depression, and helping people re-engage with life.
At Gray Matters, our use of qEEG to map brain function makes the depressed brain visible. We can see the brain areas that have become less active, reflecting the disengagement of the patient. More importantly, we can target these areas with neurofeedback to reactivate them, allowing the brain to normalize itself.
