What is Neurofeedback?

Neurofeedback (NFB) is a more advanced branch of biofeedback that focuses on the central nervous system. Neurofeedback, sometimes called neurotherapy, neurobiofeedback, or EEG biofeedback (EEGBF), gives users information on their brainwave activity.

Brainwave activity is measured using EEG technology through sensors placed on the scalp and ears of a client. The information is relayed to the client and trainer by sound and a visual display (video). 

Uses of Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback provides the central nervous system with moment-by-moment feedback on its current activity. The brain can be trained to use this information to improve mental performance, health, and well-being.

People using neurofeedback have experienced relief from ADHD, anxiety, depression, epilepsy, learning disabilities, bipolar disorder, anger, rage, cognitive impairment, migraines, headaches, chronic pain, autism, sleep problems, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).*

Athletes, business professionals, students, and musicians have also used neurofeedback to improve mental and physical performance.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.

 
The NeurOptimal difference
Though electrical activity of the brain was first measured in the late 19th century, significant advances in neurofeedback have come about only in the last 15 years. NeurOptimal brain training software is considered by many to be the most advanced neurofeedback technology available today. 

Most neurofeedback theorists and practitioners believe that clients must consciously learn to control their brainwave activity to make use of neurofeedback. In this brain training model, an expert determines the client’s brain needs and uses linear software to train one area of the brain at a time. The brain is pushed to improve the way the clinician feels is best. The client receives positive reinforcement as he or she intentionally regulates brainwave activity.

In contrast, Zengar Institute Inc. (Zengar Institute) researchers and trainers believe that the brain learns at a much faster rate than our conscious mind can work, so the quieter the conscious mind is, the better.  At Zengar Institute Inc., we believe that allowing the brain to use information about its own activity to reorganize itself is a more natural, less invasive method, resulting in more powerful training and fewer side effects.

Using non-linear software that interacts with the brain, all areas of the brain are trained at once to improve the general fitness of the central nervous system and avoid training imbalances. NeurOptimal works comprehensively across all available brainwave frequencies—not just a limited subset of frequencies like other neurofeedback systems.

What is Biofeedback?

Biofeedback is the process of using consciously learned skills that must be practiced and consciously invoked to influence the peripheral nervous system and its related body systems. Traditional biofeedback measures bodily functions (finger temperature, muscle tension and so on) that are at the periphery (outer edge) of the body. Clients learn to become aware of and control very small changes in their physiology that were previously outside their awareness.

Unlike neurofeedback, clients using biofeedback must 1. consciously learn techniques that can affect the body positively, 2. practise them regularly to maintain those skills, and then 3. remember to use the techniques at times that are particularly difficult for them. For example, a woman learns to relax her muscles through biofeedback. When she is feeling particularly panicked, she must remember to use her relaxation skills to feel less anxious.