"Post"-Pandemic Struggles

Consistency and structure has returned. While this is still an unprecedented time, we have learned and adapted to the “new normal". The new normal has brought forward a comfort of old routines, but it has also brought the true effects of the pandemic out. Whether through school-aged kids noticing struggles of completing tasks or anxieties they didn’t have before, or adults having a tough time with focus and attention to detail or anxiety. Perhaps, you are struggling to even return to this new normal!

The new normal has shown the lasting effects of social distance, increased screen time (whether through work and school OR pleasure,) and the fear of the unknown has affected the brain! The brain has become dysregulated. We are passionate at Chattanooga BrainCore to help those who are struggling through their dysregulated brain pattern!

Think about it this way. You have injured your toe, yet you don’t want to seek help because “it’s not that bad.” You continue walking, perhaps with a limp, going about your day. In a week’s time, it’s not any better. In fact, it has doubled in size and is a beautiful shade of purple. You elevate it, stay off your feet, soak it in epsom salt, etc. It starts to look better, but the pain is still present. A month later, you can barely walk. You finally see a doctor, and they say, “YOUR TOE IS BROKEN. This could not heal properly on it’s own. You should have sought help when this first caused pain because now the recovery is a much longer road.”

Just like in that example, the lasting effects of not seeking help when you are struggling is planning for a longer road of recovery. If left alone, brain patterns cannot heal themselves. They only worsen with time! Dysregulated brains are not functioning optimally. Through neurofeedback, we can teach the brain how to heal itself and rid you of the negative symptoms you may be experiencing in you or your family’s daily life.

If you are interested in hearing more about neurofeedback and how it works, call us or email us for more information!

Addicted Brain: Quarantine Addition

A healthy brain is activated, or stimulated, by pleasures in life. Stimulations can be seeing friends, watching a good show or movie, eating yummy food, or sitting next to a calming river. (I’m relaxed just thinking about those things!) These are normal stimuli that give the brain good input and result with a happy brain!

Stimulation or activation of the brain has looked drastically different this past year because of the pandemic, and the normal, mundane stimuli have become just that. So what happens when the normal stimuli don’t pleasure the brain? It needs more stimuli.

Stimulation of the brain has to be kept in check because when given the more extreme stimuli, whether that be increased and/or constant screen time or increasing the severity of content (more violence in shows, movies or video games, or even pornography.) There has been a spike in addiction cases as well as a spike in the viewership of pornography during the pandemic.

During lockdown, it seems that brains were no longer being stimulated the way they used to and the mundane stimuli were no longer activating the brain, which led to needing more and more stimulus to the brain for activation.

Here is an example: You work for $3/day. It’s fine for a while, but you start learning more skills and taking on more responsibility. Naturally, you think working for $3/day is no longer satisfying and you desire more. So what would keep you at that job? More money? More recognition? A higher title? You are needing more to stay there.

The brain’s activation is similar. When the brain gets different or more extreme stimuli, it will crave that extremism and is no longer satisfied by the normal stimuli. This is why drug use typically starts with pain killers and turns into chronic use of a serious drug, like heroin. Therefore pornography viewers start with weekly heterosexual videos, which turns into daily viewing and/or turns into harsher, more violent videos. What started as a “normal” interaction, turns into something more taboo and destructive in order to satisfy a (now) insatiable desire for extreme stimuli.

And therefore, detoxing whatever the addiction has become (screen time, eating, drugs, pornography, etc.) can be so difficult.

How can this be helped? And maybe even overcome?
NEUROFEEDBACK.

It is a non-invasive, medication-free re-training of the brain. If you are interested in learning more about it, call us or send us an email! We would be happy to talk with you to see if you are a candidate for neurofeedback training.

Source material: Dr. Trish Leigh Youtube Channel, Brain Reboot: How is Quarantine Causing Addictions?

Improve Sleep & Decrease Anxiety

Neurofeedback is a guided exercise for the brain that is holistic, all-natural, and 100% non-invasive. It teaches your brain how to make more of the perfect processing speed and less of the too fast-processing speed.

Those who struggle with anxiety make too much fast-processing speed called High Beta. When you live in high High Beta you can feel anxiousness, irritability, or overwhelm, you react instead of respond and need something to calm your brain.

Some turn to favorite game, a favorite show, a nap, or a drink to “release” those feelings of overwhelm. In overwhelm, your brain makes a slower processing speed which causes exhaustion, overwhelm, and boredom.

When this happens, our brains are using the 2 extreme speeds (too fast AND too slow.) Brains that use the extreme sides of processing speeds are fatigued, exhausted, burnt out and cannot get restorative sleep.

Through neurofeedback, we bring the extreme speeds down and we bump up the perfect processing speeds that promote calm and focus, giving the brain a better, healthier pattern to follow.

Want to hear more about this? Call us or send us an email! We would love to talk with you. No-obligation!

Anxiety and the Pandemic

This past year has been difficult in a lot of ways no matter your age. Our normalcy has been stolen from us and has profoundly affected the way we will live from here on out. The pandemic has squashed the entire concept of consistency and structure for everyone. And with the year we’ve just had, every one has experienced harm to their brain. Fear has caused harm to our brain in major ways.

What is right? What is wrong? What is real? Who do we believe?

Studies* show that anxiety is on the rise because of these unprecedented times and we want to reverse that harm! Our brains have experienced a strange time over the last year. And those who had the anxiety brain pattern before COVID-19 have been building on an already unhealthy pattern.

Patterns do not go away. They only get worse with time and added stress. The brain runs every thing psychologically. The fear and stress of the pandemic have increased the likelihood of anxiety brain patterns and caused a massive decline in our mental health.

Join us in promoting mental health and healthy brain patterns! We want to help you reverse the harm we have all experienced in the last year.

Call us today to learn more about it!

*A few studies mentioned above:

• https://www.pennlive.com/news/2021/04/stress-anxiety-depression-addiction-the-mental-health-toll-of-the-coronavirus-pandemic.html

• https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/fresh-perspective-on-pandemic-anxiety

• https://medicine.umich.edu/dept/psychiatry/michigan-psychiatry-resources-covid-19/specific-mental-health-conditions/managing-anxiety-during-covid-19-pandemic

A World Without Medication; It's Possible!

ADHD is the most common disorder that is prescribed a medication without a second thought. Here at Chattanooga BrainCore, we believe there is a different solution! Our solution is drug-free and completely non-invasive. It’s called neurofeedback. Through neurofeedback, we decrease the hyperfocus brainwave speeds and increase the calm focus speeds.

If you are unsure of neurofeedback or want to do more research, we welcome you to take all the time you need! Here are a few tips to help manage those symptoms while you decide what’s right for your family.

Tip #1: Establish a Routine (and follow through!)

Structure and routine help create a foundation for every day to begin on. This is helpful for anyone, but especially kids and, in particular, kids with ADHD. A routine can be simple. Before bed every night, clothes for the next day are laid out, toys are cleaned up and back packs are packed and ready by the door. A morning routine can be even more simple, brush teeth & hair, put on clothes that were laid out, and go to the kitchen for breakfast.

That is something you do even day, for the most part! But making system and an order of operation can make a huge difference in your child’s life.

Tip #2: Lead by Example

Follow through with tip #1 and create a routine for yourself! Not only will you lead by example, but you teach yourself that everything has a time and place. Routines contribute to low-stress environments that you and your kids can benefit from and thrive in.

Tip #3: Self-Care

Self-care is a recent phenomenon. We are realizing how important and precious mental health is. While this one is more for you, rather than your child, it’s just as important. I like to think of self-care like a vessel of water. In order for me to “pour out” at work or at home, I have to be re-filled otherwise I deplete my source. No one can pour out from an empty vessel. A few ideas for self-care: 10 minutes of morning prayer or meditation time, daily afternoon walks, evening bath time, reading a good book a lunch break.

Tip #4: Set & Keep Clear Expectations

Especially those with ADHD, kids respond well to clear and defined expectations. Having these set create less chaos and stress which can provide flow for the home. As we talked about above, setting a routine can create flow in the home, but another way is to set clear expectations. And establishing a consequence/reward system to reinforce those expectations. While praise is imperative to encouraging correct behaviors, there should also be rewards that are far greater than the consequences so that it is worth the correct behavior. Dr. Trish Leigh says, “You will get more of what you focus on.” This is why it is so important to avoid focusing on the poor behavior, but focusing on the positive behavior and rewarding for it!

While this blog is kid-focused, adults struggle with ADHD as well! Each of these tips can help you thrive in your environment just as much as a child. All four of these tips are great tools for anyone who is looking for a calm to their chaos.

If you want to learn more about neurofeedback, or to see if you would be a good candidate for it, you can email us at chattanoogabraincore@gmail.com or you can call our office at 423-899-0808. Our staff would be happy to answer any questions and/or set you up for a free, no-obligation phone consultation with our BrainCore doctor, Dr. Rhonda Hamilton.

Neurofeedback & Medication: Q & A

• Do I have to stop my medication to get a qEEG (Brain Map) done?

At Chattanooga BrainCore, we are certified in neurofeedback. We cannot professionally tell anyone to stop any medications that are prescribed by your doctor. Always contact your doctor if you have questions regarding medications and stopping those medications. However, to answer this questions specifically, you do not have to stop any medications in order to get a map done.

Believe it or not, the brain will show us the pattern regardless of medications.
Think of medications as a bandage. While they cover up the injury (or pattern), underneath the injury is still there. Bandages can be important to the healing process, helping to defend against infection or dirt, but the bandage itself does not do the healing.

Your map is not void if taking medication, or the lack of.

• Can I be on medication during my neurofeedback training?

Yes. Just as answered above, the pattern is still there underneath the medication. The medication only aids in symptom management and not in healing. Neurofeedback changes brain patterns. And again, always consult your doctor when switching or changing dosage or type of medication.

Neurofeedback can be successful whether you are on medication or not.

• Will I ever come off my medication?

In a perfect world, that is our goal! With every visit, your brain produces a graph of training. We monitor those graphs every week, over the course of your time with us. We may suggest talking with your doctor to titrate medications or change them, depending on what speeds your brain is producing. We look for progress in the brain by these graphs and monitoring to make sure we are bringing the slow speeds down and the calm focus speeds up. Together, we will go over the graphs with you periodically so you can see the changes too!

We have had many patients who were on medications for their symptoms that came down on milligrams, or came off medication all together! Remember we aren’t just covering the symptoms, we are re-training the speeds in the brain in order to alleviate the symptoms, and therefore the need for medication. But again, we cannot stress enough, that we are not the experts on medications. You must always contact your doctor when thinking about titrating or stopping medications.

• Can you talk to my doctor for me?

In a way, yes! Dr. Hamilton welcomes professional relationships with other doctors, especially those who are in care with us! Once you sign a release, she would also be happy to speak with your doctor and/or equip you with tools and suggestions of how to speak with your doctor about neurofeedback and how that affects you!

Neurofeedback is a process. You have to trust the process! It’s not a magical healing overnight. If you stick with it and follow our recommendations, it can be life changing!

If you are interested in starting neurofeedback, or starting with an evaluation, please call or email us! We would love to answer any questions and get you scheduled.

What is ADHD? What Causes It? How Does It Affect the Brain?

What is ADHD? What causes it? How does it affect the brain and what can we do about it?

One of the biggest questions about ADHD is “Is it even real?” The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports it to be one of the most commonly diagnosed disorders that affects neurodevelopment. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental “problem” in the brain. They way the brain develops is called neurodevelopment. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder where the brain has a hard time developing to it’s full potential. Like many other disorders, they are genetic or familial in nature.

“Birds of a feather flock together” or “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree".'

So if a child has ADHD, it is very likely that others in the family whether diagnosed or not have ADHD too. While it can look different in every person, there are many common symptoms:

• Inability to focus

• Poor executive functioning

• Short attention span (specifically work, school or home life)

• Easily distracted

• Issues with finishing tasks

• Low impulse control

Diet and environment (discipline, screen time, exercise, etc.) can worsen these symptoms if poor and can improve or lessen the severity if healthy. Whole foods (not processed foods,) limiting screen time, limiting excessive video game use, and regular physical exercise or activity can improve the lives of those with ADHD and ADD, whether moderate or severe.

Unfortunately, the negative symptoms listed above do not go away. Remember ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder. The negative symptoms can progressively get worse and affect major aspects of their life:

• Loss of job

• Inability to complete school

• Financial issues and stress

• Eating disorders

• Substance abuse

• Loss of family or marriage

Correcting this disorder is imperative to having a happy and healthy life. If you or a loved one resonate with these symptoms or concerns, call us today.

Start living a happier, more productive life!

Hebb's Law

Hebb’s Law is the law that when neurons fire together, they wire together. In a less scientific example, birds of a feather, flock together.

Your brains creates neural pathways as it works throughout the day. When using the anxiety pattern, you are hardwiring that pattern in! The more you continue in that pattern, the more you hardwire it.

Think of it as a road. When the brain is using an anxiety pattern, it is off course, or "off-roading.” And according to Hebb’s Law, the brain is memorizing that off-road course.

But what can hurt you (Hebb’s Law) is also the key to success! You can create a new path that produces calm and focus! We have to get back to the main road and our brains can start to memorize the new way.

Our brain can actually FORGET the anxiety off-road pattern by getting back on the right road! Amazing!

So how do we get our brain to recognize the right road?

Neurofeedback!

Through our BrainCore software and custom protocols for each patient, the brain can teach itself! The computer aids the brain in reducing the excessive fast speeds and increasing the calm, focus speeds, therefore eliminating the anxiety pattern.

You can chart a whole new course for your life. There is truly nothing like this!

ADHD & the Brain

Every brain has five processing speeds. From slowest to fastest speeds: Delta, Theta, Alpha, Low Beta, High Beta. A healthy brain needs all of these speeds throughout the day!

For example, as we wind down for the night (hopefully with a routine of turning the lights down and screens off) our brains start to produce one of the slower speeds, Theta. Then, we start to produce the slowest speed, Delta as we get into bed, close our eyes and drift into sleep.

6-8 hours later (hopefully) the moment we wake up we are a little groggy, that’s Theta again. We start moving around, showering, drinking coffee, eating breakfast. The medium processing speed, alpha, starts producing in our brains. This is the calm, alert speed. Heading off to work or class, our brain should start producing the calm, focus speed, or Low Beta, the perfect focus speed.

If you noticed, that was only 4 of the 5 speeds. The final speed is High Beta. This speed is the fastest of the 5 and kicks when we experience high stress throughout our day. This is the overdrive speed. Many of us get stuck in this overdrive speed resulting in high anxiety and burnout. Typically this speed is produced when a deadline is approaching in 30 minutes and you still have an hour of work to complete. Or you have a test in the next class that you feel ill-prepared for. Or for an extreme example, you are being chased by a bear and you are in the flight stage or fight or flight.

After those stressors have subsided, your brain ideally switches back to producing the perfect calm, focus speed, Low Beta.

ADHD brains are stuck in producing too much Theta, too much slow speed. Healthy brains are like an automatic transmissions while ADHD brains are like manual transmissions stuck in a lower gear. ADHD brains are producing too much Theta all throughout the day. Remember, theta speeds are the winding down, preparing for sleep speed. It is close to impossible for the brain to produce that calm, focus speed.

But there is hope! Through neurofeedback training, we can train the brain how to drive a manual transmission correctly! We can actually teach the brain how to get “unstuck” and how to produce the correct speeds throughout the day.

All it takes is a call! Call us today to get your first appointment scheduled!

Health and Headaches

Health & Headaches

COVID-19 has not been an easy time for anyone. Masks, stress, and anxiety seems to be the “new normal.” Stress and anxiety can easily lead to headaches and migraines. Your body can become more susceptible to headaches when your nervous system is being expended through stress.

Joseph Sirven, MD, a Mayo Clinic neurologist, presents 5 tips for de-stressing at home and potentially reducing the headaches and reducing the chance of migraines.

1. Limit exposure to news media.

2. Care for yourself by eating a healthy diet, staying hydrated, and getting enough sleep.

3. Get some exercise, especially outside.

4. Focus on the positive.

5. Meditate, stretch, or practice deep breathing.
   
   (https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/covid-19-tips-to-reduce-migraines-for-those-susceptible-to-stress/)

One of the best ways to achieve these great tips are to pick your “favorites.”

1. Find a recipe that includes your favorite whole food.

2. Pour water and drink from your favorite glass!

3. Set a timer for bed. Give yourself time to read your new favorite book as part of winding down.

4. Go to your favorite park or hiking trail and enjoy a nice stroll.

5. At the end of every day, write down your favorite thing(s) that happened that day.

6. Find your favorite chill music or favorite stretch in order to meditate and practice deep breathing.

How you encourage your health and what you feed your body will dictate your quality of life.

If you implement these easy practices into your every day life, you can achieve greater health and in turn a greater life. Make it great!

Neurofeedback Sessions

What is a Session Like?

There are 2 types of people in this world: the ones who fly by the seat of their pants and the ones who need to know every detail.

Me? I’m one of the latter. The more I know, the more I feel like I’m in control, which is better for my anxiety. My girlfriends and I were going on a trip to a cabin in the mountains. All I had to do was drive there. But because I had not preplanned the route, or even knew where the cabin was, I chewed all my finger nails off. I made sure to train 2x that week, and looked up the directions and no more stress!

So for those who are just curious, or for those who need to know all the details, what does a neurofeedback session look like?

At the beginning of every visit, simply come in, choose a show on Netflix or Youtube. We will clean your earlobes with an alcohol swab to ensure a good signal for your training. 3 ear clips will be placed on your earlobes (1 on one side, and 2 on the other). These ear clips are to ground the signal and ensure that electrical system in your brain is the only one we are reading. (It is, after all, neurofeedback and not biofeedback.)

After the ear clips, there will be up to 2 scalp sensors. These sensors’ job is to read the electrical signals, or brain waves, for the training session. Some people train with one sensor (“single site”) and some people train with two sensors (“dual site”). It is all based on each individual brain map and what each brain needs.

Just like the ears, we will clean the area and secure the sensors in place. These sensors are very small, about “pea-sized,” with chords that hook up the computer behind you. We secure it with a small amount of conductive paste, again to ensure a good signal for training.

That’s the hard part! Now all you have to do is sit and enjoy your favorite show! As you train, the software will recognized when your brain is make dysregulated brainwaves. The screen will dim and the sound will decrease. Naturally, our brains like to watch shows and movies in optimal vision. When making the correct brainwaves, the screen will increase in brightness and the volume will increase. It will be a comfortable volume that is “optimal.” Each person enjoys shows and movies differently. Some prefer movie theaters and other prefer comfy living rooms with volume control. It will be comfortable to your definition of an optimal experience.

That’s it. Sit, enjoy and your brain does the rest! The technicians have the hard job of setting you up and monitoring you as you train to make sure the signal is still clear and your show doesn’t pause or change to another show.

Who knew achieving a better brain for a better you was so simple!

Here is a link to a video of a training session by Dr. Trish Leigh, one of Dr. Hamilton’s colleagues that practices out of Chapel Hill, NC.

Growth Stunting ADHD Medications

Growth Stunting ADHD Medications

These are 3 major findings from an ADHD Treatment Study that are truly shocking:

1. When using 10mg for at least 180 days, growth was stunted 2 inches!

   Growth being stunted by 2 inches may not seem like a big deal. They are just 2 inches shorter, but there is a deeper issue here. Why were the kids in this study averaging 2 inches shorter than the control group? Where are growth hormones? In the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus at the base of the brain.
   This study was testing with Methylphenidate, otherwise known as Ritalin. Ritalin affects the brain in more ways than calming someone down or giving more focus. It affects the entire brain and hinders the natural functioning.

2. As symptoms persist into adulthood, the symptoms were worse than ever before.

   An ADHD brain pattern is a pattern. This pattern is not something you grow out of. This is a neuro-developmental issue. An unhealthy brain pattern continues to be unhealthy and often becomes more dysregulated as you age. The pattern does not go away with time. Changing the brain is the only way to redirect a dysregulated brain pattern.

3. Medication is not taken consistently.

   Many kids do not take medication regularly because of how it makes them feel. Children being aware of how medication adversely affects them is heartbreaking. Covering symptoms is not fixing anything. Through neurofeedback, symptoms are changed because the brain is being changed, not being covered up.

Sources: Dr. David Rabiner, Child Clinical Psychologist from Duke University (www.sharpbrains.com), National Institute of Mental Health, and Trish Leigh, BCN (https://leighbrainandspine.com/about/the-science/).

ADHD Symptoms Worsen With Increased Screen Time

A recent study from ABC News shows that increased screen time is creating more diagnoses with ADHD at preschool age. This is incredibly concerning because of what we know about neuroplasticity. Brains are the most “plastic” in the early development stages and into adolescence. Screen time increases can have detrimental effects across your children’s lifespans.

Because of Kid’s Increased Screen Time, There is An Increase in Anxiety.

Psychcentral.com posted a new study that shows how anxiety levels are increasing for children, especially teenagers, as technology use increases. While this may not be surprising with the rise in technological advances, we do not yet know the long term effects on the brain. We can only project based on how young brains are already functioning, and the projections are not promising for healthy brain function. Anxiety and depression are so bad that the World Health Organization (WHO) have added “gaming addiction” to their classification system, as well as it being added in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) (6C51).

How Are Focus and Stress Impacted by Electronic Use?

The effects of screen time can negatively affect all people, but it is much worse for kids, especially those with ADHD and Anxiety, because of the neuroplasicity. This effect is called “Electronic Screen Syndrome (ESS)” or otherwise known as “Digital Dementia”. Digital Dementia can make a child want screen time even more than other kids because it is essentially addicted to screen, making their brain feel good once given the “drug of choice.” Screen time “wires and tires” the brain, as Dr. Trish Leigh would say. Electronics and screen time continually wire the brain and then tire it, creating never ending cycles of perpetual irritability, exhaustion, decreased ability to focus, and anxiousness.

The Good News!

The good news is IT IS REVERSIBLE! If you or someone you love is struggling with ADHD or Anxiety and need help improving focus and decreasing stress, call Chattanooga BrainCore. We have made it our speciality to re-wire those tired brains so that they can learn healthy patterns and reach their full potential.

We offer free, no-obligation phone consultations if you would like to learn more, or call us to schedule the qEEG!

ADHD & Neurofeedback - What Does Medication Actually Fix?

The first “treatment” or “fix” for ADHD is stimulant medication. While many stimulants can be affective for all ages of those with ADHD, there are many potential side effects and considerably high remission rates when continuing or stopping the medication.

So what does medication actually fix?

According to a recent study by Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, the efficacy, or success, of neurofeedback in individuals with ADHD is rated considerably higher than that of medications. The study also gives evidence of continued and sustainable change 6-12 months after the treatment in those who chose neurofeedback.

According to the APA’s finding, when going the traditional medical route, there is a 56-68% remission rate. All the while, the remission rates were as low as 32% for neurofeedback treatment of ADHD!

“Remission rates were clearly highest for the MTA medication arms (56–68%), albeit with decreasing effect sizes at follow-up whilst medication use was continued. The remission rates for neurofeedback (32–47%) in this context are reassuring, and there is the clear finding that effects of neurofeedback are sustained without further treatment. A further advantage of neurofeedback is its safety and non-invasiveness.”

The APA has established neurofeedback treatment to be well-established and line with their guidelines!

If you would like to learn more about how neurofeedback can help ADHD, without medication, give us a call!