Neurofeedback is a non-invasive medication free treatment that encourages the brain to create healthier patterns for coping with everyday life.
Matters of the Heart Counseling is providing Neurofeedback services using Passive Infrared Hemoencephalography or pIR-HEG. There are no electrodes attached to the head, no gel in the hair, and no signals sent into your brain. Everything is completed by monitoring blood flow in the brain with a simple headband.
What can neurofeedback help? Neurofeedback 
is effective in reducing symptoms of and the treatment of anxiety, depression, ADHD, Autism, trauma, stress and other mental health diagnoses.*
How does NF work?
The headband monitors blood flow in the brain while watching a movie of your choice. As the attention shifts from one area of the brain to the other, the movie will stop. To re-engage the movie the client must refocus and relax at the same time. It is this exercise that is allowing new connections and pathways to develop while encouraging the emotional and thinking parts of the brain to work together. It’s a workout for the brain much like going to the gym to exercise.
What are the goals? 
As the capacity for our thinking mind (prefrontal cortex) and our emotional mind (amygdala/limbic area) work together clients become increasingly capable of making sense of their emotions. This helps to create thoughtful responses to emotional experiences and ultimately increase emotional regulation. The individual then becomes more confident and relaxed in interacting with those around. This increase in self-efficacy then supports the person in their mental health journey. The ultimate expectation of NF is increasing the quality of life.
Neurofeedback and Trauma
Our brain takes in information from our everyday experiences and processes it to make sense of the world around. Traumatic experiences can change our brain’s way of communicating and can become hypervigilant leading to mental health symptoms. NF addresses those changes in a way talk therapy does not to help clients achieve better functioning in day to day life.
How long does a single session of NF last?
Each session of NF is no longer than 30 minutes of active feedback. There may be additional time to talk about the experience and the adjustment to the NF sessions.
To complete NF in its entirety, it is recommended to complete a minimum of 18 sessions (no more than once a week). Some people need additional NF sessions depending on their history and experienced improvement. It may also be helpful to have “check-in” sessions after the initial set of 18 to maintain the improvements experienced.
What does Neurofeedback cost?
The time spent using the NF equipment and engaging with the technician will be a self-pay rate of $75 per session. MOH is offering a reduced rate of $1300 if all 18 sessions are paid for upfront.
For Neurofeedback to be effective, an individual must commit to once-a-week sessions for a minimum of 18 weeks. More sessions may be needed depending on the person and the history. There is an additional fee for the initial intake of $155.
Resources to explore
* Cohen, M (2020) Neurofeedback 101: Rewiring the Brain for ADHD, Anxiety, Depression and Beyond.
Dr Christine Tyrell, NF Training (2022) https://wellbeing-cny.thinkific.com/
resources to further explore neurofeedback; NF and ADHD