Practitioner Directory

Carol Shifflett, B.S., CMTPT

Therapy for pain syndromes and dysfunctions due to myofascial trauma and head injury.

Neurofeedback is biofeedback specifically for the brain. It is a painless and drug-free way of helping the brain return to a healthy state and to better regulate itself and the body it controls. Fatigue, confusion, ADD, depression, and fibromyalgia (especially after high fever or head injury) are not merely "lack of willpower" — they are often symptoms of brain injury.

The LENS neurofeedback system is generally considered to produce observable results far more quickly than traditional biofeedback /neurofeedback. There are advantages to both systems. LENS requires no input or effort from the client. Like AAA, it is a rescue service, intended to pull you out of the ditch and speed you on your way. Traditional neurofeedback is a training process. It teaches you how to drive, control and work with your own brainwaves.

What are Brainwaves?

Like other computers, the brain gives off tiny electrical impulses that appear as waves. Different brainwaves (identified by as alpha, beta, delta and theta) have different effects on brain and body.

• High beta relative to alpha is associated with stress and anxiety.
• High alpha relative to beta gives a feeling of confusion, brain fog, and depression.
• High theta relative to beta is strongly associated with ADD.
• Delta, the slowest brainwave, should not appear in normal adults during waking hours. Its presence (especially in the frontal lobes) is considered clear evidence of brain injury.

In general, brainwaves should be faster at front, slower at back and faster at left, slower at right.

Slower waves in front produce confusion, fatigue, depression and, yes, “depression hurts.” High amplitude frontal alpha is typical of fibromyalgia while fast beta waves at the back of the head typically produce anxiety and sleep problems.

The “backwards brain” (slow at front and left, fast at back and right) will be depressed and anxious, with sleep problems. Slow alpha, theta, or delta waves in the frontal lobes where faster waves should be is considered to be a clear indication of brain injury and/or brain wave slowing.

What is Brainwave Slowing?

Due to illness, physical trauma, high fever, drugs, or chronic pain, blood and oxygen supply to the brain may be interrupted or decreased. Unfortunately, the faster brainwaves required for focused attention, organization, and quick wits require high levels of oxygen and nutrients; slower, dreamier brainwaves require less.

Brainwave slowing (whether due to damage or poor nutrition) is roughly equivalent to hibernation, an excellent survival strategy, but a poor way to live. The slower the frontal waves, the foggier and more depressed a person is apt to be. For example, frontal alpha of 12 Hz may produce a “functional” depression; you feel terrible but still manage to get up and go to work. At 8 Hz or slower, you may be completely unable to drag out of bed at all. “Hibernating” human brain cells don’t necessarily know when it is safe to wake up again or even how to do it. Neurofeedback can reawaken the brain and help it—and the body it controls—on the way to recovery.

What is the Cost?

• LENS Offset Evaluation —$65. An Offset Evaluation evaluates patient suitability for LENS treatment. This test evaluates dominant frontal frequencies. If slow waves are present, the Offset Evaluation test will show whether they are improved by the LENS feedback, and if so, what treatment is most effective. It is also a quick test to see if the patient will be over-sensitive to the LENS treatment and whether the traditional neurofeedback is more appropriate.
  
• Brain Map and Intake Evaluation: $250. Discussion of symptoms and detailed history, followed by brain mapping to determine what your brain is doing and its overall level of function. For pain patients, the intake process may include a myofascial evaluation of pain patterns, muscle function and flexibility.
  
• Treatment Sessions: $65. Following review of changes / symptoms since the last session, treatment involves a few seconds of feedback via a small electrode at one to several sites, depending on the patient. Feedback involves an extremely low-power radio wave, an electromagnetic pulse with a field strength of about 1x10-18(or 0.0000000000000000001) watts. This is far lower than even the tiny field produced by a digital watch.
  For pain patients, contributing myofascial issues may also be addressed as appropriate.

What Can I Expect From Treatment?

If neurofeedback treatment is found to be appropriate, you can expect improvement in conditions as diverse as traumatic head injury (TBI), migraines, PMS, and fibromyalgia symptoms. These respond well to neurofeedback (especially LENS ) as do ADD and depression which often improve during treatment of physical disorders. Clients report greatly reduced pain and anxiety with improved clarity, organization, mood, and emotional self-control.

Detecting and working with vanishingly small brainwave signals requires a clean scalp. Sensor sites are cleaned with a mild abrasive; electrode connections are secured with a dab of conductive paste. After treatment, therefore, you might also expect a bit of residual paste in your hair which will wash out easily in your shower. Nevertheless, please come to appointments with clean hair; many personal and haircare products block feedback signals.

For appointments, contact; Carol Shifflett (412) 741-7286

For more information on Neurofeedback, see:

• aboutneurofeedback.com. This extensive site includes information on the famous Yonkers Project. There is also a bibliography of neurofeedback publications in medical and technical journals many with links to the actual articles. A more extensive (but unlinked) bibliography is available from the International Society for Neurofeedback & Research.
  
• EEGInfo.com An excellent information site on traditional neurofeedback.
  
• The Healing power of Neurofeedback by Stephen Larsen, Ph.D. Those with fibromyalgia may be particularly interested in the section by Dr. Mary Lee Esty. Dr. Esty ran the first double-blind neurofeedback study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
  
• The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life by Dr. Robert O. Becker. In researching why some bone injuries did not heal, Dr. Becker, an orthopedic surgeon, discovered the tiny electrical currents of injury. The tiny currents used in LENS are the same ones found by Dr. Becker to be involved in regeneration and repair.