Neurofeedback also known as neurotherapy is a significant advance in the reduction of symptoms of many problems. It is used to reduce symptoms for a wide range of mental challenges including problems that a typically considered to be very difficult to bring about improvement in.

Neurofeedback’s origin is in research carried out in the late 1950’s, 1960’s and 70s at various universities in the U.S and at the Meninger Clinic. The form of neurofeedback arising from this work is essentially biofeedback for deliberate training of brain waves patterns. It remains the major form of neurofeedback and I refer to it as traditional neurofeedback. In the early 1990’s, Dr. Len Ochs began work on another unique form of neurofeedback, which has become known as the Low Energy Neurofeedback System (LENS).

Both of these techniques share: (1) The utilization of the electroencephalograph (EEG) of the client (i.e., brainwaves) to both monitor and direct the treatment. (2) Some element of near instantaneous biofeedback relating to brainwaves. In this case “biofeedback” meaning that moment to moment changes in brain waves continually modify a critical input variable for the treatment. (3) Some inducing of restorative neurophysiological change in the brain. (4) Significant improvement in many patients with brain injury, stoke, depression, anxiety disorder, autistic spectrum, post-traumatic stress disorder, attention deficit disorder and other conditions.

Most basically, in terms of the central neurofeedback component, the two techniques differ in that, in traditional neurofeedback the feedback is “active” as in involving the conscious effortful participation of the client in shifting his/her brainwave composition by at least sustaining attention to a feedback signal, whereas in LENS treatment the neurofeedback component is entirely “passive” in terms of the client’s effortful participation.

LENS neurofeedback likely offers a reduction of symptoms with fewer sessions than traditional neurofeedback. The LENS approach involves the use of an extremely subtle energy pulse (it is so small that it is difficult to measure and is far, far smaller than the intensity emitted by a cell phone or cordless phone) applied for a total of a few seconds each treatment sessions. It is now theorized that it achieves its effect by acting on what cutting-edge western biophysicists refer as the “biofield” now a western scientific construct that is consistent with the extremely subtle energy dynamics considered to be central in eastern healing practices.