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Your Brain on Neurofeedback: Cutting-Edge Treatment for Eating Disorders and Addiction

By Staff Writer

Science has come a long way. For example, did you know that you can control your brainwaves to fight addiction, eating disorders and other conditions?

This innovative procedure, called neurofeedback (or EEG biofeedback), is being used at some of the leading addiction and eating disorder treatment programs to help people more effectively manage their emotions and reduce stress.

How Does Neurofeedback Work?

Neurofeedback provides information about your brainwaves so that you can change the frequencies to achieve certain goals, such as reducing stress. Because you can’t see what your brain is doing, a technology called EEG (electroencephalogram) is used to give you information about its electrical activity. With a computer and a few simple sensors, you can learn how your brain responds to stress and other stimuli.

After an initial EEG and consultation, a neurofeedback specialist creates an individualized treatment protocol tailored to your specific needs and goals. As your brainwaves rise above or below the desired level, you either hear or see a signal, so that you know when your brain is in “the zone.”

A Video Game for Your Brain

At The Victorian of Newport Beach, a renowned addiction and eating disorder treatment center in southern California, neurofeedback training is similar to playing a video game. Patients watch graphics on a computer screen indicating that they’re meeting their goals – for example, by successfully moving a race car along the track or making dolphins swim in the ocean. As they keep their brainwaves within the desired levels, they score points in the game, which allows them to track their progress.

As patients become more skilled at controlling their brainwaves, the game gets more difficult. With practice, patients learn how it feels to keep their brainwaves within certain limits and are able to do so without the aid of the game.

Benefits of Neurofeedback Training

The primary goal of neurofeedback training at The Victorian is to reduce stress and the various ailments that typically result from stress. The process helps women with eating disorders and addiction enter a calm, peaceful state of mind, where they are better able to control drug cravings and resist urges to engage in disordered eating behaviors.

Other benefits of neurofeedback training include:

  • Greater mind-body awareness
  • Enhanced coping skills
  • An overall sense of calm
  • Improved sleep
  • Better focus and concentration
  • Emotion regulation skills that can be utilized after neurofeedback training ends

Through neurofeedback and other therapies, patients begin to realize how their feelings affect the brain. Rather than falling victim to their emotions, they realize that feelings can be interpreted, processed and understood in different ways to improve overall functioning.

Neurofeedback is both powerful and empowering for women with eating disorders, drug and alcohol addiction, and other mental health issues. As part of a comprehensive treatment program, neurofeedback can put you in the best possible position to make a full and lasting recovery.