Indeed, all we can definitively say about neurofeedback at this point is that it provides access to our internal processes and, in ways we do not fully understand, sometimes allows us to regulate them.
The claims that some practitioners make about neurofeedback do alarm certain researchers, but Susan and Siegfried Othmer are unrepentant. Fifteen years ago, their son Brian was one of the first to be treated for severe epileptic seizures and behavioral disorders. They saw dramatic positive changes in his personality as well as in his physiological problems, and, says Susan, "we knew right away this was something we had to be involved with. We found out that it's not considered scientific to be enthusiastic. We're sorry, but we're parents. We need to get this out there."
The Othmers now have three hundred or so affiliates who have built a common body of knowledge, sharing information at conferences and over the Internet. There are several other companies that manufacture the equipment, including American Biotec in Ossining, New York.
The word about EEG has spread. Othmer estimates the handful of practitioners ten years ago has grown to fifteen hundred worldwide. Perhaps for good reason. Barry Sterman believes there is no doubt that physiological changes take place, and claims there are several careful studies to prove it. According to Joel Lubar, neurofeedback "increases the blood flow into the brain. Blood flow, metabolism, and high frequency electrical activity all work together." Increased blood flow may help the brain reset itself in a normal range. And Don Wight, Jake's pediatric neurologist, says the impact of neurofeedback is not a placebo effect. "You would know," he says. "If the kids come off medicine, and stay off it, and can function, you would know. It's real."
If neurofeedback works so well, why is it virtually unknown? One reason may be that neurofeedback fits no prevailing medical model. Nearly all research on the brain is in the language of neurotransmitters and psychotropic drugs, and not in that of frequency or of mental exercise. Science likes its medicine to fit within the governing conceptual framework.
Othmer blames "panacea paranoia." Something that works so well can't possibly be real. There are also some real drawbacks: it's expensive, it's time-consuming, and it must be conducted by trained personnel.
But beyond this, there is a problem with the therapeutic potential of neurofeedback that is something of a philosophical riddle. If the brain can be trained to deal with depression physiologically, does a patient short-circuit the important processes of recognizing, comprehending, and coming to grips with a deep psychological problem? And--to pose an entirely new question--does that matter?
For many people who have tried it, any debate about neurofeedback is moot. As Jake's mother puts it: "It's nothing short of a miracle for us."
ILLUSTRATIONS
Jim Robbins is a writer in Helena, Montana, whose work has appeared in The New York limes and Smithsonian. He is currently at work on a new book about neurofeedback.
Tags:
alternative medicine,
attention deficit disorder,
biofeedback,
brain,
brainwave,
depakote,
early birth,
eeg biofeedback,
eleven times,
gross motor skills,
helena montana,
horrified one,
hospital emergency room,
learning disabilities,
neurofeedback,
overnight bag,
parents room,
petit mal seizures,
radical science,
science horizons,
seizure medications,
speech problems,
treatment,
treatment of epilepsy
