Alpha Theta Brain Training
I’d like to take a moment to share with you a powerful technology that we utilize at our center for conditions of high stress and anxiety. This technology is called Alpha Theta Neurofeedback.
We utilize this in comprehensive protocols with the use of a brain map, or as a standalone therapy. However, in this segment we are going to briefly discuss it as a standalone therapy without the use of a brain map.
So let’s start with a basic understanding of brain waves. There are basically four brain waves that we naturally move in and out of two times a day: when we wake up, and when we go to sleep. These brain waves are called Delta, Theta, Alpha, and Beta.
Now, when you are stuck in a stress or anxiety response where the circumstance or event is no longer happening, but you’re still in that state, that’s where it can have a devastating effect on the quality of your life. Not only is the body in a sympathetic fight or flight response, but more importantly, the brain is stuck in what we call High Beta. This is like driving on the highway in first gear. You WILL burn out the clutch.
Now in the case of an emergency, you may need to downshift to first or second gear to pass a vehicle or get out of the way of danger, but this is short term! The same goes for the brain. Unfortunately, chronic stress and anxiety causes the brain to get stuck in High Beta as a default pattern.
Alpha Theta Neurofeedback/Brain Training can literally break these vicious cycles. It does this by providing a two-way communication through wires with electrodes from the head connected to a computer. When the brain starts to move into High Beta, an inhibitory signal is sent from the computer to the brain, preventing the brain from going into Beta and shifting it into Alpha.
Alternatively, if the brain starts falling asleep by moving into Delta, this technology inhibits the brain from going into Delta and shifts it into Theta.
By continuing to train the brain into this Alpha Theta range, the brain begins to recalibrate it’s default set point from a High Beta stress state into a calm Alpha Theta brain wave state. Over time as the brain rewires into this new pattern, it solidifies the long-term benefit, as the saying goes, of “being calm within the storm,” because the brain LITERALLY changes!
This is not only an excellent therapy for chronic stress and anxiety but also for high-level athletes who want to take their sport to the next level. High level athletes know that the ability to stay calm and focused in the midst of clutch moments can be the difference between success and failure, between a gold medal and a silver.
If you would like to learn more about how we can help you or a loved one break out of these vicious cycles of stress and anxiety using Alpha Theta Neurofeedback, or if you’re a high-level athlete who wants to take your performance to the next level, call (619) 287-4005 to schedule a free consultation with one of our functional medicine specialists. We can answer any questions you have to find out if and how we can help you with a specific health concern or goal!