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Brain Training: A potential part of your recovery path
- nicole24894
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
MN Brain Solutions provides "brain training". using brain mapping and neurofeedback therapy, in two locations in Minnesota: Cold Spring and Sartell.
Neurofeedback therapy is a type of biofeedback that trains individuals to regulate their brain activity. It involves measuring brainwaves using electroencephalography (EEG) and providing real-time feedback—often through visual or auditory cues—so that a person can learn to alter their brain function.
The goal is to promote healthier brainwave patterns associated with improved focus, mood, and behavior. It’s commonly used for issues like attention and focus struggles, brain fog, mental stress, negative moods, poor memory, and sleep difficulties, although research is still ongoing regarding its effectiveness for various issues.
Sessions are non-invasive, and over time, the brain can learn to maintain better functioning on
its own.
Neurofeedback therapy can support individuals struggling with substance misuse by helping to regulate brain function and address underlying issues that contribute to addiction. Here's how it helps:
🧠 1. Restores Brainwave Balance
Substance misuse often disrupts normal brainwave patterns—causing imbalances in areas related to impulse control, stress response, mood regulation, and reward processing. Neurofeedback can help retrain these brain patterns toward a more balanced, healthy state.
💥 2. Reduces Cravings and Relapse Risk
By improving the brain’s self-regulation, neurofeedback may reduce cravings and enhance emotional stability, which are critical in avoiding relapse. Some studies have shown that individuals receiving neurofeedback experience lower relapse rates compared to traditional therapy alone.
😌 3. Eases Anxiety, Depression, and Trauma
Many people with substance use disorders also struggle with co-occurring conditions like anxiety, depression, or PTSD. Neurofeedback addresses these by helping the brain shift out of dysregulated states (e.g., high anxiety or emotional numbness), reducing the need for substances as a coping tool.
🧩 4. Supports Focus and Impulse Control
Neurofeedback has been shown to improve attention, decision-making, and self-control—key areas often impaired in addiction. This is especially helpful for individuals with ADHD, a common co-occurring disorder in those with substance misuse issues.
🔁 5. Encourages Long-Term Recovery
As part of a comprehensive treatment plan (including therapy, support groups, and lifestyle changes), neurofeedback helps strengthen the brain’s resilience, improving the chances of maintaining sobriety over time.
In summary, neurofeedback helps individuals with substance misuse by repairing brain function, regulating emotions, and supporting behavioral change, making it a valuable tool alongside traditional addiction treatments.
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The first session includes brain mapping.
Brain mapping using EEG, often called quantitative EEG (qEEG), is a technique that records and analyzes brainwave activity to create a visual map of brain function. Here’s how it works and what it shows:
🔍 How It Works:
EEG Recording: Sensors (electrodes) are placed on the scalp to measure the brain's electrical activity.
Data Collection: The brain's activity is recorded while the person is at rest (eyes open or closed) or performing tasks.
Quantitative Analysis: The raw EEG data is processed using advanced software to measure different brainwave frequencies (Delta, Theta, Alpha, Beta, Gamma).
Comparison to Norms: The individual’s brainwave patterns are compared to a normative database of healthy brain activity.
Brain Map Visualization: The results are displayed as color-coded maps showing areas of the brain that are overactive, underactive, or imbalanced.
🧠 What It Shows:
Cognitive function: Attention, memory, focus, processing speed
Emotional regulation: Anxiety, depression, stress levels
Brainwave imbalances: Linked to conditions like ADHD, insomnia, PTSD, and more
🎯 Why It’s Used:
To identify dysfunctional brain patterns
To guide neurofeedback therapy by targeting specific regions and frequencies for training
To track changes in brain function over time
In short, EEG brain mapping provides a non-invasive, data-driven look into how your brain is functioning and helps guide personalized brain-based therapies.
I left my initial session with 8 pages of results, including a list of suggested supplements and explanation of my results and how it appears on the mapping.
Thank you, Minsan, for the insightful visit!
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