Experiencing a trauma is bad enough, but if you develop post-traumatic-stress disorder (PTSD), you can become a prisoner of the event. Thankfully, there are avenues for breaking free, including our innovative Alpha Theta Neurofeedback protocol.
Unfortunately, Americans are no strangers to trauma — 70% have experienced a traumatic event during their lives and some go on to develop long-term consequences, such as PTSD. In fact, nearly 4% of adults and 5% of adolescents in the United States struggle with PTSD, which can imprison them in a constant state of fear and anxiety. Thanks to a better understanding of how our brains work, there are new treatment avenues for PTSD and similar problems by working with, and altering, brainwave patterns.
At Bespoke Treatment, our team of mental health specialists is on the forefront of the latest treatments for disorders like PTSD. One such treatment — Alpha Theta Neurofeedback — is garnering great results because it addresses your brain activity from several different angles for better mental health.
Here’s a look at how Alpha Theta Neurofeedback is helping our patients reclaim their lives.
Behind PTSD
To understand how our Alpha Theta Neurofeedback works, it’s helpful to quickly review what’s happening in your brain when you have PTSD. When you witness or experience a traumatic event, your brain sends your body into a flight-or-fight mode, which is a heightened state of arousal that’s designed to protect you.
For those who develop PTSD, this state of arousal continues long after the event, which can lead to:
- Re-experiencing the event
- Avoidance
- Arousal and reactivity symptoms
- Cognition and mood issues
In more severe cases, PTSD can greatly interfere with your ability to function normally on a day-to-day basis.
Altering your brain’s activity
Our Alpha Theta Neurofeedback protocol is highly effective because we induce a more relaxed state in your brain to better “process” your emotions and reactions surrounding your trauma. In other words, we’re getting you out of your fight-or-flight mode to create healthier brain activity.
The electrical activity in your brain presents itself in four different types of brainwaves:
- Beta brainwaves — the most active and conscious
- Alpha brainwaves — calmer, more meditative waves
- Theta brainwaves — a twilight state between consciousness and unconsciousness
- Delta brainwaves — deep sleep
When you have PTSD, your delta brainwaves are highly active, which is what creates the stress and anxiety.
With our Alpha Theta Neurofeedback, our goal is to reinforce and change your brainwave patterns in a way that encourages more relaxation through your alpha and theta brainwaves.
Undergoing Alpha Theta Neurofeedback
One of the biggest advantages of our Alpha Theta Neurofeedback protocol is that we go to the source of your PTSD, rather than treating the symptoms with medications.
To get started, we apply electrodes to your head to record your brain’s activity, creating a map of your brain so we know where to focus our efforts.
With the mapping accomplished, we concentrate on reinforcing your calmer brainwaves — your alpha and theta brainwaves — using very mild stimulation that you won’t feel.
Most of our patients start with two or more sessions per week and, depending upon their improvement, eventually go down to simple maintenance treatments.
If you’d like to break free from your PTSD, please contact one of our two offices in Santa Monica or Los Angeles, California, to schedule a consultation.
