Neurofeedback Therapy Helps PTSD Client

Divorce is a painful, stressful, and oftentimes traumatic event in the lives of those affected by it. Anxiety and depression are common for the spouses and even the children involved when two people divorce. Many people reach out to therapists, friends, and family to help them work through the pain and learn to live with what has happened. This is a normal part of the grieving and recovery process. But for some individuals, the trauma that they have endured from their divorce reaches much deeper and cannot be healed through talk therapy alone.

This was the case for Alex, a fifty-six-year-old woman who had divorced from her husband eighteen years ago. Even though she had been through numerous counselors, she was still suffering and encountering the wounds of her divorce as if no time had passed at all. “I had been suffering from a lot of anxiety, depression and nagging, repetitive thoughts since then,” said Alex. “Those old tapes played over and over in my head.”

Alex had seen multiple counselors over the years, trying to get to the root of why she couldn’t move past the pain of her divorce nearly two decades later. She was stuck, unable to move forward with her life even though she desperately wanted to heal. “I had tried talk therapy, EFT, etc,” said Alex. “If they had told me that to feel better I should stand on my head and spin around, I would have given that a try as well!”

Finally, a therapists suggested looking at her pain through a new approach and suggested that Jane might have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, otherwise known as PTSD.

PTSD is characterized by severe anxiety following a traumatic event. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares, and, in Alex’s case, uncontrollable thoughts about the event. PTSD can be a complicated and sometimes confusing disorder. While two people may experience the same exact trauma, it isn’t a guarantee that both will later suffer from PTSD. Certain risk factors such as childhood experiences, past trauma, and a family history of depression may make a person more susceptible to the disorder.

Alex was scheduled to begin the Neurofeedback process. During her Full Evaluation, Alex’s biological, psychological, social, and spiritual histories were evaluated. She also completed several brain function assessments and a sophisticated neuropsychological test measuring how her brain was currently functioning. Alex began neurofeedback sessions and recognized change early on in the process.

Neurofeedback is a system that provides moment-to-moment feedback of physiological functioning. It focuses specifically on the central nervous system and the brain. That means that while the client is experiencing an emotion, feedback is given about your brain function. This connection is then used to teach the client about control while at the same time fostering a better understanding of the impact of their emotions on their physical selves. “I could notice gradual changes in my racing thoughts and depression,” said Alex. “But the real winning component in doing feedback is that I became anxiety-free.”

Alex, who is now in recovery from PTSD said it best, “It is such a gift to be free from all of those symptoms and to be relaxed and looking forward to life.