About NeurOptimal®
Dynamical Neurofeedback®
What is neurofeedback?
Neurofeedback is a feedback tool used to improve brain regulation. It provides high-quality information to your brain’s control function allowing the brain to self-regulate and learn how to function better, improving how you think and feel. Research has shown that when given support, the brain has the ability to adapt and enhance its own performance utilising an inherent property known as neuroplasticity.
Neurofeedback can encourage and speed up this process of neuroplasticity!
NeurOptimal® is the
MOST ADVANCED neurofeedback technology
NeurOptimal® Dynamical Neurofeedback® was developed by Clinical Psychologists, Dr. Valdeane Brown and Dr Susan Brown (founders of Zengar Institute Inc.). Having vast experience within the neurofeedback community, they created the first and only Dynamical Neurofeedback® system in the world, which is substantially different from other neurofeedback systems. In contrast to traditional neurofeedback which trains particular states of consciousness (such as beta for more focus, alpha for relaxation etc), NeurOptimal® is particularly unique as it has been developed a stage further to allow the brain access to multiple states of consciousness in rapid succession. This unprecedented 'Dynamical' form of neurofeedback unlocks the brain's natural ability to shift fluidly and effortlessly through states of awareness that are appropriate for what is happening in your life, without any effort from you. So you are not 'stuck' in any one state (which is what is happening if you can’t focus, or can’t fall asleep for example), but are able to shift flexibly and easily between states, without triggering negative functional brain instabilities. This cutting-edge brain training prompts the brain's natural and powerful ability to break undesired habitual behaviours and reorganise itself for brain improvements and optimal functioning of the whole central nervous system, whatever your brain decides it needs. The beauty of NeurOptimal® is no diagnosis is required because all the expertise we need lies within our own brains for the most natural healing possible. Our unconscious brain is 100% in control of any changes it decides to make, which will always be the path in its own best interest.
NeurOptimal® Explainer Video
NeurOptimal®'s Feedback Loop
How NeurOptimal® harnesses our innate wisdom to self-optimise
A simple, yet powerful, process
Step 1
Analyse for Functional Instabilities
NeurOptimal® is fully automated to rapidly scan your brain activity for functional brain instabilities. Functional brain instabilities signal the beginning of a change in brain state – this could be either a normal behaviour change or a disordered behaviour change. An example of a healthy and normal change in brain state might be, shifting from wakefulness to sleep, or from a focussed over to relaxed state. An example of a disordered behaviour state change might be shifting from a calm state into a (habitual) anxious state which might (normally) set off a cascade of, unintentional but automatic, negative self-deprecating thought patterns. Automatic, or 'stuck', habitual behaviours like this can be, both, unhelpful and an inefficient use of energy, which, if alerted to, the unconscious brain will aim to naturally self-correct.
Step 3
The alerted brain CHOOSES how to respond to the feedback
The brain decides whether the behaviour is helpful or not and your brain chooses whether to change course or simply ignore the feedback and continue on the same neural path. If it deems the behaviour as negative and unhelpful, it will immediately pull itself back from this functional instability and change neural pathway, ie immediately deactivate the stress response before the brain has a chance to escalate into an activated state. If the moment triggered is viewed as a comfortable or a necessary state change, the brain will simply ignore the feedback by NeurOptimal® and continue with its originally intended neural repertoire. It is this innate wisdom and autonomy of the brain which makes the self-correction process both natural and powerful. The brain has an innate drive to conserve energy, operate efficiently and move away from discomfort, so will always aim to make the best decision for itself and is in complete control of whether AND how changes are made.
Step 2
Detect AND Feedback to the brain
Once NeurOptimal detects a functional instability, rapid feedback is provided back to the brain in the form of a very brief pause in music. The pause triggers a natural 'orienting response' which invites the brain 'to see' the instability and assess, alongside a more accurate (rather than unconsciously imagined) external environment, whether this functional brain instability is a healthy normal change or a disordered (unhelpful and automatic) behaviour. For example, whether someone's heightened stress response has become habitually activated into an ANXIOUS or DEPRESSED state, or there is an actual external threat present which justifies continuing with the activation of the FIGHT/FLIGHT or FREEZE response, respectively.
Step 4
Repeating the process leads to long-term peak brain function
The positive impact of regularly receiving useful feedback about its behaviour provides the brain the opportunity to learn to manoeuvre around functional brain instabilities instead of falling into them, resulting in fewer issues and improved functioning. Even automatic negative cycles of behaviour which have controlled people's lives chronically for many years can be gradually broken, resulting in increased flexibility and resilience to move between states, with reducing incidents of getting stuck and suffering. Many mental and physical (psychosomatic) health conditions fall away when this positive shift occurs and people enjoy much fuller more positive lifestyles.
Innovative Features of NeurOptimal®
Unique advanced technology
Real-time Joint Frequency Analysis
NeurOptimal® works with real-time joint time-frequency analysis (JTFA) in a special non-linear way that accurately and precisely captures the “event-structure” of the electrical activity of our brain. This is a state-of-the-art approach to analysis that is unique to Zengar ®, with no other brain training system offering this capability.
"Time-Frequency Envelopes"
Due to NeurOptimal®‘s adaptive de-noising technology, a rich information matrix is fed back to the brain by impressively monitoring for functional brain instabilities across twenty different brain frequency targets at once, ranging from 0.001- 64 Hertz. These "time-frequency envelopes" were invented by Zengar® and are unique to the neurofeedback industry. This means broad-based and powerful transformation possibilities, no matter what your issues and goals are, achieved naturally and easily. NeurOptimal®‘s special dynamical thresholding and targeting procedures powerfully and actively support the brain’s own re-organisation, allowing unprecedented yet safe, client transformation.
Superior Precision
NeurOptimal® boasts superior precision using an extremely high rate of sampling coupled with extraordinary precision of filtering, targeting and triggering of feedback in real time.
The Holonomic Model of
Consciousness, Memory and Perception
Its design is grounded in the neuroscientific concept of the dynamical “holographic” way the brain functions as a rich interconnected neural net.
Recommended Further Reading
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NeurOptimal® Research:
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“The Body Keeps the Score”
by Psychiatrist and Trauma Specialist,
Dr Bessel Van der Kolk.
A best selling insight into how trauma gets stuck in our bodies and manifests as mental and physical ill health.
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“A Symphony in the Brain”
by journalist Jim Robbins.
An objective review of the successes and criticisms and history of neurofeedback.
