Is Neurofeedback the Solution for Your Child? Follow Our Journey: Part 4 More Upward Progress!

The below post is from our friend “Marie.” She is sharing her story with us as she tries a brain-retraining program (neurofeedback) with her daughter who has ADD and severe memory issues.  This will be an ongoing series following their progress and success.  We hope you find it helpful as you search for solutions for your own children.

If you missed the first three parts of the series, read them here: 

Is Neurofeedback the Solution for Your Child? Follow Our Journey: Part 1.

Is Neurofeedback the Solution for Your Child? Follow Our Journey: Part 2 The First 3 Sessions

Part 3:  Seeing Signs of Success and Positive Changes!

Part 4: The Importance of Breathing and a Progress Report

 I just got my child’s 10^th session assessment and it describes what they have been tracking. 

In earlier posts I mentioned that a lot of the beginning training for my daughter is about breathing and heart rate. 

When she was first tested she was breathing at a rate of 9.65 breaths per minute, with a cohesion rate (heart rate combined) of 36.44%. 

She is now breathing at about 8.5 per minute, with a cohesion rate of 66.68%. 

The goal is to get her breathing properly at more like 6-7 breaths per minute, with a cohesion rate at around 80%. 

High cohesion is essential for brain training and achieving the desired result. This is what they are looking for, and again recommended that she practice good breathing techniques at home.  Taking breath in through your nose and as your stomach (diaphragm) should extend on inhale slowly, hold, and then slowly retract your stomach on the exhale. This all makes sense to me.  I have always heard how taking deep even breaths can calm me down and allow me to think more clearly.

 This is something everyone can teach their ADHD kids to do, and can start today. You don't need special training or therapy to take advantage of deep breathing techniques. 

 The brain wave assessment will be completed after session 20. Then we will have a more concrete picture of how this is changing her other abilities.

Overall Update:

 

My daughter has been making steady, positive progress since she has started the neurofeedback, and it's been very exciting. 

 I just have to remind myself what I am hearing from my daughter and from those around her about what is happening to her personally. We have all had the experience of someone commenting on how big our children have grown since they saw them last.  Sometimes when we live with a gradual change we don’t notice how much they have grown or changed, but when we look back at pictures or a measurement marked on the wall we are amazed. I had a similar experience the other day regarding my daughter’s progress.

We have had a weekly college grad babysitter that has been with us for over a year. She was gone recently and unable to babysit for at least a month. When she came back to babysit the other night, she commented on how my daughter had changed. She couldn’t quite describe it, but said that my daughter paid more attention when she asked her to do something. I said , “did she seem more engaged?” She said YES that’s it. Then I told her about Neurocore and what we had been experiencing.

My daughter continues to feel more confident and seems to be able to think on her feet more quickly. This can have a downside if you don’t prepare yourself. My sweet daughter that was living in a daydreaming world sometimes didn’t notice things. She seems to have more power emotionally, and I quickly realized that I needed to give that power some guidance. I am so thankful that the girl that has so many gifts will not be held back by the lack of focus. She is still imaginative and creative and now hopefully will be able to follow through with her thoughts and dreams. She is so proud that her “daydreaming score” has gone down and that her video doesn’t seem to be pausing anymore!

I don't work for or get anything from Neurocore, this is just something I tried to help my ADHD daughter, and was asked to share my results, good or bad, with other parents via this blog.  I have to say I have been very excited and happy with the progress, as has my daughter. It has totally been worthwhile thus far.

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