Family
Many cognitive issues can affect whole families, rather than just one member. Some researchers believe this is because the evolutionary mechanisms of the family redistributed anxiety as well as positive emotions. But in many families, familial relationships can be tested in ways they aren’t used to rather than working positively to solve the problem.
When one member of the family is suffering from a form of anxiety, that individual has lost some of their problem-solving abilities. Other members fill in, telling them what to do, and the automatic mechanisms to manage this anxiety kick in. Neurofeedback may help families interact more calmly with each other and reflect on experiences.
Research On NeurOptimal For Families
A research study by Lois Walker, B.N., M. Div., called “Working With Extrinsic Constraints: Clinical Case Study From the Perspective of Bowen Family Systems Theory and NeurOptimal,” demonstrated the changes NeurOptimal training in a family suffering from the effects of anxiety.
Another study by Andrea Maloney Schara, titled “Observations of Change in a Family System Using NeurOptimal®,” found neurofeedback made helped better functioning “for everyone, not just the symptomatic one.” Because neurofeedback training breaks up the “chaotic, old patterns in the brain,” people in the study were able to interact calmly and reflect on how anxiety affected family members.