186: Neurofeedback: The Gym for Your Brain with Dr. Andrew Hill

Published: June 20, 2022, 8 a.m.

b'Can you train your brain to improve your sleep, better your health, and possibly abolish your tolerance for alcohol, drugs, or other things you might be struggling with?\\nAccording to today\\u2019s guest, Dr. Andrew Hill, peak performance coach and the founding director of Peak Brain Institute, one of the most insidious things about brain and mind-stuff is that we feel like things are not going to change, and that is just not true. The brain shift happens \\u2013 it\'s not a question of if, but how.\\nPeak Brain Institute is a gym for your brain. It is a brain optimization company across life stages for some people. Neuroscientists help people take control of their own neuroscience the same way your favorite personal trainer at your gym helps you learn how to move through transformation goals.\\nAlso known as brain training, most forms of neurofeedback are a passive form of operant conditioning, but in an involuntary form. It\\u2019s essentially taking something you\'re not usually aware of. For instance, they\\u2019re raising information from the brain waves or blood flow up to a level where the brain can interact with it. Dr. Hill emphasizes the use of the brain, not the mind. Hence, it\\u2019s different from the classic biofeedback techniques such as the use of relaxation therapy.\\nNeurofeedback is an option for you to help with your brain, and studies show its positive impact on people dealing with issues pertaining to anxiety, stress, alcohol use, and drug use. On this episode, Dr. Hill talks about what\'s going on and what\'s happening in the brain as this process is unfolding so you can gain a better understanding of your brain, what makes up who you are, and how you can change or improve that.\\xa0\\nIn this episode, you will hear:\\n\\nBiofeedback versus neurofeedback\\n\\nHow your brain is trained to achieve your goals\\n\\nHow brain mapping works\\n\\nThe differences in results with eyes closed versus eyes opened\\n\\nThe impact of brain training on physical fitness\\n\\nHow neurofeedback impacts people with alcohol and substance issues\\n\\nKey Quotes:\\n[04:46] "Neurofeedback is biofeedback, or a form of control, shaping, or exercise of stuff in your brain.\\u201d\\xa0\\n[04:55] - "All neurofeedback is a form of biofeedback, but not all forms of biofeedback are done in the brain."\\n[07:53] - \\u201cIt\'s mostly involuntary because you can\'t feel your beta waves or your theta waves. But after about three or four sessions, you get this lingering effect that tends to show up for a couple of hours to about a day. It tends to impact the resources you have trained like your sleep, stress, and attention, and you get noticeable changes."\\n[10:00] - "Your brain is mostly an electrical and mechanical machine... and the resources of your brain are roughly the same."\\n[11:35] - "There are some things that emerge in the EEG that are almost diagnostic, or that are at least useful."\\n[21:41] - "Other brains with similar complaints and similar goals don\'t respond the same way when you start doing neurofeedback. And so, you have to be very aware of the actual person\'s experience."\\n[32:08] - "If you do a few weeks of neurofeedback, you abolish the tolerance for cannabis."\\n[39:21] "One of the most insidious things about brain and mind-stuff is that we feel like things are not going to change, and that is just not true. The brain shift happens... It\'s not a question of if, it\'s how."\\nIf you really enjoyed this episode, we\\u2019ve created a PDF that has all of the key information for you from the episode. Just go to the episode page at www.theaddictedmind.com\\xa0to download it.\\nSupporting Resources:\\nPeak Brain Institute\\nhttps://peakbraininstitute.com\\xa0\\nEpisode Credits\\nIf you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices'