This is a "reprint" of an entertaining and educational article from Dr. Jeff Carmen, who created the pirHEG system I write about on my website and in other blog posts. With his permission I'm re-posting it here for those of you interested in: - HEG - the frontal lobes - learning to put the brakes on yourself ;-) He talks primarily about the prefrontal cortex -- for those of you who read my blog (and thanks for that! ), that will be roughly what I talk about more loosely as the "frontal lobes" or the "executive system" -- that area of the brain sitting behind your forehead. He also refers to the frontal lobes/prefrontal cortex as being primarily "inhibitory", meaning that instead of the activity of the executive system being dedicated to Getting Stuff Done (e.g., movements, sensory activity) it tends to be more actively Stopping Unnecessary Stuff (e.g., distractions, impulsive actions, attention-wandering, anger outbursts, emotional extremes...). So I'm hoping you can see how important it is to have those frontal lobes in gear to get you where you need to be! Anyway, enough from me. Here he is....   more »

This is a fun little video of 2.5+ minutes that carries a serious message about taking the time to appreciate the good in your life. Once I saw it, I just wanted to share it! And imagine the joy if everyone were doing it -- now, that's a wonderful form of social contagion!   more »

Not all in your head of course. But it's there.... Surging hormones...dysregulation (or at least a "re-setting" of the system)... And if you've experienced menopause and its hot flashes, you know you feel like your brain isn't functioning on all cyclinders. (Many women say the same thing about being pregnant, but that's a little different story than this one.) I find menopause fascinating from a neurofeedback perspective. Let me share with you an "inside" view of the brain during hot flashes and you'll see what I mean about menopause being firmly in your head!   more »

I haven't really talked on my blog about the emWave personal trainer recently released by the HeartMath Institute. It's handy little device that you can use to practice heart coherence without having to have a computer on and that lets you wander as you practice. I have been using it with my clients and they have found it a useful addition to training sessions. So much so, that several have asked to purchase the extras I have for use in group classes. So what's all the buzz about? I recently saw a great review of the emWave personal heart coherence training tool on a The Gadgeteer. This is wonderful review of the emWave with great pictures and a quick video so you can see its use. The one comment I want to make in clarification is...   more »

Lately, I have become more and more interested in what the psychology world calls "positive psychology" -- the research related to what goes right in life and strategies for how to maximize feeling good about one's life instead of psychology's tendency to always be focusing on the negative -- what's wrong with you, what needs fixing, etc. From my perspective, our brains (head and heart!) are just as involved in what goes right. In fact, the more evolved areas of our brain are related to positive feelings and thoughts...   more »

While driving to the office today, I heard a story on 680 News (that's a Toronto all-news radio station, for those of you not in the Toronto region -- I just wanted the weather report....really!) about chronic work stress. It is an increasing problem for many people who are not feeling very satisfied with their work life. Part of the story was an interview with a woman who identified her top work stress as the comumute to get there. And she's not alone, apparently. So what do we do about it?   more »

I saw an article today that emphasized for me why we should always try to look at alternatives to medication for chronic problems such as headaches.   more »

I've been planning a series of posts on the importance of including the heart in our personal evolution efforts.

"The heart?", you may say, "what's that got to do with neurofeedback??" -- Stay tuned for the answer to that one!

Anyway,  today I came across this quote and thought it miught whet your appetite if I shared it with you.

Mind and heart are only different aspects of us.

- Gary Zukav, The Dancing Wu Li Masters 

In posts to come, I'll be expanding more on the science and practice of learning to really Listen to our Heart.

The on-line Discovery Channel has a great little article on what makes people resistant to stress. I'll give you a quick summary so we can go on...   more »