When someone has been part of a terrifying, often life-threatening event or trauma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can develop. Common causes include combat, physical or sexual assault, childhood or domestic abuse, serious accidents, torture or death. Usually with the right support or care, trauma can be managed, but sometimes it can continue for months and years and drastically influence daily life. Symptoms include emotional reactions, flashbacks and nightmares, negative uncontrollable thoughts and severe anxiety. Those experiencing PTSD often avoid certain environments, activities and events, and they tend to self-medicate to manage emotional pain. As a consequence, isolation, addiction and suicide rates are significantly higher in PTSD sufferers.

Those with PTSD regularly need mood stabilizers and other types of prescription medications to function. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Hypnotherapy, Exposure and MDMA guided therapy are some of the more popular non-pharmacological treatment modalities. Yoga, Meditation, exercise and healthy diet can also help with management of the condition. However, many patients are looking for alternatives as they do not want the disorder to impact their lives forever. For those not opting for Physical, Psychological or Pharmacological interventions, medication-free Neurofeedback (NF) is a suitable option.

In relation to brain wave activity, research has shown that some PTSD patients display similar EEG characteristics. Due to the high incidence of PTSD in combat veterans (estimated 15-20%), the bulk of literature involves this demographic. Common traits include increases in slow wave theta centrally, low alpha power (Jokic-Begic & Begic, 2003) and elevated beta, especially in frontal regions (Begic et al, 2001). With respect to Neurofeedback for treatment of PTSD, research is not abundant, but promising. Positive feedback was given in a Meta-Review by Panish and Hai (2020), where the majority of patients across 10 relevant studies showed some level of improvement. A more recent Meta- Analysis of 7 EEG based Neurofeedback studies from 2011-2021 was conducted. The authors concluded that EEG based NF was more effective than fMRI in both diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic stress (Hong & Park, 2022). Future trials with improved parameters are still required to establish the efficacy of the modality.

How QEEG and Neurofeedback can help

Deviant electrical activity unique to the patient is identified in the QEEG results and can then be targeted in the personalized treatment protocol. QEEG Metrics in intensity/power, frequency/speed and coherence are measured in brain regions and compared to population databases. In addition to training atypical patterns seen in the individualized QEEG, the Z-score swLORETA Neurofeedback software offers various PTSD protocols to trial. US based Neuroguide protocols feature a combination of metrics encompassing well researched theories related to the disorder. Training metrics include those directed at normalizing specific brain regions. For example, studies indicate that the volume of the hippocampus is frequently reduced in PTSD patients (Nelson and Tumpap, 2016) and the Amygdala, enlarged. Plenty of research has shown that synaptic loss occurs from a prolonged stress response, so stress pathways are also incorporated into general protocols. More recent research has identified irregularities in large scale networks (the triple network theory) and their role in PTSD and other Neuro-psychiatric disorders (Menon.,V, 2011; Akiki et al., 2017,2018; Koch et al., 2016; King et al.,2016). This is particularly exciting because Neuroguide software has the ability to train and modify activity in these networks, called the central executive network (CEN), default mode network (DMN) and Salience network (SN). The Default Mode Network (DMN) in particular, is believed to be disrupted in PTSD patients, causing dissociative symptoms (Cipriani et al, 2017, Watts et al.,2013).

The training software discourages the atypical response and promotes the preferred pattern. Rewiring usually occurs after a number of sessions and enables the healthier pattern to gradually overpower the dysfunctional pattern. The best outcome is when maps become green, reflecting a balanced and flexible brain. This sometimes happens after a number of different protocols are explored. It is not unusual for overall health to stabilize when the maps normalize or become greener. For example, when PTSD symptoms reduce, other conditions like anxiety and depression can also dissipate.

Note :NDIS approved participants may be eligible for capacity building funding - please confirm with NDIS coordinator prior to booking.