Brain Training FAQs
Everyone! Adults, teenagers, children, seniors, amateur & professional athletes, parents, professionals, educators, LEOs & First Responders, healthcare workers, caretakers, military personnel, veterans, highly sensitive persons (HSPs), anyone who feels they are not functioning at their personal best, and anyone under stress or highly affected by acute or chronic stress.
NeurOptimal® communicates directly with your central nervous system, offering it information about changes in its electrical functioning in real-time and reorienting it to the present moment. Instead of providing specific ‘direction’ to the brain, the world’s only non-linear dynamical neurofeedback® utilizes mathematical transformations that serve as a mirror to the brain & relies on your brain’s natural learning processes to correct itself toward its peak performance capabilities.
Developed & refined by Drs. Valdeane & Susan Brown for over two decades, NeurOptimal® is designed to tap into our brain’s intrinsic ability to self-organize and is often described as effortless power meditation. Many users notice a tangible relaxation response from a single session, particularly those who train routinely. As the brain (re)organizes itself to more efficient & effective operation, challenges and concerns seamlessly fall away for most people.
NeurOptimal® is an effortless, informational workout tool for your brain that promotes its peak performance capabilities. It’s the world’s only dynamical neurofeedback® for central nervous system self-regulation & optimization. A flexible, fit & healthy CNS contributes to our overall general wellness.
Exercising your brain can help promote or manage: stress, healthy sleep habits, performance anxiety, focus & concentration, mental acuity & brain fog, emotional regulation, mental chatter, mental & physical fatigue, memory & recall, coping skills, instruction following, problem solving, multitasking, positive mindset, hand-eye coordination, relaxation, confidence & self-esteem, and more.
Add brain training to your existing exercise routine for full mind-body wellness and reveal your best potential in your personal, professional, academic, & sporting pursuits.
Training frequency is completely client-directed. We recommend you start with one or two sessions per week. It’s important to find a training pace that feels right to you!
You can train daily, twice weekly, weekly, bi-weekly, or even monthly – whatever feels best to you. Shifts are often subtle & seamless so they may be harder to recognize with infrequent initial sessions and you may become less motivated to train. It’s best to commit to an initial training schedule, much like you would for a ‘Couch to 5K’ running program, in order to promote optimal training results.
Yes. Training shifts can and do stick. After your initial session series, it can be beneficial to return for “maintenance” or booster sessions in the studio or with a rental system as frequently as you desire. Your brain will respond more quickly in the future since it’s familiar with the training. Many experienced users feel noticeably more relaxed after a single, 33-minute session. Like massage therapy or chiropractic adjustments, some users train indefinitely since it can feel particularly supportive to them in maintaining their mental fitness & well-being.
You’ll be asked to complete progress tracking tools to document how you currently feel and are functioning in life before the bulk of your initial training. This is equivalent to how you might take a picture of yourself before you start a new physical fitness regimen or implement nutrition changes. We recommend that you revisit your tracking tools after each series of 10-15 sessions. It’s not uncommon for loved ones to notice your changes before you do! We encourage you to start asking yourself, “What’s different?” The answers to this question over time often reveal the changes we hope to experience with NeurOptimal® brain training.
Since shifts are often subtle and seamless, you may not recognize them right away. It’s fairly easy to note what’s not going well but can be much harder to recognize what IS going well. Some users notice their shifts immediately while others may notice shifts weeks or even months into or after training when sudden realizations come to light (i.e. you haven’t had a crying fit in weeks or you didn’t overreact in certain situations like you might have in the past). Once users recognize how supportive brain training can be for their mental fitness & well-being, the tracking tools are no longer necessary.
Yes. NeurOptimal® is completely noninvasive. It is purely a source of information for your brain about the changes in its electrical cortical activity. It does not induce or force changes to the brain or direct the response of your central nervous system. Your brain intrinsically course-corrects toward performance efficiency through its natural learning processes. Thousands of users of all ages including pregnant persons, babies, toddlers, teenagers, adults, and seniors around the world have collectively accumulated over four million training hours over the past two decades. The FDA has designated NeurOptimal® a low risk General Wellness Product.
Side-effects are attributable to something that has physiologically induced change (i.e. medication, entrainment, or vibration/electrical stimulation.) NeurOptimal® Dynamical Neurofeedback® does not ‘induce’ or force changes to the brain (central nervous system) since the training does not ‘augment or inhibit’ specific protocols or frequencies like other Linear neurofeedback systems.
While it may seem like there’s not much happening during a NeurOptimal® session, your brain is actually working quite hard processing information about itself! Some users may experience challenging perceptions when they begin training due to the increased challenge the training represents to the brain (like sore muscles after a body workout.) As your brain begins the optimization process, challenges you’ve experienced in the past *may* intensify for a time as your brain begins responding to the information NeurOptimal® provides. Challenging or undesirable perceptions, if any, generally resolve within a few sessions for most users. Consult the NeurOptimal® New User Resources webpage for a more in-depth explanation.
Your BTL Trainer facilitates your brain training sessions & makes the training easily available to you. The client (user) drives their training process, not the Trainer. Your Trainer may ask you questions to help you identify & recognize your training shifts.
It’s important to give the training process a chance to work! It’s best to be open to at least 10-15 sessions to start noticing your shifts. Twenty or more sessions promote optimal training outcomes. Since your central nervous system is doing all the work, we cannot predict how many sessions it will take for you to begin recognizing your shifts.
Some users notice shifts right away while others may need 20 sessions or more. Everyone is unique and your training experience will be unique to you. Once you complete an initial session series, it can be beneficial to return for in-studio or rental system tune-up sessions as frequently as you desire. Your brain will likely respond more quickly since it’s familiar with the training. Like massage therapy or chiropractic adjustments, some users train at their desired frequency indefinitely since it can feel particularly supportive to them in managing stress and maintaining their mental fitness & well-being.
NeurOptimal® has been designated a General Wellness Product by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) which means it meets two factors. It is: (1) intended for only general wellness use and (2) presents a low risk to the safety of users and other persons. It is NOT considered a medical device. Therefore, training sessions are not covered by health insurance. NeurOptimal® Dynamical Neurofeedback® is a unique, healthy lifestyle tool that’s a worthwhile investment in your mental fitness & well-being.
Relax while your brain gets a workout!
See what NeurOptimal® sessions are all about!
NeurOptimal® Dynamical Neurofeedback® has been designated a low-risk General Wellness Product by the FDA. It is intended for general wellness use only and is not considered a medical device, treatment, or therapy.