Tag: biofeedback

Healing Power of Neurofeedback: The Revolutionary LENS Technique for Restoring Optimal Brain Function

Healing Power of Neurofeedback[rating:3/5]

I purchased this book based upon its title, “The Healing Power of Neurofeedback,” while noting its subtitle, “The Revolutionary LENS Technique. . .” To be honest, these are misleading as they should have been inverted. It would have been better to have named the book, “The Lens Technique: One Approach to Neurofeedback.” The book, sadly, reads like an infomercial for the “LENS Technique” created by Len Och and was written by one of his disciples, Stephen Larsen, who expounds upon the wonders of this interesting, but certainly controversial approach to neurofeedback that uses extremely low-level radio ways to help “drive” each individual’s EEG. Dr. Larsen constantly refers throughout his book something to the effect that “Len Och says this” or “Len Och says that.” It almost seems as if Len Och should have written the book, rather than Stephen Larsen. Interestingly, “treatments” are often no longer than one second (!) in length which would appear to be almost nothing.While the book contains some truly amazing stories where the LENS treatment has allegedly worked wonders, it does, as noted above, read like an advertisement for this approach. Unless this approach does provide a panacea for treating so many illnesses and disorders (which, for all I know, it may do), it would have been appropriate for Larsen to to adopted a more academic tenor as this is the introductory book on LENS.

Another disturbing factor is that neurofeedback DOES seem to offer many, many benefits that are not yet fully (or rightfully) recognized as a genuine treatment modality for a variety of health issues. It is for this reason, alone, that books that focus on various methods of neuro/biofeedback need to be extraordinarily cautious in reporting on their benefits. While Larsen, generally, attempted to do so, he did stray into areas that raise BIG RED FLAGS to those that are skeptical of Neurofeedback. Specifically, he discusses how the LENS allegedly helped bolster a patient’s “chakras,” may enhance “ESP”, and references questionable sources such as, “Vibrational Medication,” by Richard Gerber. Having just read Gerber’s book, my suggestion is that readers should RUN not walk from anything written by Gerber as he appears to be a real quack. It doesn’t serve the Neurofeedback community well to reference such New Age mumbo-jumbo.

While the book is, overall, quite interesting, I would very much like to see others conduct genuine studies on the efficacy of the LENS approach.

Symphony in the Brain: The Evolution of the New Brain Wave Biofeedback

Symphony in the Brain: The Evolution of the New Brain Wave Biofeedback[rating:5/5]

This was an absolutely fascinating book that reads like a true-life soap opera into the exciting history of bio/neurofeedback. I would recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn about the use of bio/neurofeedback and many of the major players who have explored this treatment modality for the past several decades.

While this book does not fully explore the science behind neurofeedback, it does provide an outstanding “non-academic” view for home trainers and newbies to the field. As it was written by a reporter, A Symphony in the Brain, is a very readable book. Without question, this book is a must read for those who want to examine the beginnings of this potentially great field, as well as take a look at the lives and ideas of those who remain at the core of professionals using neurofeedback today.