Symptoms of head injury reversed

Mario was a family man who was close to retirement. His life changed dramatically when a car crashed into him two years prior and he was knocked unconsicous for a few minutes and suffered a slight concussion. While he did not injure any other part of his body significantly, he began to notice mental changes. He began to recognize a loss of short-term memory, couldn't find words, and was frus­trated easily. He started hating his job and complained a lot about problems with their children and grandchildren, which he never did before. His wife noted that he was frighteningly forgetful, had a string of new automobile accidents, neglected all aspects of his health, and was constantly tired. She attributed these symptoms to depression, as he had been taking an anti-depressant medication for the previous 5 years.

Neither Mario, his wife, nor his doctors attributed his new difficulties to the accident. Mario simply thought he was "go­ing down hill due to old age”. Since the accident, he had become very somber and nothing was funny. He would put on his pajamas at five in the evening, his wife would bring him his dinner, and then he would sleep. Later in the evening he would wake in a state of disorientation and begin to dress, without being able to articulate what he was thinking or planning.

Mario's wife finally had enough and insisted he seek treatment. Mario reluctantly called me for an appointment. He was relieved to find that there was help for his condition, although he was skeptical at first. He responded rapidly to neurofeedback using the Neuropathways unit.

One of the first changes that his wife noticed as a result of NFB was that he began to laugh out loud. At the end of 8 sessions, Mario's sense of humor was fully restored. Mario began to enoy his family again and started engaging in projects with his grandchildren. He started taking a walk every evening with Ruby and she expressed joy that she was not alone in a marriage any more, but rather had a fully engaged companion.

Before, Mario had periods of rage with little provocation, which were intensely upsetting to his wife. Although he was never violent, he would scream, yell, stomp around, throw tools, and was almost completely out of control. After NFB training, his wife reported he never lost his temper anymore, never screamed, or stomped around. Mario instead became very considerate and attentive to others.

Before, he had severe difficulties getting organized and couldn't concentrate on necessary tasks. He struggled to keep up with a bare minimum of work on his house and on his job. Mario struggled to complete what he now regards as simple re­ports, often having to stay up all night to get the job done. After NFB, he now finds that this same volume of work is not at all problematic.

Before, he had become "disoriented and aimless". He and his wife worried if these symptoms could be attributed to early Alzheimer's disease. He found himself excessively daydream­ing and often had extreme lethargy. At his work, he would sometimes lose track of what he was doing, and had difficulty sustaining attention. His memory was poor. He had difficulty getting organized. As a result, his job was at risk. Although he had worked a lifetime, had a strong work ethic and excellent performance, he was now unable to complete his responsibilities and had been written up for poor work performance. After NFB training none of these behaviors were problematic. His energy improved, he could concentrate again, and his work performance returned to its former level. He stopped hating his job and stopped focusing on the day he could retire.

Before, he was an extreme worrier. He became very upset when things did not go his way or were out of place. He had the tendency to say “no" first before considering the possibilities, and would predict negative out­comes. He rated his depression as unremitting. Following NFB training, all these problems were dramatically diminished. His depression was completely gone.

Mario and his physicians appear to have mistakenly attributed symptoms of unrecognized brain injury and depression to age-related cognitive decline. Following 8 neurofeedback trainings, Mario's difficulties with word-finding, memory, concentration, attention, and organization improved dramatically. He had very significant elevation in mood and in his capacities for self-control, fun, humor, and his ability to fully engage in his relationships were restored. Mario became much less negative and irritable. His explosive outbursts disappeared and his relationships with his wife, family, and work were restored to his previous level of functioning.