This lecture shows how trauma directly affects the developing brain, and specific brain functions responsible for attention, concentration, regulating emotions and engaging in satisfying relationships. Even after receiving excellent therapy many traumatised children and adults continue to feel chronically on edge, scared, agitated, collapsed and helpless.
To deal with this they often try to cope with alcohol or drugs, while doctors prescribe a large variety of different medications that may make life more manageable but that also affect motivation and curiosity, and that rarely really resolve the problem.
We review the way trauma impacts on brain development and present our research on the potential of brain/computer interface devices, particularly EEG neurofeedback, to change habitual EEG patterns, and thereby attention, concentration and executive functioning.
This lecture reviews the recent developments in neuroscience as they relate to the treatment of PTSD and the effects that they have had on the recovery of traumatised individuals. Also, describing the acquisition of affect regulation and executive functioning through neurofeedback.