How to change sleep quickly
Let's say you often take an hour to fall asleep. Or that it's difficult to wake up. Can that be changed quickly, even if it's a long term pattern in your life?
It turns out when you do neurofeedback training, sleep is usually the first thing people notice changes. Every clinician notes this - not with all clients, but the vast majority. It's not unusual to hear reports of changes within one, two or three 30 minute sessions. We've seen many notice changes within a 15 minute session if they are sensitive to training. Note - none of the effects will last after one session more than 1-2 days usually. But if you continue to train till the brain learns the new pattern, you can influence longer term changes in sleep.
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Activation: Put the electrode at C3 (see chart). Train the person at that site for 30 minutes at 15-18 hz, which is a frequency that activates. That means the client is rewarded (for example, get beeps) when they make more of the 15-18 hz eeg amplitude. More beeps lets you know when you're doing well.
This training usually produce a more alert, awake, activated state. That training tends to help people wake up more quickly who tend struggle to get up in morning. It can also affect other patterns.
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Fall asleep faster by doing right side training. Training C4 at 12-15 hz tends to be is a calming frequency. If someone takes an hour to quiet their mind or body enough to fall asleep, this training will often help them fall asleep much faster. Think of C4 12-15 hz as quieting the system down. As their brain learns that pattern, they are helping their brain to learn to shift gears and quiet itself more quickly. It's remarkable how fast the brain can learn and respond to this pattern.
Train the wrong frequency can also affect sleep. Given what you've read, what might happen if you trained for 30 minutes C3 15-18 hz (activation) on someone who has a hard time slowing down at night> Could it make it HARDER to fall asleep? You bet. And it does. So if you don't carefully assess you client, you might initially train the wrong side. Of course, you'll both know by the next visit to switch things around.
If you train someone that struggles to wake in the morning for 30 minutes at C4 12-15 hz reward. Low and behold, they could have a much harder time waking in the morning.
On rare occasion, people who come to neurofeedback courses scoff at this idea of such a fast change, and believe it's placebo. Usually, no one tries to convince them. A little extra training on the right side - or the wrong side, helps them observe change experientially.