Identifying Anxiety Disorders

There are several kinds of recognized panic disorders and suffers across the nation, especially in largely populated areas where life is fast paced. There are a range of anxiety treatment options for residents of the Port Washington, NY area – one being BrainCore’s revolutionary neurofeedback therapy. It’s important to understand the different signs and symptoms so you know when it’s a matter that needs to be addressed by a doctor. The following is a list of the different disorders and the treatments available.

Types of Panic Disorders

Anxiety is really a natural human emotion and feeling anxiety every now and then when dealing with challenges at home or the office is totally normal. However, when a person experiences a panic disorder, their lives are completely disrupted. The attacks can be constant and overwhelming. It’s important that those that suffer with a panic disorder find a treatment that works for his or her specific disorder. Back to life Chiropractic in Port Washington offers a natural treatment option for panic disorders including the following:

·         Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - Individuals with this Obsessive-compulsive disorder have repeated and undesirable ideas, feelings, actions, or obsessions which make them feel driven to do certain rituals or do things in a certain manner.

·         Panic Attacks - Individuals with this problem have sudden feelings of terror and fear that occur with virtually no warning. Physical signs and symptoms include heart palpitations, trouble breathing, sweating, chest discomfort, and also the sense of cardiac arrest.

·         Fears (Phobias) - Phobic individuals have a persistent and irrational anxiety about a particular object or situation. The amount of fear is generally disproportionate towards the situation, and frequently interferes with the person leading an ordinary existence.

Signs and symptoms

The signs and symptoms of panic disorders vary with respect to the type of disorder. Here are a few key items to watch for:

·         Excessive worrying or anxious ideas

·         Trouble falling, or remaining, asleep

·         Overwhelming self-awareness

·         Irrational fears

·         Near-constant muscle tension

·         Stress attacks

Just because you show one of these symptoms, doesn't always mean you are having a panic attack. If you think that you might have a panic disorder, consult your physician.

Treatments

There are several treatments available for panic disorders; however, not every treatment works for everyone. You need to discuss the different remedies with your physician in order to insure you find a method that works for you. The different treatments available are:

·         Medication - Drugs such as MAO inhibitors and anxiety medications are generally recommended for panic disorders; however, they also carry a risk of dependence and unwanted side effects.

·         Psychiatric therapy - This type of therapy involves working with a mental health professional who will help the individual develop methods to cope with their disorder.

·         Cognitive- Behavior Therapy - This type of therapy concentrates on teaching the individual to acknowledge their disorder and to learn to alter thoughts and behaviors in order to eventually stop themselves before they have a panic attack.

Neurofeedback Therapy - This helps to retrain brainwave designs using an EEG machine. Neurofeedback therapy has no side effects and is completely non-invasive.

·         Nutritional Habits and Changes In Lifestyle – Changing certain dietary behaviors, such as staying away from caffeine and alcohol, eating organic meals, and keeping an ordinary sleep schedule can considerably improve panic disorders. Being aware of your body and staying away from unnecessary demanding situations can assist in combating these disorders.

If you are a resident of the Port Washington area and you feel that you may be suffering from a panic disorder, contact your local BrainCore clinic. You can call us: 516-944-4469 or visit our website http://braincoreny.com/

Mapping Madness: What qEEG Analysis Reveals About the Schizophrenic Brain

Schizophrenia is a well-known disorder, and it affects around 1% of the population nationwide; however, it is not yet fully understood from a scientific perspective. First documented in the 19^th century as dementia praecox, it was later renamed schizophrenia, from the Greek words for “split mind.” Historically, schizophrenia has often had a poor prognosis, but findings in the neuroscience of schizophrenia have illuminated potential new treatments that could be more effective than the antipsychotics and atypical antipsychotics that have traditionally been used to manage the disorder. qEEG studies have revealed that brainwave dysregulation is a major factor in schizophrenia, leading to the intriguing possibility that neurofeedback therapy could be used to treat this debilitating condition. Luckily for residents in the New York area there are several BrainCore clinics that specialize in neurofeedback for schizophrenia. 

The Problems with Pharmaceutical Schizophrenia Treatment 

Schizophrenia is usually treated with prescription medications. Currently, a class of drugs called atypical antipsychotics is used most often; examples are Seroquel and Risperdal. These are considered to have a lesser side effect profile than earlier antipsychotics, such as Thorazine and Halperidol, which could cause extrapyramidal side effects similar to the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Drugs for schizophrenia work by blocking dopamine receptors in the brain. Although drugs that work on these receptors were known to be effective before evidence was produced to support the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia, more recent research has verified that excess dopamine availability is a factor in schizophrenia.

Antipsychotics and atypical antipsychotics are usually effective for some symptoms and types of schizophrenia, but not always. In schizophrenia, there are two classes of symptoms:

·         positive symptoms

·         negative symptoms

Positive symptoms include hallucinations, delusions, and other traits that are absent in normal individuals but present in those with schizophrenia. Negative symptoms include poverty of speech, apathy, lack of motivation, anhedonia (the inability to experience pleasure), and other normal features that are absent in schizophrenic individuals. Antipsychotics tend to be successful for treating positive symptoms; however, the negative symptoms of schizophrenia, the onset of which is often insidious, often prove more intractable despite medication. Neurofeedback therapy guided by qEEG mind mapping could be a promising modality for managing negative symptoms of schizophrenia and related disorders.

  

qEEG Mind Mapping of Schizophrenia 

Research into the neurophysiology of schizophrenia using qEEG (quantitative encephalography), an imaging technique that uses software to perform calculations to compare EEG readings of an individual to databases in order to look for abnormalities, has produced new findings about brainwave dysregulation in schizophrenia. Mind mapping of schizophrenia brains has revealed poor self-regulation of brainwave frequencies, as well as hemisphere asymmetry, a type of brainwave dysregulation found in different forms in many brain-based disorders in New York. Specifically, researchers have found that schizophrenic individuals show decreased alpha activity, but increased beta, theta, and delta activity. Research has also elucidated differences in brainwave regulation that distinguish schizophrenia from depression, making qEEG mind mapping a potentially useful biomarker and diagnostic tool for determining that a person has schizophrenia rather than another psychotic condition, such as depression with psychotic features.

Although researchers have yet to carry out enough large-scale, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials to confidently declare the efficacy of qEEG-guided neurofeedback therapy for schizophrenia, case studies that have been published thus far have produced very promising results. Furthermore, analysis of qEEG mind mapping data of schizophrenic patients on their antipsychotic medications reveals that medications result in the normalization of the neural dysregulation. This could mean that using qEEG mind mapping to plan neurofeedback therapy for schizophrenia could present an effective alternative to antipsychotics, minus the many negative side effects of the drugs. For more information or to schedule a consultation with your local BrainCore clinic visit our website or call: 516-587-7810

Mortality Risks of Medication for Insomnia Treatment

Beginning in the 20^th century, it became quite common in Port Washington to prescribe various sleep-inducing medications to patients who complained of subjective insomnia. Originally, the medications of choice were barbiturates and benzodiazepines. In later years, these classes of drugs were supplanted by non-benzodiazepine sedative-hypnotics, such as Ambien and Lunesta, which were recognized as carrying a lesser risk of addiction and overdose. In 2010, an estimated 6% to 10% of the national population was prescribed one of these drugs for treating their insomnia.

Although Ambien and Lunesta remain a popular choice for insomnia treatment in Port Washington, numerous studies have produced evidence of significant health and mortality risks associated with long-term use of these medications, especially in elderly patients. 

1979: Sedatives Recognized as Cancer Risk—A Fact Summarily Swept Under the Rug 

Back in 1979, the American Cancer Society’s landmark Cancer Prevention Study 1 came to the conclusion that, without a doubt, cigarettes cause cancer. You may not know, however, that the same study also concluded that long-term use of hypnotic medications were just as strongly associated with excessive deaths. Because the study was not initially designed to study these drugs, these results were conveniently ignored. Since then, numerous studies have affirmed that there are risks associated with long-term use of hypnotic medications.

These medications are much safer when used in the short term; the real risks are with long-term chronic use. 

Why Is Long-Term Chronic Use of Insomnia Medication So Risky? 

Scientists have not yet fully determined the causes of the mortality risks of long-term hypnotic use for insomnia treatment. Some of the effects that may contribute to the risks of chronic sedative-hypnotic use include:

·         Impaired coordination, reaction time, memory, and alertness, which may increase the risk of falls and accidents, especially with the elderly.

·         Medication for insomnia treatment may depress the respiratory system. This could aggravate sleep-related breathing disorders, especially in people with a history of COPD or heart problems.

·         People who have difficulty sleeping may additionally self-medicate using alcohol or other depressant drugs, which intensify the effects of sedative-hypnotics and benzodiazepines to an extent that can potentially be dangerous.

Are There Safer Alternatives to Medication for Insomnia in Port Washington? 

Researchers involved in studies confirming the mortality risks of long-term use of sleep medication recommend that the public be informed of the risks of hypnotic sleep medication, and that physicians should take care in prescribing these medications—especially to elderly patients. The researchers also recommend that physicians discuss non-pharmacological alternatives with their patients.

There are several alternatives to medications for insomnia in Port Washington, many of which are strongly supported by clinical studies of their effectiveness. Some alternative treatments that may be safer than sleeping pills include:

·         Cognitive-behavioral therapy - a form of psychotherapy that focuses on identifying thoughts and behaviors that contribute to problems like insomnia and anxiety. Many people in Port Washington have trouble sleeping because they’re stressed, have poor sleep hygiene habits, or because of other reasons that can be remedied through changes in behavior.

·         Herbs and supplements - such as melatonin and valerian root, are effective for many people without the risks and side effects associated with synthetic pharmaceuticals.

·         Neurofeedback therapy - now available in the Port Washington area, is one of the most promising alternatives to pharmaceuticals for insomnia treatment, as well as anxiety and a host of other brain-based conditions. Neurofeedback therapy uses EEG neuroimaging to identify and correct brainwave dysregulation in certain areas of the brain, which has been identified as a key factor in insomnia.

Long-term use of sleeping pills, including benzodiazepines like Xanax and non-benzodiazepine sedative-hypnotics like Ambien and Lunesta, has been shown to be associated with higher risk of mortality and may be dangerous. Better options for long-term insomnia treatment include CBT, herbal remedies, and neurofeedback therapy. These may be much safer and more appropriate choices of treatment for Port Washington insomniacs.

NEUROFEEDBACK FOR INSOMNIA