Healing the Core of Addiction Neurofeedback Therapy in Hawaii

Considering Neurofeedback Therapy at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab

At Exclusive Hawaii Rehab, we approach healing and change as a collaborative effort. We believe effective healing results from a partnership between a person, professionals, and peers in a healing community. Exploring various healing options is part of this journey, with neurofeedback being just one option to discuss. Neurofeedback is a therapeutic strategy that uses sensors to monitor brain activity and brainwaves to help a person more effectively regulate their brain functions, improve emotional regulation, reduce cravings, and challenge difficult and stressful thoughts, such as the continued effects of stress and trauma.

Being able to “see” how a person’s brain is working and responding to stress and difficult thoughts can be an important perspective in your healing journey. For some, this can help those in rehab better identify areas of emotional calm, increasing self-awareness and mindfulness practices. Others can use neurofeedback to identify when stresses may be affecting their brain, thought patterns, and emotional health. Recognizing brainwaves and patterns associated with anxiety, depression, panic, stress, and more can be the first step in taking control of these feelings and overcoming their effects, improving agency, cognition, and self-awareness. Effective use of neurofeedback also improves the brain’s neuroplasticity, or its ability to adapt to new stresses and change throughout your healing journey.

Exclusive Hawaii Rehab uses neurofeedback as an effective part of a comprehensive treatment program, having success in overcoming urges and cravings associated with addiction as well as addressing the underlying effects of trauma. Using neurofeedback therapy to identify calm, recognize stress, and further explore personal healing can empower you to understand your needs and goals in rehab, develop a personalized therapy program, and monitor continued success in other therapeutic techniques and opportunities with us, from proven therapies to medication and holistic healing options.

Safe and Supportive Therapy That Helps Heal Trauma

Neurofeedback is a non-invasive therapy program that can be instrumental in overcoming the underlying effects of trauma on the brain, behaviors, beliefs, and daily life. At Exclusive Hawaii Rehab, we understand that trauma and addiction can be closely related. Having a safe and supportive atmosphere to understand and address the underlying effects of trauma is crucial to a truly transformative approach to healing and sets the foundation for sustainable change.

Our trauma-informed approach to addiction and substance abuse rehab ensures that you have access to sympathetic professionals and a calming, supportive atmosphere to understand and overcome the deep-seated effects of trauma on your mental health and emotional wellness. Confronting the stresses of trauma can be difficult. Our atmosphere of supportive professionals and a caring community ensures that you feel safe and supported while putting in the hard work to address and overcome trauma, substance use disorder (SUD), or a combination of the two in your healing journey.

Why Healing From Trauma Is Important in Addiction and Mental Health Healing

Trauma, mental health needs, and addiction can be closely related, often informing each other in daily life. A traumatic experience can almost feel like it is “live” inside a person, bringing feelings of anxiety, depression, guilt, and much more, leading to a person looking for any way to push down these uncomfortable emotions and challenges. Drugs and alcohol can be a common and fast-acting way to forget about these stresses, leading to substance abuse and addiction as reliance on these substances to “feel better” becomes a regular practice or supplants other coping strategies, informing the development of the disease.

Underlying and unaddressed feelings of trauma can also lead to fundamental changes in the brain, bringing compromised self-worth or a persistent fight-or-flight response that can dictate daily life, relationships, and behaviors. Those who use drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism for traumatic experiences can also experience triggers related to these past events, bringing back feelings of fear, anxiety, panic, grief, and much more. Emotional numbness or feeling disconnected is also possible, with traumatic triggers then informing a person’s chances of engaging with drugs or alcohol again.

Rehab for just addiction or trauma can often leave holes in a person’s therapy program, and understanding not just each of their effects, but how they inform each other is crucial. Addressing the underlying factors of trauma is crucial for sustainable change. Addiction and trauma are closely related, and taking a comprehensive approach to healing from them is crucial. Exclusive Hawaii Rehab treats the person beneath the addiction, treating more than a collection of symptoms, but instead engaging in holistic, transformational care through education, sympathy, and a comprehensive healing program, with neurofeedback being an effective strategy in addressing the effects of trauma and addiction in tandem.

Neurofeedback Can Help a Traumatized Brain Heal

With trauma being a major factor in many people’s journey with addiction and rehab, neurofeedback can be a powerful option to explore to address both urges and cravings and the effects of trauma on the brain. Neurofeedback can help by:

• “Showing” the brain how it reacts to certain thoughts or stimuli to better understand and improve self-awareness
• Calms an overactive nervous system
• Improves skills to self-regulate mood and stress
• Identifying a centered feeling of calm and safety
• Reduces the brain’s fight-or-flight response to promote healthier sleep patterns and lower stress levels

Neurofeedback can also challenge symptoms like dissociation or hyperarousal caused by traumatic experiences by improving self-awareness and more effectively regulating emotions. Likewise, neurofeedback can also improve emotional resilience, empowering a person to “bounce back” from stressful situations without returning to self-destructive practices like substance abuse.

Neurofeedback Can Address Early Childhood Trauma

Trauma can affect a person at any point in their life. However, childhood traumas are especially impactful, affecting a person’s brain during their developmental years and fundamentally impacting their perspectives and worldview from a young age. Unresolved childhood trauma can also live with a person, continuing to inform daily life, behaviors, and mental health throughout adolescence and adulthood.

Addressing these deeply ingrained traumatic experiences is crucial for understanding a person’s relationship with addictive substances or their behaviors and beliefs, with neurofeedback providing a safe and supportive method and environment for addressing childhood trauma and its effects. Regular and effective use of neurofeedback can help reduce the intensity of traumatic memories and promote feelings of acceptance and control that are instrumental in overcoming these deep-seated experiences.

What to Expect in Neurofeedback Therapy at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab

While neurofeedback can be an amazing approach to healing for overcoming trauma, addiction, and addressing the impact of mental health needs in your recovery journey, knowing what to expect can be crucial for committing to this therapy program. At Exclusive Hawaii Rehab, we are prepared to work with you to understand and set appropriate expectations for neurofeedback therapy so that you can make the most of your time with us in rehab.

During neurofeedback therapy, you and a professional will discuss expectations and goals for this form of therapy, including exploring addiction, urges, cravings, and the effects of trauma, anxiety, depression, and more in daily life. Then, small sensors are placed on the scalp as you are seated in a comfortable environment. These sensors are what provide the “feedback”, measuring brain activity and brainwaves to understand how the brain is responding and affecting your nervous system, empowering you to explore these feelings and their relationship with your emotional health. This can help create a healthy state of emotional calm and identify when the brain may be acting differently when experiencing feelings of anxiety, depression, or other challenges.

While these sensors are active, you will be seated in front of a screen, showing various stimuli or a visual of your own brainwaves to see what a state of calm looks and feels like. These sessions last about 30 minutes to an hour, with multiple sessions a week. However, throughout this time, you will still be working alongside a professional to update goals and monitor changes throughout the therapy.

While neurofeedback can be an incredibly effective approach to healing, it may not provide immediate results, with multiple sessions being required before the effective change may be felt. However, neurofeedback is just a part of a comprehensive therapy program, being one element in a holistic healing effort. It is often combined with other forms of therapy, evidence-based practices, and holistic healing opportunities for a truly transformative approach to sustainable change and sobriety.

Neurofeedback Therapy Promotes Lasting Change

Addiction and trauma healing are long journeys, and there is no “quick fix” to either of these profound challenges. However, lasting change is always possible. Neurofeedback provides the skills and perspective necessary for a truly transformational approach to change, informing not just improved self-awareness and mindfulness strategies, but also building emotional resilience and relapse-prevention strategies in daily life.

Addiction recovery is a lifelong journey. Learning to navigate stress, triggers, and reminders of past challenges is difficult. Neurofeedback is an effective strategy that can help each person better understand sources of stress and their effects on the brain, behaviors, and decision-making. It can empower each person to maintain improved focus and promote healthy self-regulatory brain activity at any stage of recovery, from detox and residential care through ongoing outpatient and alumni support.

Creating a Comprehensive Program at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab

Neurofeedback therapy is a proven approach to healing from addiction, trauma, and co-occurring disorders. Having an opportunity to explore neurofeedback alongside other options can lead to a comprehensive approach to change. Exclusive Hawaii Rehab offers an array of therapy programs and opportunities to help you find the most robust and effective collection of strategies for a sustainable approach to healing.

Personalized Approach to Care

No two journeys overcoming addiction and trauma are the same. Your unique experiences, perspectives, needs, and goals all inform your best practices and needs in rehab. Exclusive Hawaii Rehab approaches each therapy program as a collaborative effort, with regular individual therapy sessions focused on your needs and progress, starting at your intake interview. We are prepared to work with you to find your best collection of practices or make adjustments and amendments throughout your time with us to make the most of your recovery efforts.

Healing is a difficult journey, and it can be impossible to know exactly what to expect or the challenges that may arise. Having a flexible, personalized plan for care and an opportunity to explore new ideas, perspectives, and activities can make all the difference in finding your best approach to sustainable, transformational change.

Unique Features of Therapy at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab

Exclusive Hawaii Rehab offers a community of sympathetic peers and professionals ready to create an accepting healing environment. We also blend proven, evidence-based therapy options like cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mindfulness-based stress reduction, and more into holistic healing programs, all using the unique advantages of Hawaiian rehab and healing.

An array of holistic therapies is always available to further personalize your therapy program with us for a robust approach to change and healing. These opportunities include:

• Meditation
• Yoga
• Breathwork
• Acupuncture
• Sound baths
• Massage therapy

We also offer many nature-based and oceanic healing opportunities, from nature walks to surf therapy, to experience the healing energies of the water. Horticulture therapy is also championed as a way to get directly involved with the healing potential of Hawaii, serving as both a way to give back, and to leave something behind in your healing journey, making Exclusive Hawaii Rehab a unique place to explore new ideas and holistic healing while integrating into the healing energies of Hawaii and its culture.

Each of these programs and more can be combined with neurofeedback sessions, ensuring you can address addiction, urges, cravings, trauma, and mental health needs in tandem in a variety of different ways to find your best combination of strategies.

Frequently Asked Questions About Neurofeedback Therapy

Frequently Asked Questions About Neurofeedback Therapy

Neurofeedback is an effective approach to healing, but each person’s own experience will still be unique. Addressing some common questions can help you determine if it is right for you, or take a moment to speak to one of our professionals about the advantages of neurofeedback in your healing journey.

Does insurance cover neurofeedback?

Insurance coverage can vary greatly between different plans, and while some plans may cover neurofeedback, others may not. Calling your insurance provider or talking with a professional at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab about the world of insurance can be the best approach to exploring what is covered by insurance and what financial obligations you can expect.

Does neurofeedback work for ADHD?

Neurofeedback has had success in addressing ADHD, improving focus, and helping to calm the nervous system to challenge racing thoughts and other challenges. However, it is still best used in combination with other strategies and is not a whole replacement for other forms of therapy as a standalone treatment.

Can neurofeedback cause brain damage?

No, neurofeedback is not linked to causing brain damage. While the therapy does involve monitoring brainwaves, it is a completely safe and non-invasive form of therapy that poses no risk of brain damage.

Can you do neurofeedback at home?

Yes, there are some ways to engage in neurofeedback at home. However, there is no replacement for professionals or a curated recovery and healing setting. Likewise, working with professionals can help you set goals and expectations and continue to evolve your therapy program for the most effective results. If you are considering using neurofeedback at home, engaging in a professional neurofeedback program first can be instrumental in further familiarizing yourself with the practice, making sure it is an effective approach for you, and developing a healthy and effective daily routine to use it.

Likewise, even those engaging in neurofeedback at home after learning about the practice through professionals like those at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab should still engage in other effective therapies, including outpatient support, aftercare plans, and local support groups for managing sobriety and continuing to address the effects of trauma in daily life.

Overcoming addiction and trauma is challenging, and having support to explore how they inform each other and impact daily life is crucial. Neurofeedback at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab can be one option to explore trauma’s relationship with substance abuse in your life. Call to speak to us today at (808) 775-0200.