A Symphony in the Brain: The Evolution of the New Brain Wave Biofeedback
by Jim Robbins
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Book Summary Information
Author: Jim RobbinsEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Published)
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2000-05
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 260
Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Press
Book Reviews of A Symphony in the Brain: The Evolution of the New Brain Wave Biofeedback
Book Review: still a great intro to neurofeedback
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the first book I read about neurofeedback, when it had just come out and I was just going into training as a neurofeedback therapist myself. Now, seven years later, although I've read most of the books out there on neurofeedback, this is still the basic one I recommend to potential clients when they want to know what neurofeedback is, how it works, and how it might help them or their kids get or stay off Prozac, Ritalin, etc. or just have better moods, better focus, better health.
It's written by a journalist, not a scientist, not a therapist. It tells stories of people who successfully used neurofeedback to help them with brain damage, ADD, mood disorders, drug abuse, etc. It tells the story of the author himself getting neurofeedback therapy. It tells the history of neurofeedback and discusses why neurofeedback has had such a hard time getting accepted by the medical establishment. There is definitely a "Wow!" element to the book: "Can you believe this therapy works this well?", which is partly there because it enhances the story and partly because neurofeedback really does very frequently lead to amazing results. I find the stories interesting and the book compelling, well-written, and easy to read.
The book is not meant to be either an objective review of research or a technical manual for how to do neurofeedback. People wanting those will be frustrated by this book. Even if it had focused on technical aspects, the material would be out of date by now. Other books, web sites, and journal articles have these (and, yes, there is by now lots of research showing the clinical effectiveness of neurofeedback).
But for people wanting to understand whether neurofeedback might be useful for themselves or their kids, and what they might experience if they do neurofeedback therapy, I recommend this book highly.
Elizabeth Walker, Ph.D. www.seattleneurofeedback.com
Summary of A Symphony in the Brain: The Evolution of the New Brain Wave Biofeedback
Imagine a procedure versatile enough to treat epilepsy, autism, attention deficit disorder, addictions, and depression with no drugs or side effects; to bring patients out of vegetative states; and to improve everything from golf scores to opera singers' voices. These are only some of the claims made for neurofeedback, a controversial but effective treatment that is revolutionizing the way an incredibly diverse range of medical and psychological conditions are treated. In A Symphony in the Brain, Jim Robbins traces the fascinating, untold story of the development of neurofeedback, from its discovery by a small corps of research psychologists, to its growing application across the country and around the world, to present battles for acceptance in the conservative medical world. Offering a wealth of powerful case studies, accessible scientific explanations, and dramatic personal accounts, Robbins journeys through a remarkable field, which he brings to the public eye for the first time.Can you fix your own neurologic problems without resorting to drugs? Science writer Jim Robbins suggests that some such conditions--like epilepsy, autism, and depression--could yield to a recently developed technique called neurofeedback. His book A Symphony in the Brain describes the process, its evolution from the 1970s fad of biofeedback, its practitioners, and some of its success stories. Using computers to quickly provide information on real-time EEG, practitioners train patients to control global or local brain states--or so the theory goes. Unfortunately for its proponents, there are still no rigorous research data showing conclusive results. Robbins makes a good case that the lack of research is due more to scientific turf battles and a drug-dependent medical establishment than to any fault of neurofeedback. Some of the case studies he explores, of children and adults brought out of comas or trained to reduce their epileptic seizure frequency, suggest that we ought to look more deeply and rigorously into the technique. Whether it works can only be determined by controlled studies, which may be forthcoming. In the meantime, Robbins provides contact lists and additional research information for interested readers, as well as the inspiration to pursue a potentially life-saving treatment. --Rob Lightner
Neuropsychology Books
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