January 25th, 2016
Today was an exciting day. I visited Carol Williams in North Augusta to try Neurofeedback. I have read quite a bit about it but I still wasn't sure what to expect. I would like to share this experience with you.
In July 2014, after the car accident, my brain had a concussion and needed a lot of rest. I went for a year of physiotherapy and slept a lot. Then I started drinking more coffee to give me the energy to get through the day. I recently started working out at the gym to help heal my body. Most of the symptoms have gone away but I do get dizzy quite often and I reach a point, every day, where I hit a wall of fatigue and can't go any further. Unfortunately, my daughters don't understand this and, as they insist that they are not tired and beg me to stay up later, I get grumpy. I don't have the energy to negotiate with them or play with them. I say: "I'm done. I love you. Go to bed. I'll see you in the morning".
I was hoping neurofeedback would help my brain so I could experience less dizziness and fatigue. Carol uses the NeurOptimal System. She showed me someone's brain map and explained that each side represents one of the brain's hemispheres. The graph helped to visualize the level of activity in different parts of the brain and, whether there was more activity on one side of the brain or not. I sat in a cozy chair and she draped a thick, warm blanket over my lap. She then placed some sensors on either side of my head and onto my ears. She took a baseline reading which took 15 seconds with my eyes open and 15 seconds with my eyes closed. I saw a squiggly line across the screen. I was given ear buds and she checked the volume of the music. It was perfect. She presented two options: 1-watch the graph lines move on the screen of her computer or, 2-watch a moving kaleidoscope of colour, also on her computer screen. I chose the kaleidoscope. There were circles growing and shrinking, one expanding, the other swallowing itself, dots crossing the screen, vibrating squares, all in a variety of colours, very psychedelic.
The music was meditative, instrumental and, put me in a bit of a trance. Carol left the room but informed me that I could knock on the wall or call out for her if I wished to stop the session prematurely for any reason. I was quite comfortable, watching the computer screen and listening to music. The session lasted just under 35 minutes. Carol returned and took another reading with eyes open and eyes closed. Some of the spikes had softened and the second line was much lower, indicating that I was very relaxed.
Throughout the session, periodically, I would hear a bit of static. This is when my brain was getting distracted. The static is a cue to the brain to bring it back to the task at hand. This is like a workout for your central nervous system, increasing your brain's plasticity and improving its functioning. Most people notice an improvement within six weeks. You generally go to one session per week and the amount of sessions you'll need depends on the individual. On one website, www.zengar.com, they suggest 20 sessions to deal with current issues and 30+ sessions for early life problems.
Neurofeedback is helpful for a variety of challenges from ADD/ADHD and Autism to Insomnia and depression. It has been used for Ptsd, anxiety and brain injuries and, is recommended to treat chronic pain as well. Some people stop the treatments once they obtain the results they want, others space out their sessions to monthly appointments.
Carol says some people feel energized after a session and others feel relaxed. I was definitely in the latter category. I felt like I might fall asleep during treatment. Carol suggested we prop my head with a pillow next time so I can sit back and sleep. I was yawning as we chatted after my appointment. The appointment was just over two hours ago and I am feeling calm and energized. I am going back next week for more healing. I should mention that Carol herself is very calm and gentle, friendly and non-judgemental. She answered all of my questions patiently and did not pressure me to book any additional sessions.
If you would like to learn more about Neurofeedback or try it for yourself, go to www.cwilliams.ca.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
Showing posts with label chronic pain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chronic pain. Show all posts
Monday, 25 January 2016
Tuesday, 12 January 2016
Creativity-Art Therapy
January 12th 2016
I've received a few e-mails asking me to define art therapy. I wrote about residents with dementia yesterday and people were asking what this work is all about. Art therapy is a professional counselling service, using various forms of creativity to help people heal through self-expression, insight and self-awareness, self-exploration, intuition, experimentation and the externalization of painful life experiences for which there are no words.
I initially trained as a verbal therapist at Ottawa University. I was fascinated by the way people process experiences and develop coping strategies. You can listen to someone's story and pinpoint the moment when they adopted behaviours that now define them. There is a reason for everything we do. The problem is we are not always aware of the things we do that get in our own way. Our friends and family who can observe us objectively have more insight into our behaviours and patterns. However, in order to protect us from this harsh truth, they often do not point them out to us. We keep repeating the same patterns with different people, frustrated and confused. We go to see a verbal therapist and try to sort it all out.
As a verbal therapist, I witnessed how often clients would walk in, tell me a myriad of stories which I would dutifully write down and respond to my questions as we progressed, putting together the various pieces of the puzzle. I felt quite satisfied with our work and my supervisor was pleased. By the third session, I would see the same pattern repeating itself. I would think, "We've already talked about this. She had that breakthrough last week. I thought she wasn't going to do that anymore". I talked to my supervisor who didn't share my concern. I realized I could not do this for a living. I need to see progress, not temporary progress but permanent change.
I read about art therapy and was immediately smitten with the connection it creates in people. Women who came in to talk about their painful issues could repeat their stories, without emotion, word for word. They had seen many therapists before and they knew their story like the back of their hand. Listening to the stories may have helped temporarily as I expressed compassion and responded to what they were saying, they were being heard. However, I expected more from therapy. Art therapy uses creative expression as well as verbal communication. The client is active from the very start. Clients choose the art materials, what to draw or paint, how much talking they want to engage in and, whether they want to talk as they create or only talk or only create or create then talk.
The art contains emotions. When working with my Survivors of Sexual Abuse group, I may start with a clay activity. I ask the participants to create a container, a receptacle to hold the overwhelming fears, emotions and memories for them. The art can be a mirror, showing me how a person responds to situations or how clients perceive themselves. An example of this would be the gentleman who'd suffered a stroke and struggled to create a portrait of a beautiful woman. He couldn't get her features right, they were not symmetrical and looked stretched. This clearly reflected his own frustrations about his face, he had lost control over one side of his body, the same side that was "not looking right" in the portrait. Lots of women criticize their work. As they paint or draw or sculpt, their inner monologue is externalized. "This looks dumb, I suck at this, a child could have done better". This allows me to question them about this monologue, to wonder where this voice came from and how much more fun this would be without the interruptions and judgements of this voice, It is the same voice that is interfering in other aspects of their lives.
Creative expression is very intimate and emotional. It cuts through the story to the core. The story about how many men have mistreated them turns into an image of a child crouching in the corner. Who is this child? The client recognizes herself as a child, hiding from her abusive father. There is a direct emotional connection, emotions are released. We get curious about what that child needs. Safety. We explore all the possible ways the client can provide safety for her inner child. There is a lot of guilt associated with the various ways this child has been neglected by her adult self, placed in dangerous situations, repeating the trauma. The client signs a contract, vowing to keep herself safe and eliminate people and behaviours that put her at risk. This is powerful work.
Creativity can also empower clients by serving as a tool for communication. When a couple comes in because they are ready to throw in the towel and I ask them to draw the problem, as they see it and, write down five adjectives to describe what they want for their relationship, they are both working together. They can "see" each other's point of view. They become aware of ways they have each hurt the other. They are surprised to see they want the same things: more time together, laughing, sex and less fighting. It's way easier to move forward when everyone is literally "on the same page".
Creative expression is cathartic. A young boy, diagnosed with ADHD, who is overwhelmed by his mother's anxiety, his father's anger and his brother's physical disabilities can pound the clay until it becomes soft and, relieved and relaxed, sculpt it into something beautiful. A 65 year old woman suffering from chronic pain can fill a body outline with various colours and textures and come face to face with the abortion she had 40 years ago. She cries and writes a letter to her unborn child and burns the outline, releasing her trauma. She leaves feeling lighter and "looser" in her body.
Creativity can help a group bond in a short amount of time. I see this in my groups. There is mutual support and compassion as they share how each person deals with the same issue. Feeling compassion for someone else with the same challenges engenders compassion for yourself as well. The art is also a safe place to plant the seeds of dreams for the future. Occasionally, I'll ask groups to create a collage of their ideal life in five years from now. They cut out images from magazines, write colourful words all around the images or affirmations. I then ask them to think of a song that represents the feeling state of this image. There is much giggling as they come up with quirky or sexy songs. The song helps them tap into this feeling state in the future, reminding them that they are on a path and they have already selected a destination.
Art therapy is the interaction between a compassionate professional, a brave, willing client and art materials. The materials have their own energy and appeal to different people. My role is to offer a safe place for people to connect with their own wisdom through non-verbal, creative expression. Their wisdom and intuition will lead them in the right direction. I get to witness their courage, their beauty and, ultimately, their healing.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
I've received a few e-mails asking me to define art therapy. I wrote about residents with dementia yesterday and people were asking what this work is all about. Art therapy is a professional counselling service, using various forms of creativity to help people heal through self-expression, insight and self-awareness, self-exploration, intuition, experimentation and the externalization of painful life experiences for which there are no words.
I initially trained as a verbal therapist at Ottawa University. I was fascinated by the way people process experiences and develop coping strategies. You can listen to someone's story and pinpoint the moment when they adopted behaviours that now define them. There is a reason for everything we do. The problem is we are not always aware of the things we do that get in our own way. Our friends and family who can observe us objectively have more insight into our behaviours and patterns. However, in order to protect us from this harsh truth, they often do not point them out to us. We keep repeating the same patterns with different people, frustrated and confused. We go to see a verbal therapist and try to sort it all out.
As a verbal therapist, I witnessed how often clients would walk in, tell me a myriad of stories which I would dutifully write down and respond to my questions as we progressed, putting together the various pieces of the puzzle. I felt quite satisfied with our work and my supervisor was pleased. By the third session, I would see the same pattern repeating itself. I would think, "We've already talked about this. She had that breakthrough last week. I thought she wasn't going to do that anymore". I talked to my supervisor who didn't share my concern. I realized I could not do this for a living. I need to see progress, not temporary progress but permanent change.
I read about art therapy and was immediately smitten with the connection it creates in people. Women who came in to talk about their painful issues could repeat their stories, without emotion, word for word. They had seen many therapists before and they knew their story like the back of their hand. Listening to the stories may have helped temporarily as I expressed compassion and responded to what they were saying, they were being heard. However, I expected more from therapy. Art therapy uses creative expression as well as verbal communication. The client is active from the very start. Clients choose the art materials, what to draw or paint, how much talking they want to engage in and, whether they want to talk as they create or only talk or only create or create then talk.
The art contains emotions. When working with my Survivors of Sexual Abuse group, I may start with a clay activity. I ask the participants to create a container, a receptacle to hold the overwhelming fears, emotions and memories for them. The art can be a mirror, showing me how a person responds to situations or how clients perceive themselves. An example of this would be the gentleman who'd suffered a stroke and struggled to create a portrait of a beautiful woman. He couldn't get her features right, they were not symmetrical and looked stretched. This clearly reflected his own frustrations about his face, he had lost control over one side of his body, the same side that was "not looking right" in the portrait. Lots of women criticize their work. As they paint or draw or sculpt, their inner monologue is externalized. "This looks dumb, I suck at this, a child could have done better". This allows me to question them about this monologue, to wonder where this voice came from and how much more fun this would be without the interruptions and judgements of this voice, It is the same voice that is interfering in other aspects of their lives.
Creative expression is very intimate and emotional. It cuts through the story to the core. The story about how many men have mistreated them turns into an image of a child crouching in the corner. Who is this child? The client recognizes herself as a child, hiding from her abusive father. There is a direct emotional connection, emotions are released. We get curious about what that child needs. Safety. We explore all the possible ways the client can provide safety for her inner child. There is a lot of guilt associated with the various ways this child has been neglected by her adult self, placed in dangerous situations, repeating the trauma. The client signs a contract, vowing to keep herself safe and eliminate people and behaviours that put her at risk. This is powerful work.
Creativity can also empower clients by serving as a tool for communication. When a couple comes in because they are ready to throw in the towel and I ask them to draw the problem, as they see it and, write down five adjectives to describe what they want for their relationship, they are both working together. They can "see" each other's point of view. They become aware of ways they have each hurt the other. They are surprised to see they want the same things: more time together, laughing, sex and less fighting. It's way easier to move forward when everyone is literally "on the same page".
Creative expression is cathartic. A young boy, diagnosed with ADHD, who is overwhelmed by his mother's anxiety, his father's anger and his brother's physical disabilities can pound the clay until it becomes soft and, relieved and relaxed, sculpt it into something beautiful. A 65 year old woman suffering from chronic pain can fill a body outline with various colours and textures and come face to face with the abortion she had 40 years ago. She cries and writes a letter to her unborn child and burns the outline, releasing her trauma. She leaves feeling lighter and "looser" in her body.
Creativity can help a group bond in a short amount of time. I see this in my groups. There is mutual support and compassion as they share how each person deals with the same issue. Feeling compassion for someone else with the same challenges engenders compassion for yourself as well. The art is also a safe place to plant the seeds of dreams for the future. Occasionally, I'll ask groups to create a collage of their ideal life in five years from now. They cut out images from magazines, write colourful words all around the images or affirmations. I then ask them to think of a song that represents the feeling state of this image. There is much giggling as they come up with quirky or sexy songs. The song helps them tap into this feeling state in the future, reminding them that they are on a path and they have already selected a destination.
Art therapy is the interaction between a compassionate professional, a brave, willing client and art materials. The materials have their own energy and appeal to different people. My role is to offer a safe place for people to connect with their own wisdom through non-verbal, creative expression. Their wisdom and intuition will lead them in the right direction. I get to witness their courage, their beauty and, ultimately, their healing.
Anne Walsh
www.artnsoul.org
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