New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King’s College London has suggested that using neurofeedback to address self-blame in people experiencing non-anxious major depressive disorder (MDD) can help to lessen key symptoms.

While the study, published in Psychological Medicine, didn’t explicitly find neurofeedback to be a more effective approach than the comparative psychological intervention group, it was found to be a safe approach to managing depressive symptoms that warrants further investigation.

The investigation recruited 43 participants who were placed into two groups. One would receive guided training as a means of tackling self-blame, while the other group received similar care, but with the added aid of Functional MRI neurofeedback (fMRI).

Functional MRI Neurofeedback

Functional MRI (fMRI) neurofeedback provides individuals with a visual representation of their brain activity, giving participants information that would otherwise be outside of their awareness. A magnetic field is placed around a participant’s head, allowing investigators to read the blood flow signals emitted by the brain.

During the course of three sessions completed by 35 participants, they were asked to try and tackle their feelings of self-blame while thinking about personal memories. They were asked to select from a list of possible strategies such as thinking about why they might not have been able to control the outcome, being responsible for the outcome of an event, or thinking about being forgiven by a specific person or forgiving themselves.

The neurofeedback gives the individual an indication of which of these strategies has the best chance of changing their brain signals in the desired way.

Neurofeedback Training & Depression

The investigation established that both approaches were found to be an effective means of reducing depressive feelings.

The study’s lead investigator said, “Excitingly, we saw that symptom remission was associated with increases in self-esteem, and this correlated with the frequency with which participants employed the psychological strategies in daily life.”

The researchers suggest that the existence of sub-types of depression could be the reason why. Patients with non-anxious depression found that neurofeedback was much more effective at reducing their depressive symptoms, while those with anxious distress, a newer sub-type that has had little research conducted into it, responded better to solely psychological interventions.

Neurofeedback Training at NHA

Here at Neurohealth Associates, we specialize in Neurofeedback training. Neurofeedback may be helpful for training your mind, especially if you are unsure about putting yourself or your child on medication. This easy, noninvasive training can painlessly improve your mental health condition and outlook on life. Schedule a consultation with NeuroHealth Associates today and find out how we can help you.

Original article published by Neuroscience News.