OCD
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
At one time or the other, most of us complain about our memory...of
not being able to remember where we left our car keys...of a social
gathering or business meeting slipping our mind...of forgetting our
spouse's birthday. Those with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
appear to have the opposite kind of memory problem: It is a brain
unable to forget.
The brain unable to forget.
The brain is composed of billions and billions
of nerve cells, all laced together to create an internal communication
network of immense proportion. Our brain is able to "remember" our
past because it parceled out the elements of each memory into many
different areas of the cortex, its thin, nerve cell-packed, outer
layer. This rather astonishing storage technique allows the brain
to "lay a trail" between specific nerve cells to recall past experiences.
When a particular event or situation needs
to be recalled, the brain "recaptures" the past by temporarily reconnecting
the cells in the original memory trail in just the right sequence.
When we become conscious of what it is we want or need to remember,
the brain disconnects from the circuit and "moves on" so it can connect
with other areas for other desired or necessary memories.
OCD -- The whole family has it.
OCD's repetitive behaviors and rituals cause
severe emotional distress for the afflicted person. But the distress
doesn’t stop there. The OCD person requires considerable attention
and emotional support. As a result, family members are affected as
a group. Everyone is locked into a loop -- an unending loop of support.
Round and round it goes.
If this theory is correct, the brain keeps playing the memory over
and over again, much like a tape loop or a broken record. The person
then mechanically and repetitively repeats the memory by turning a
light switch off and on, washing their hands repeatedly, etcetera.
Having the right connections.
It just keeps going...and going...and going...
When the brain lays a memory trail, but, for what ever reason, is
unable to effectively reduce the connections, a "redundant loop" may
be set up. If this occurs, the brain does not release the biological
mechanics of the memory of a specific task.
Getting off the merry-go-round.
Treating
OCD by teaching the brain to remediate inappropriate and dysfunctional
brain wave patterning with Remedial Neurofeedback Training™ is new.
However, the principles are firmly in place, having shown clinical
effectiveness with many other neurological problems. The approach
is simple: Discover the brain's inappropriate brain wave patterning
with a Quantitative EEG (Brain Wave Analysis), then, using Remedial
Neurofeedback Training™, give the brain the information it need to
correct its communication networks and inappropriate brain wave patternings.
(See Giving Nature a (Big) Hand for details.)
Early experience is very encouraging. A young boy treated with Remedial
Neurofeedback Training™ is now symptom-free, and has been for several
months. It is not yet known whether the results are permanent, or
if others with OCD will achieve a similar outcome. The principles,
however, are in place...the hope is there.
Specific brain problems...
