Brain Retraining

"Higher level brain centers associated with mood, memory, and long term planning can block pain or enhance it, drive recovery or make pain chronic. In humans, these higher level centers create our personality, our emotions, and our sense of who we are and where we belong in the world. So, in a very real way, chronic pain is entangled with our understanding of what pain means and our outlook for the future.."

- Tor Wager, PhD.

How does Brain Retraining Work?

The way that our minds & bodies are currently expressing are a direct result of the way the brain and nervous system are operating. This is the root cause of most chronic health & stress related issues, and thankfully it is changeable!

The brain is the control center for optimal health and the nervous system is the communicator between the brain, body and the outside world. How they are functioning affects our physical, mental, emotional and energetic experiences. Through specific retraining interventions, we can change how they function, which then changes our experience and alleviates our symptoms.

The processes used in retraining programs must be repeated regularly over a period of approximately six months to make lasting changes in the brain and nervous system. That doesn't mean it takes six months to start seeing results. Many people notice positive differences earlier on in the process. In order to create to create health & wellbeing the tools have to be actively implemented and regularly repeated.

"In order to change we have to think greater than how we feel." - Dr. Joe Dispenza

"Don't believe everything you think, because your brain is sending you false messages" - Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz

Which Brain Retraining Program Should I Use?

Brain Retraining has become quite popular in recent times and there are many programs from which to choose. The Gupta Program is the first limbic retraining program created (over 25 years ago now) and it is very comprehensive. It takes a holistic approach to healing, targeting both the brain and the nervous system, and improving overall resilience. The program includes webinars to refine your understanding and an app with daily support to help keep you on track and connected to a community. It is constantly evolving, and there is scientific evidence to back it up. Most recently studies with Long Covid & Fibromyalgia patients yielded very positive results.

Alan Gordon's Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) is based on modern pain science which recognizes the role of brain function and emotions in chronic pain experiences. Research shows PRT has yielded incredible results in alleviating chronic pain conditions in relatively short periods of time (8 weeks). Using functional MRIs they have documented the changes in the brain that accompany the alleviation of chronic pain. Alan and a team of doctors have also created the Curable App. The results for the app are not as good as the 8 week PRT program, but it is still a very effective treatment option for chronic pain sufferers.

The Primal Trust program is very comprehensive and holistic. The founder of the program, Dr. Cathleen King, recognizes that there is a necessary sequence that needs to be followed in order to make progress and have sustainable healing and transformation. Her program is structured into levels that reflect this. She has also created a dynamic community of support for people going through her program, available at all of the levels. This program has been gaining ground in recent years (and for good reason).

The Heal Program is very well paced and laid out (which decreases overwhelm). It contains everything that is needed to experience deep healing. The foundation of the program is about nervous system regulation. "Your physiology is always perfectly expressing the state of your nervous system...In order to heal (we) don't focus on healing symptoms, (we) focus on healing the unhelpful survival driven states in your nervous system that are causing your mind and body to produce symptoms." The program is broken down into two levels which follow a progression from basic nervous system regulation and brain retraining into the deeper healing work necessary to cultivate resilience.

Joe Dispenza's approach, although different from brain retraining programs, is also very effective. He has written several books (I highly recommend reading "Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself") and he has a lot of empirical evidence to support his approach to helping people heal. Many of the healing stories from participants in his program sound like miracles. This is what happens when we learn to harness and actively direct our brains and bodies in ways that support the return to optimal health.

Should I Work With a Coach or Mentor While Retraining?

I highly recommend working with a coach or mentor when using any brain or nervous system retraining program. They can help you most effectively implement the tools and support you along the way, which speeds up progress. Most programs have coaches or mentors associated with them.

I specialize in working with people who are further along in their recovery process but have not yet achieved the level of recovery they desire, and I support people in doing the deeper transformational work that is necessary for resilience and sustainable healing. For more information about coaching with me, please visit my approach page.