Benefits of Combining CBT (Talk) & Neurofeedback Therapy

Trauma Freeze & Neurofeedback

The benefits of doing neurofeedback & talk therapy

Neurofeedback therapy can assist someone experiencing trauma freeze by directly addressing the brain and nervous system's dysregulated state created by trauma, particularly the freeze or shut-down response. Trauma freeze is a state where the nervous system becomes overwhelmed, leading to emotional numbness, detachment, and a shutdown in vitality.

Neurofeedback operates at a deep subconscious level by monitoring and retraining brain activity and autonomic nervous system responses to help the individual shift out of this freeze state and return to a natural, calm, and regulated state. This process interrupts the stuck trauma patterns and helps balance the fight/flight/freeze response, which may be chronically overwhelmed after trauma.

When combined with talk therapy, neurofeedback enhances trauma recovery by first stabilizing the nervous system, making it easier for the individual to engage in and benefit from talking therapies. While talk therapy works on cognitive and emotional processing of trauma, neurofeedback helps regulate the body's automatic survival responses from the "bottom-up."

This physiological regulation creates a sense of safety and calm, reducing hypervigilance, emotional reactivity, and the physical symptoms of trauma. This allows talk therapy to be more effective as the brain and body is able to process and integrate traumatic memories without getting stuck in survival mode.

Neurofeedback creates new neural pathways that promote resilience, emotional regulation, and a grounded sense of self, which supports the cognitive and emotional insights gained through talk therapy.

How Neurofeedback Helps Trauma Freeze

• Trains brain networks and autonomic nervous system to regulate arousal and stress responses.

• Reduces emotional numbness and detachment by promoting physiological regulation and balance.

• Interrupts freeze and dissociation patterns at a subconscious level, helping the person return to a neutral, calm state.

• Restores functional brain connectivity and reduces fear-based hyperreactivity tied to trauma memories.

Role of Talk Therapy in Combination

• Provides insight and cognitive processing of traumatic experiences.

• Supports integration of past traumatic memories once the nervous system is regulated.

• Helps build new behavioural and emotional responses based on a calmer nervous system.

• Promotes healing in a safe therapeutic space once physical symptoms of trauma are less intense.

Combining neurofeedback with talk therapy creates a synergistic effect for trauma treatment by addressing both the physiological and psychological aspects. Neurofeedback can make trauma therapy more accessible and successful by calming the survival-driven nervous system, enabling deeper emotional work and recovery.