Was he born a coward? Scientists have found a way to clear your BRAIN to increase your courage and eliminate fear
- Scientists developed a way to monitor brain activity in real time
- They say it has been used to eliminate fear and increase a person’s confidence
- It is believed to have the potential to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), phobias and anxiety.
Scientists have developed a method that changes the functioning of a person’s brain to increase confidence and eradicate fears.
It is believed that the technique may have the potential to treat psychological conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), phobias and anxiety.
Named “decoded neurofeedback,” the technology is still in its infancy, and while Japanese researchers have found it to work, it’s not effective for everyone.
Therefore, the team has published its findings in the hope that other experts can help improve the procedure.
Scroll down to see the video
Scientists have developed a method that changes the functioning of a person’s brain and can be used to increase confidence and eradicate fears. In the picture, a brain scan of an anonymized person
A combination of artificial intelligence and magnetic resonance imaging were used by experts from the Higher Institute for International Telecommunication Research (ATR) in Seika, Japan.
They found that an fMRI scanner can provide real-time brain activity that can be compared to previous recordings.
For example, the brain of a person with arachnophobia will respond in a particular way when faced with an image of a tarantula and recorded by a computer.
But the variation in the natural activity of the brain means that a response that looks the same will also occur at random.
Named “decoded neurofeedback,” the technology is still in its infancy, and while Japanese researchers have found it to work, it’s not effective for everyone. Therefore, the team has published its findings in the hope that other experts can help improve the procedure
At points where this aligns with the response invoked by fear, the researchers gave a monetary reward to the participants.
Finally, this positive reinforcement reconnects the brain so that when the person is reactivated with a spider, they do not respond in the same way.
“The simple act of providing a reward repeatedly each time the pattern is detected modifies the original memory or mental state,” explains ATR Dr. Mitsuo Kawato.
“It’s important to emphasize that participants don’t need to be aware of the content of the patterns for this to work.”
Data were obtained from more than 60 people who participated in five different studies and all data were collected in a database.
“The decoded Neurofeedback approach could have significant benefits for clinical populations compared to traditional treatments,” said the author, Drs. Aurelio Cortese.
“Patients could avoid the stress associated with exposure therapies or side effects from established medications.
“As such, it is crucial to accelerate the development of the decoded feedback technique, and this will only be possible if there are more scientists able to work on the actual data.”
Full findings are available at Scientific Data.