What is neurovideofeedback™ ?
neurovideofeedback™ is a method of training the brain to improve itself by letting the user know more clearly what his/her brain is doing from moment to moment, while showing video of their actions at the same time. The user learns what they need to do to focus and relax more intensely by following the instructions and using the information from the computer-generated displays and sounds.

How does it work?
The training challenges a person to focus. It builds on their success over just a few seconds to quickly improve their ability to stay focused. The Trainer detects and analyzes their brainwaves and tells them when they are concentrating and when they are not by changing the sounds they hear from the computer and several displays on the computer screen. The object is to focus on a moving line on the computer screen that represents the user’s focusing level, and to keep the line above a certain level for as long as they can. The more a person learns to focus, the better they are able to control the line on the screen and keep the sound tones at a high pitch. It may be compared to lifting weights to build muscles – focusing training with brainwave feedback strengthens the brain’s ability to focus.

How long does it take?
Training time is rapid. After the initial session, individuals only spend twenty to thirty minutes two or three times a week in self-administered training sessions on their own time.  Improvements in focusing and reduced stress are normally seen in only four or five sessions. Most people report that they are more able to focus for a longer time after fewer than ten sessions. The total number of sessions required by most individuals to reach optimum performance averages from twelve to twenty. The number of sessions needed for those with a high degree of difficulty paying attention is twenty to forty. If those sessions are tapered off gradually at the end, gains will usually be maintained. After that, occasional maintenance sessions will be a helpful boost. Those who are (or aspire to be) elite athletes will benefit even more from daily practice during the learning and maintenance phases.

How will it benefit trainees?
The potential benefits of Peak Achievement Training® are improved performance in sports, school, work, and everyday life, including:

Sports – helping to find "The Zone" of peak performance, refining athletic skills, sustaining focus on the game, reducing stress and anxiety, eliminating distractions, improving imagery, correcting discipline problems, improving physical fitness and strength training, and faster closed-head injury rehabilitation.

School – paying better attention in class, improving grades, reducing stress to develop better test taking skills, improving memory, calming impulsive behavior, enhancing scores on IQ and performance tests, and improving behavior to help eliminate potential violent situations.

Work – developing better work habits through superior focus, mastering new tasks and material more quickly, bettering accuracy, improving sales performance and business relationships by really learning how to listen to others, decreasing stress and the associated health problems, opening channels of communication for improving employer/employee relationships, and helping to prevent potential violent situations.

How likely is it to improve focus?
Research studies demonstrate significant positive changes using neurofeedback training for a wide array of focus-inhibiting problems: pain, strokes, head injuries, depression and anxiety. There are over 15 publications in scientific journals that document improvements in concentration, learning, and behavior. In one study, Dr. Joel Lubar at the University of Tennessee found that in over 1,000 students that he trained, the average improvement in grades was 1.5 levels (for example, from a GPA of C- to a B). Their standardized test scores improved by about 2.5 grade levels. A study demonstrating the effectiveness of the Peak Achievement Trainer® has been presented at several scientific meetings.  Other studies are underway at Washington University, the University of Nebraska, a Fortune 1000 company..  The official publication of the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback featured an article on achieving excellence through Peak Achievement Training®.

Neurofeedback’s remarkable successes has been reported nationally on ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS’s Eye to Eye, and National Public Radio, as well as a variety of local TV and radio stations across the country. It has also been written about in Newsweek, Psychology Today, Women’s Day, Reader’s Digest, by the Associated Press, and featured in a recent book by Jim Robbins, "A Symphony in the Brain". The Peak Achievement Trainer’s® particular abilities have been reported in the New York Times Magazine, Reader's Digest and Fox News. The success of using neurofeedback in a public school system has been covered in Parade Magazine and the New York Times. However, the FDA presently prohibits us from making any claims or guarantees that it specifically helps particular diseases. 

What kind of computer do I need?

The Peak Achievement Trainer® VR sets up simply on almost any computer.  We recommend the following minimum computer configuration for optimal performance but less complete computers will still support most functions:

• Windows 98, ME, 2000, or XP.  Windows Vista will work but there are occasional problems.
• A Pentium processor running at 1.5 GHz. or better or equivalent.  Works on laptop mobile processors.
• 512 MB RAM or more. 
• Two free USB ports for wireless Receiver and program copy protection (HASP).  The battery charger can connect to one of these while its not in use or another USB port. 
• Direct X 9.0b or later (supplied)
• Windows Media Player (supplied)
• A DVD player, preferably WinDVD 6 or above. 
• A graphics card with 3D and DVD video acceleration and 64MB or more dedicated video RAM.  Integrated video systems that share memory with the processor are not recommended.  Assuming your PC meets the other requirements, a fast video card will give you the most bang for the buck.  Cards targeted at the gaming or multimedia market with newer chipsets from ATI or NVIDIA should work well. 
• SoundBlaster or compatible sound card
• For neurovideofeedback™, a  DVI camcorder or a webcam (and an appropriate USB or Firewire port) is required and a very large amount of hard drive space (207 MB per minute of projected video memory capacity) is recommended. 
• MACs with PC emulators are not supported. 
• Laptops customized for the PAT and with everything installed are available at extra cost. 

What is included in the package?
The Peak Achievement Trainer® VR includes a miniature, lightweight (less than an ounce) Brainwave Amplifier and Transmitter that mounts on a visor (SensorVisor) or a sweatband (SensorBand) that can be used in sports applications like foul shooting and putting, or a SensorPhone for listening to the sound when outside noise is an issue.  For wireless audio, a special headphone is available at extra cost.  All these systems employ our lightweight, user-replaceable sponge brainwave Sensors that use salt water to make the connection to the head rather than messy, gooey electrode paste.    There is a battery charger (attaching to a USB port), and a Receiver and its extension wire, which can occupy the same port or a different one.   The new VR (video recording) software is a special version of BioExplorer which runs the 18 Peak Achievement designs provided.   To review sessions, the package includes a BioReview program for analyzing individual sessions in detail, as well as a spreadsheet for Excel that will chart multiple sessions.   A very complete, illustrated manual is included which helps with the installation and the first lesson. It also includes a manual/workbook and an audio recording with lessons on improving focusing and taking relaxing microbreaks, just as the ace B2 bomber instructor pilots do.  To keep things simple, there is a "Quick Guide to Performing and Reviewing a Peak Achievement Training VR Session".  Phone support for installation and usability issues is unlimited at our 800 number, and an hour of phone consultation about how to work with the Peak Achievement Trainer completes the package. 

How much does it cost?
Prices are available by filling out the inquiry form.

What do I do if I have trouble using it?
Installation is easy with a Manual to guide you through it. The manual and workbook also includes planned lessons on focusing and relaxation. Peak Achievement Training®, is available by phone and e-mail for technical and user support.

Can I return it if I am not satisfied?/Is there a satisfaction guarantee?
We are so confident that you will find the Trainer useful and enjoyable, that we offer an exclusive 6 week return privilege, except when prohibited by the leasing company. We want you to give the Trainer a fair chance to show what it can do.  We will accept a return within 6 weeks prepaid with all parts in like new condition, provided the 10 lessons in the manual/workbook have been completed by the buyer, or the Trainer has been used with 3 or more clients (at least 4 sessions each) in order to give it a fair trial. Sessions must be recorded (archived) and you must obtain a Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) number. Shipping charges are not refundable. There is a 5 percent return fee on orders paid for by a charge card.

What is the warranty?
One year on the electronics, 90 days on SensorBand, SensorVisor, and SensorPhone.

How much time is required by a trainer, school aid, or a sports team’s coaching staff?
Very little time--just to get students started and monitor the user’s improved performance.  An office or staff aid, or an academic tutoring center can administer the whole program. Training is done in self-administered twenty to thirty minute sessions on the user’s own time, two or three times a week, and away from any sports practice. The training does not count against their NCAA practice time limitations. 

What are the specific benefits?
The long-lasting benefits from PAT may include:

Corporate:

• More productive employee and sales staff
• Better customer service
• Reduced employee and sales training costs due to lower turnover
• Ability to train marginally effective employees and sales representatives to solve labor shortage
• Ability to retrain and retain aging employees, executives, and sales representatives
• Lower health care costs due to reduced stress
• Improving channels of communication for better employer/employee, sales staff relationships
• Reducing the potential for violence in the workplace through improving behavior and impulsivity
• Potential for increased profits

Employee and Sales Representatives:

• Developing better work habits through superior focus
• Mastering new tasks and material more quickly
• Learning sales tracts faster
• Improving listening skills by learning how to really listen to others
• Staying better organized
• Bettering accuracy
• Decreasing stress and the associated health problems
• Potential for increased salary or sales and commissions

Athletic:

• Achieving a superior concentration and focus level
• Staying in the "Zone" of peak performance
• Reducing off-sides penalties
• Reducing missed assignments
• Improving strength training and physical fitness
• Building confidence to make that game-winning field goal or reception
• Reducing bad snaps
• Maintaining peak performance when fatigue sets in
• Eliminating distractions

Academic:

• Remaining eligible to play
• Paying better attention in class
• Improving grades (for example, from a GPA of a C- to a B)
• Reducing stress for better test taking skills
• Calming impulsive behavior
• Enhancing results on standardized IQ and performance tests

What are the advantages of the Peak Achievement Trainer®?