NeuroBehavioral Programs — John E. Leonard, Ph.D.

Dr. John Leonard, a local

psychologist and neurobehavioral

practitioner in Davis, says

he can help patients get

"conscious control" over their

nervous systems.

ARTICLE»

From the Sacramento News & Review (SN&R); Thursday, September 24, 2009; pages 24-25:

Your brain, the doctor:

Can you instruct your nervous system not to cause you pain?

By Matt Perry

Dr. John Leonard claims

it's possible to erase or

"burn out" highly charged

emotions associated

with pain — both physical

and emotional — that

seem hard-wired into

the body and mind.

•

My index finger lifts into the air. I’m not lifting it, but up it goes.

Dr. John Leonard smiles knowingly. He’s just trained my brain to automatically lift my left index finger when he says “yes” in a mellow, lugubrious tone.

It’s not voodoo or hypnosis, says Leonard in his Sacramento office, but part of a simple, straightforward mind-body system for communicating with the brain. Once that connection is made, Leonard promises, “You get conscious control over your nervous system,” and can tell the body what to think and feel.

Leonard trains my index finger for “yes” and my left pinkie for “no,” with my middle finger being a “working on it” option. The psychiatrist and developer of NeuroBehavioral Programs then checks my stress level and walks me through a sampling of the techniques he claims can reduce physical pain and stress, and also enhance general enjoyment.

It’s surprisingly easy, and has only three steps. He’s already done the first by training my fingers to say yes and no. Next, he asks me, “When you’re ready to reduce your stress to zero, will your body indicate yes?” My brain sifts through the question and, quite unbidden by me, I can feel my index finger lift slightly: yes. My body is telling me that I’m ready to get de-stressed.

Then the third, more difficult command: “I want my stress to reduce to zero.”

. . . .

ARTICLE CONTINUES»

Your brain, the doctor:

Can you instruct your nervous system not to cause you pain?

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Emergent science of neurogenesis

ARTICLE»

From the Sacramento News & Review (SN&R); Thursday, September 24, 2009; pages 22-29:

Are you tired of your stupid, good for nothing brain?

By Matt Perry

The emergent science of neurogenesis has produced a

vibrant industry—in Sacramento and beyond—that claims

it can help you think faster, cope better, remember more.

You’ve had it. You’re sick and tired of your stupid brain. It’s cranky and dull. It can’t concentrate, it’s lethargic and it makes horrible decisions. It’s basically a no good cheatin’ brain.

So you’ve decided to fire off a Dear Brain letter: This relationship is over!

But your brain has a message for you: I can change. Really, I can change.

And your brain is right.

The burgeoning science of neurogenesis—that new neural networks can be created to keep brains fresh and alive—has produced a vibrant industry in brain games, brain gyms, designer chemicals, supplements, herbs, diets and every imaginable device to help us think faster, cope better and delay age-related illness. For millions of Americans pressured by overwork, stress and “monkey mind,” the promise of a newer, sharper brain is neurological nirvana.

This cutting-edge brain exploration is a little like settling the Wild West. “We’ve learned more in, say, the last decade than the entire history of the world,” says Leo Chalupa, formerly a neurobiologist for the UC Davis Center for Neuroscience. “But where we are right now in terms of understanding how the brain works … is probably where the Wright brothers were in aviation.”

Look no further for intrepid brain explorers than the Sacramento area. Our region is home to several mainstream neurological research facilities and treatment centers, as well as some intriguing alternative practitioners who use diet, exercise and a brainy riff on cognitive therapy to help patients tune up their battered brains. A bit further down the road in San Francisco, we find a leading brain-training software company along with the country’s first “brain gym,” where members pound keyboards instead of weights in hopes of bulking up memory, concentration and visual skills.

. . . .

ARTICLE CONTINUES»

Are you tired of your stupid, good for nothing brain?

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