Kelly Montross: LENS Neurofeedback and Complementary Therapies

From one of our NAA Board Members who attended this informative presentation:

On April 13, 2011, parents and professionals gathered to learn about Low Energy Neurofeedback System (LENS). Our speaker was Kelly Montross, a Licensed Medical Social Worker at the Hallowell Center on the Upper West Side. Kelly talked about the difference between LENS and the traditional form of neurofeedback. LENS is easier for children who may not be compliant with traditional neurofeedback - the child could be doing pretty much any activity they wanted such as watching a DVD - and LENS can be done less frequently.

I have to admit that I was a little nervous at the thought of hooking my child up to electrodes to stimulate parts of the brain. Because things can sound scarier than they actually are, Kelly asked for someone in the audience to come up and let her hook them up to her LENS equipment. She promised not to actually do LENS therapy on them. This demonstration showed us what the children would experience with the equipment. This demonstration was very helpful. I know that I had a different attitude once I was able to see how benign the current would be.

After the demonstration, the conversation turned to another therapy that Kelly finds complementary to LENS and that she likes to use in conjunction with LENS. It is called iLs (Integrated Listening Systems), a listening program. A dialogue began as many parents chimed in talking about their own experience with Tomatis or Tomatis-like listening programs. Many had tried these programs and, of those who had not, many said they would like to. Attendees then began asking many questions about LENS as well. The conversations became very lively and informative, with parents sharing all kinds of experiences with different therapies for their children. This is exactly the sort of thing the Parent Mentoring Committee had in mind when they created these more intimate meetings with less mainstream topics. I personally really enjoyed this particular event.

Kelly’s presentation was held at NAA NY Metro’s newest event location, Jayme Lewin Rich’s sensory gym, conveniently located in the Union Square area. The cozy setting was perfect for this presentation!

A big thank you to Kelly Montross and Jayme Lewin Rich!