Craig Gibbons, a man diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2021, found the medication prescribed to him by his doctor wasn’t really effective and it failed to remove the brain fog that troubled him.
However, there’s a better solution to every problem. Gibbons decided to turn to brain stimulation, a treatment he’s been tinkering with for the past couple of years.
Revolutionary electric shock therapy helps improve focus and remove brain fog
By using transcranial current stimulation, he delivered weak currents directly to his brain through electrodes, hoping it’d relieve some of the symptoms of Lyme disease he’s been experiencing.
"People are zapping their brains at home to improve focus and clear brain fog. But is it safe?"
🧠⚡️🥲
"At-home brain stimulation is flourishing among a group of enthusiasts, who say it gives them a mental edge. The science behind why it may work is still in the early stages." https://t.co/iy7ShOaNIo— María J. Díaz Candamio (@Vilavaite) February 5, 2023
This proved to be extremely effective; now, others are also treating their conditions with this approach. So far, the results have been wondrous.
Of course, brain stimulation has been around for a while; there’s been a multitude of variations to the treatment, although all of them operate on the same principle.
By sending tiny zaps to specific regions of the human brain, we can alter some of its behavior and some believed this could help cure a wide array of conditions.
In fact, we’ve been using magnetic stimulation to treat depression at hospitals for years; whereas inserting electrodes into the brain has been used to help patients dealing with Parkinson’s disease.
In hopes of it being able to cure, or at least alleviate his condition, Gibbons also tried to use it on himself. He claims ever since he started using the therapy, he’s been feeling more energetic and able to do things he couldn’t before.
Can zapping the #brain with Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation (CES) improve sleep? #YouTube #Video https://t.co/SR9TKWw9VD
— Friesen Performance with Dr. Chris Friesen (@FriesenPerform) January 30, 2023
Every therapy comes with its own set of risks
Naturally, every sort of treatment is best if it’s administered by a trained professional, but at-home therapy enthusiasts have been growing in number. Gibbons’ case helped popularize it.
Some use it to help deal with stress before an exam or a job interview, while others claim it helps them meditate and even achieve mental clarity at times when they just couldn’t do it on their own.
On top of this, these devices can be extremely affordable. You can get one of your own for as little as $40; although there are higher-end devices that could cost you up to $500.
The selling point is the majority of them are pretty portable and they’re usually not much bigger than a remote or a smartphone. All you’ll need to use them are some batteries, a head cap or adhesive electrodes, and a saline solution that will help deliver the weak current to your brain.
But whilst astrology is a bit of harmless fun, zapping someone’s brain with 460 volts of electricity in the hope it might do them good whilst admitting you don’t know how or why! Is hardly fun, and truckload of evidence of ECT and drug harms are ignored by most psychiatrists.
— GladtobeMad (@MadGladtobe) January 30, 2023
However, the effectiveness of these devices is still up for debate, at least according to neuroscientist Robert Reinheart, who’s concerned about the safety of extended use of them.
At the end of the day, you’re still injecting your brain with a certain amount of electricity, no matter how small; the risks of you causing short-term or permanent damage are still present.
Thankfully, there’s only been a handful of cases where a patient’s use of these at-home devices has led to some damage; even then, it was from irresponsible handling of said device.
If you’re dealing with mental health conditions and nothing else seems to be working, you should at least give this therapy a shot. Even if it doesn’t work for you, without extended use, you’re still in the clear.
This article appeared in The Record Daily and has been published here with permission.
