November 23, 2017
Dear Neurofeedback Practitioner,
My name is Silvia Costales, I am a psychotherapist in Northern California. I got into neurofeedback in 2010. In 2016 I was elected to the board of the International Society for Neurofeedback and Research (ISNR).
I’ve had the opportunity to talk to many different people in this field. By and large, I can tell you that most people, like me, are interested in unity in this field. Despite the many different styles and techniques and types of equipment that we use, most of us agree that all forms of neurofeedback work. Most of us got into this field because we want to help people, and by and large we all want to see neurofeedback as a field grow so more and more people who stand to benefit from neurofeedback will have access to it.
I’ve heard estimates that up to 15,000 people or more worldwide are already practicing neurofeedback. Yet our member organizations are very small! ISNR for example, which is currently the largest professional organization for neurofeedback professionals, only has around 650 members.
As it stands, when our field is criticized in the press we can’t point to a very large group of ourselves right now, and say, “hey, look at all of us! We are here! We believe in this stuff and we’re helping tons of people! And we’re not going away!”
We need practitioners like you to become members of our organizations so that we can have a stronger voice in the public eye.
To that end I personally want to invite you to join ISNR, AAPB, BFE, or one of our many regional organizations. If my conversations and meetings with various leaders in the field, the ISNR Board, and practitioners like you are any indication, we are collectively ready to turn a new leaf in this field, and move forward united, with our shared purpose of making neurofeedback available everywhere and to everybody. I see and hear more and more discussion of, interest in, and examples of an attitude of cooperation, mutual respect and appreciation among us. You certainly have my pledge that I will continue to work toward this end, and I hope you will join me in these efforts.
Please stand with us. Join a neurofeedback organization today! Your membership not only helps us all collectively, it also connects you to a vibrant community of your peers. If you haven’t attended one of our conferences yet, I can tell you that there’s no place where I learn more! I come home feeling more competent each time, and I love making connections with my neurofeedback peers from everywhere. I hope to see you there.
Here are some links to a variety of member organizations in our field:
ISNR International Society for Neurofeedback and Research www.isnr.org
ISNR International Institutional groups:
Applied Neurosciences Society of Australia (ANSA); Australia, www.appliedneuroscience.org.au
Biofeedback Association of South Africa (BFSA); South Africa, www.biofeedbacksa.co.za
Investigación y Desarrollo en Neuroterapias (IDN); Spain, www.sebine.org
Netherlands Instituut van Psychologen (NIP); The Netherlands, www.psynip.nl
Sociedad Mexicana de Bio y Neurofeedback; Mexico, www.smbn.org.mx
Bio- und Neurofeedback Fachverband Schweiz (BNFS); Switzerland, www.neurofeedback-verband.ch/index.php
AAPB Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback www.aapb.org
BFE Biofeedback Federation of Europe www.bfe.org
ANSA Applied Neuroscience Society of Australasia www.appliedneuroscience.org.au
TABN Taiwan Association of Biofeedback and Neurofeedback www.tabnblog.wordpress.com
NRBS Northeast Region Biofeedback Society www.nrbs.org
WABN Western Association for Biofeedback and Neuroscience www.biofeedbackneuroscience.com
SBCNA Southeast Biofeedback and Clinical Neuroscience Association www.sebiofeedback.org
MABS Mid-Atlantic Biofeedback Society www.mabs.us
MSBMB Midwest Society for Behavioral Medicine and Biofeedback www.msbmb.com
BST Biofeedback Society of Texas www.bstx.org
BSF Biofeedback Society of Florida www.floridabiofeedback.org
Please feel free to redistribute this letter to your networks.
Yours in service,
Silvia
Silvia Costales, MFT, BCN
ISNR Board of Directors Member-at-Large
Psychotherapy & Neurofeedback
405 Chinn St, #102
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
510-868-2802
www.silviacostalesmft.com