Meet You Gotta Believe from New York City!

You Gotta Believe is a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding permanent families for older youth in foster care. Through training, advocacy, and long-term support, their mission is to ensure that no young person ages out of foster care without a family.

The organization trains and supports parents to adopt older youth, provides the required certification courses for foster parents, assists families in identifying a child to join their family, and continues offering support services long after placement. Through their mental health department, You Gotta Believe offers free, adoption competent mental health services to all families, focusing on healing developmental trauma, repairing attachment disruptions, and fostering felt safety and secure attachment.

At the heart of this work is a commitment to innovative, integrative care, and Infra-Low Frequency (ILF) Neurofeedback plays an important role. You Gotta Believe began using ILF neurofeedback in 2023 after receiving training through NAP with support from a Pritzker Foundation grant. Clinical leadership is provided by Emily Collins, LCSW, Director of Clinical Services, and Martha Hornthal, LMHC, Senior Clinician. Both are parents of children adopted from foster care, bringing professional expertise and lived experience to their work.

Neurofeedback has been especially valuable for young people who have spent years in foster care and often feel exhausted by repeatedly retelling their stories in traditional therapy settings. According to YGB clinicians, the nonverbal nature of ILF neurofeedback helps reduce resistance and allows youth to focus on symptoms that matter most to them.

One young adult, who had already made significant progress through therapeutic work, was experiencing daily migraines, emotional regulation challenges, anxiety, and stress-related stomach pain. A YGB clinician observed that after participating in ILF neurofeedback sessions, her migraines stopped completely, she became more emotionally resilient, experienced less anxiety, and stress no longer manifested as physical pain. She was better able to function at work and within her family.

"We have been using BEE Medic products from the beginning! We appreciate the responsiveness of the BEE Medic team whenever we have questions or need assistance with the equipment. It was a challenge at first to integrate neurofeedback into our program, only because our families were not familiar with the modality. We had to do a lot of education to teach clients about the potential benefits. However, once we got started, those who had experienced neurofeedback became some of our biggest promoters, encouraging other clients to take advantage of the service since they had such great results themselves."

The flexibility of the neurofeedback experience has also been key. Clients may begin sessions with calming visuals and music to tune into their internal state, then transition to watching favorite shows on Netflix or YouTube once protocols are established. For younger clients, comfort items such as stuffed animals often become part of the experience, helping sessions feel safe, playful, and engaging.

Last year marks a major milestone as You Gotta Believe celebrates 30 years of finding forever families for those who need them most. Since 1995, their mission has remained unwavering: to make sure no young person leaves foster care without unconditional love, lifelong support, and the knowledge that it is never too late for family.

We deeply respect the compassion, innovation, and commitment of the You Gotta Believe team and are grateful to support their life changing work.

Get In Touch

You Gotta Believe
📧 Email: info@yougottabelieve.org
🌐 Website: yougottabelieve.org

not is a professional magazine dedicated to people with traumatic brain injuries, stroke survivors, and individuals with other acquired brain injuries. It also offers valuable insights for healthcare professionals, family members, and other interested readers. The magazine features well-founded articles, practical tips, and current developments in neurorehabilitation.

In December, not published an insightful article in collaboration with BEE Medic focusing on ILF Neurofeedback. The article explains how this method can be specifically applied in the treatment of traumatic brain injuries and highlights its potential benefits for rehabilitation.

Please be aware that the article is available in German only.
You can read the full article here.
 

fMRI study shows stable brain network changes only for the full ILF protocol

Neurofeedback has been used in clinical practice for many years. At the same time, there is ongoing discussion about the neurophysiological mechanisms through which different neurofeedback approaches exert their effects. In the case of Infra-Low Frequency (ILF) neurofeedback in particular, imaging studies demonstrating objective changes in the brain beyond subjective reports have so far been limited.

A study published in December 2025 in the scientific journal NeuroImage addresses this gap. The aim of the work was not to evaluate the clinical efficacy of neurofeedback, but to investigate the neurophysiological effects of the signal components of an established ILF neurofeedback protocol from a mechanistic perspective.

ILF neurofeedback as a combined approach

ILF neurofeedback is not a single-signal method. It is based on the combination of multiple EEG timescales, including:

• classical EEG frequency band signals reflecting fast neural dynamics
• infra-low-frequency signals capturing very slow regulatory processes 

This combination corresponds to the clinical ILF neurofeedback configuration as it is used in therapeutic practice.
To better understand the underlying mechanisms, the signal components combined in ILF neurofeedback were deliberately examined separately in the study and analyzed both individually and in combination. This separation served the mechanistic investigation of the established ILF approach.
 

Study design: mechanistic analysis of an established protocol

The study comprised three randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled crossover experiments with a total of 135 healthy participants. In each sub-study, participants completed a single 30-minute neurofeedback session, accompanied by functional MRI measurements before and after the session.
Three experimental conditions were examined:

• classical EEG frequency band signals alone
• infra-low-frequency signals alone
• the combination of frequency band and infra-low-frequency signals corresponding to the clinical ILF neurofeedback configuration 

Resting-state fMRI data were analyzed using multivariate functional connectivity pattern analysis (fc-MVPA), an established method for assessing large-scale brain networks.

Central findings

The central finding of the study is clear. Robust and statistically reliable changes in functional brain connectivity were observed exclusively when frequency band and infra-low-frequency signals were applied in combination. When the individual signal components were applied in isolation, no comparably stable effects were observed after statistical correction. The results therefore indicate that consistent neurophysiological changes emerge only from the combination of different EEG timescales. Importantly, the study does not identify a novel combination. Rather, it demonstrates the neurophysiological relevance of the complete ILF neurofeedback protocol as it is used in clinical practice.

Relevance of the findings for ILF neurofeedback by BEE Medic

The results provide, for the first time, an imaging-based mechanistic foundation for the ILF neurofeedback approach that BEE Medic has exclusively developed and technically implemented in this consistent clinical configuration. The study shows that the observed effects are not driven by individual EEG signals alone, but by the targeted coupling of fast and very slow neuronal dynamics as realized in ILF neurofeedback. In this way, an approach that has previously been shaped primarily by clinical experience is now based on a clear neurophysiological footing.

Study context

The study is designed as a neurophysiological basic research investigation. It does not make any statements about clinical efficacy, specific symptoms, or long-term effects. Its contribution lies in the objective, imaging-based analysis of the underlying mechanisms.

Conclusion

The fMRI study published in NeuroImage demonstrates that the complete ILF neurofeedback protocol, meaning the combination of classical EEG frequency band signals and infra-low-frequency signals, leads to stable and measurable changes in functional brain networks. The study therefore provides, for the first time, an imaging-based mechanistic foundation for the ILF neurofeedback approach as it is used clinically and technically implemented by BEE Medic devices.

You can read the whole paper here.
 

Kasia McCartney is co-founder of Encephalon – Edinburgh's neurofeedback clinic for brain health and development. As a neurofeedback practitioner and PhD candidate in Integrative Medicine and Applied Psychophysiology, she specialises in developmental and neurological disorders, peak performance and neurorehabilitation. Her clinical and scientific focus is on integrating psychoneuroimmunology, epigenetics and brain-computer interface (BCI) technology to provide evidence-based, transformative interventions for children, adults and athletes.

Encephalon's vision and approach

Encephalon was founded with the goal of supporting not only individuals, but entire families and communities, offering highly personalised neurofeedback and BCI interventions. The team is based on integrity, evidence-based practice and person-centred care, and is committed to advancing neurotechnology while creating a supportive environment in which clients can achieve meaningful and lasting improvements in their neurological health and performance. 

Kasia completed her ILF neurofeedback training in London in 2021 and has since made it a central part of her clinical practice. She explains that neurofeedback ‘enables us to support clients across the spectrum – from developmental and neurological challenges to those striving for peak performance.’
 

Transformative Results Through Neurofeedback

Some of the most impactful results at Encephalon have been with clients experiencing Functional Neurological Disorder (FND), Long Covid, and concussion rehabilitation. Guided by QEEG research on neuroinflammation, Kasia uses ILF Neurofeedback to target dysregulated brain networks and support recovery.

Clients report improved memory, attention, and processing speed, along with reduced brain fog and fatigue. Many see gains in coordination, balance, and fine motor skills, while chronic pain, headaches, and sleep disturbances decrease. Kasia notes that for FND patients, seizure frequency and severity are often dramatically reduced, and clients recovering from concussion or Long Covid regain resilience, stamina, and overall neurological stability. These changes translate into real-world benefits—children participate better in school and social activities, adults return to work or sport with confidence, and families experience renewed hope and stability.

Collaboration with BEE Medic

Kasia has been using BEE Medic systems since 2021 and credits them as a cornerstone of her success. She highlights that the team has provided exceptional guidance from the start, always available to answer questions and support the growth of her practice. Their expertise has been invaluable in integrating technologies for regulation and biofeedback, enabling highly personalised care for her clients. She adds that she is “deeply grateful for the quality of both the devices and the ongoing support - they have played a central role in the growth and success of my clinical work.” At Encephalon, neurofeedback is more than a therapy - it’s a bridge between cutting-edge science and compassionate care. By combining rigorous research with a deeply personal approach, Kasia and her team continue to help clients achieve neurological balance, resilience, and optimal performance.

Encephalon
Neurotechnology for Developmental and Neurological Disorders
📧 Email: bookings@encephalon.uk
🌐 Website: https://encephalon.uk/