We spend over a third of our lives asleep—and for good reason. Consistent, restorative sleep is essential for overall physical and mental health. Chronic sleep deprivation has been linked to mood disturbances, reduced stress resilience, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and cognitive impairments such as poor focus, slower reaction times, and memory difficulties.
During sleep, the brain processes and organizes daily information, discarding what’s unnecessary and strengthening relevant memory pathways. Without sufficient rest, the brain struggles to maintain the connections that support learning, memory formation, and everyday functioning.
Anyone experiencing sleep disorders or disruptions understands their far-reaching effects—impacting energy, mood, cognition, and relationships. An estimated 70 million U.S. adults live with diagnosable sleep disorders, with millions more facing frequent sleep challenges that interfere with falling asleep, staying asleep, or achieving restful sleep.
Your circadian rhythm is your body’s internal 24-hour timing system. It regulates essential functions such as sleep and wake cycles, hormone release, metabolism, and body temperature. This system is guided by internal biological clocks and synchronized by external cues—most importantly, light exposure.
At the center of this process is the hypothalamus, a small but highly influential structure deep within the brain. Inside the hypothalamus is the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), often called the body’s “master clock.” The SCN receives information about light from the eyes and translates it into signals that coordinate neural and hormonal activity. As evening approaches and light decreases, the SCN signals the pineal gland to release melatonin—the hormone that prepares the body for sleep.
Additional regions of the hypothalamus communicate with the brainstem to reduce wakefulness and support the transition into sleep. Together, these systems promote the release of calming neurotransmitters such as GABA, which supports relaxation, and adenosine, which builds sleep pressure throughout the day and signals that it is time to rest.
When circadian rhythms become disrupted, sleep quality declines. Individuals may struggle to fall asleep, stay asleep, or achieve deep, restorative rest. The impact extends into the day, often presenting as fatigue, reduced mental clarity, slower reaction time, and diminished cognitive performance.
Optimizing your circadian rhythm is foundational to sustained energy, mental sharpness, and peak performance.
Because sleep issues have always plagued humans, it’s no surprise that there is an abundance of research on the cortical and physiological processes related to falling asleep, staying asleep, and getting quality rest. We know that the presence of slower brainwaves is important for priming the mind for rest. It then makes sense that if we can train our brain to produce more optimal neural activity both while awake and while preparing for bed, then we can directly address some of the root causes behind many sleep difficulties. More and more research is being conducted on how various neurotherapies and integrating approaches can support the functioning of this important human need: sleep.
One study conducted in 2011 by Hammer and colleagues, measured the effectiveness of two different forms of neurofeedback in addressing insomnia and related day-time dysfunctions. Twelve adults diagnosed with insomnia were randomly assigned to two different groups: one group working with a sensorimotor (SMR) protocol and the other group working with an individually designed (IND) protocol. Both groups received 15 sessions, each 20 minutes in length, and completed pre and post assessments measuring brain activity and self-reported mental health and insomnia symptom intensity/frequency. Post-assessments demonstrated a significant decrease in the proportion of excessively high-level delta and beta activity. Both treatment groups also reported less sleepiness and hyperarousal connected to their insomnia. Based on the data and self-report measures, all participants were deemed to be “normal sleepers” by the conclusion of the study.
Another study, conducted by Schabus et al., (2014) also looking at working with SMR neurofeedback training, found similar results. The SMR frequency range (12-15 Hz over the sensorimotor cortex) is correlated with a calm alertness, however, it’s also abundant during sleep. In this study, researchers questioned whether training SMR while awake would have any effect on sleep and insomnia-related cognitive performance. Twenty-four subjects with clinical symptoms of primary insomnia participated in either a SMR or a sham-conditioning training protocol. Comparison of pre and post EEG data found an increase of this SMR frequency in the brains of the participants who completed this protocol. This was correlated with patients reporting waking up less during the night and improved cognitive functioning. These results suggest that SMR neurofeedback training could be a beneficial option for addressing insomnia and similar sleep difficulties.
For more research studies on this topic, see our Research page.
References:
Hammer, B. U., Colbert, A. P., Brown, K. A., & Ilioi, E. C. (2011). Neurofeedback for insomnia: A pilot study of Z-score SMR and individualized protocols. Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback, 36(4), 251-264.
Schabus, M., Heib, D. P., Lechinger, J., Griessenberger, H., Klimesch, W., Pawlizki, A., … Hoedlmoser, K. (2014). Enhancing sleep quality and memory in insomnia using instrumental sensorimotor rhythm conditioning. Biological Psychology, 95, 126-134
