Who we help · Focus & attention

Focus & attention.

ADHD and executive-function difficulties are not failures of effort — they're patterns in how the brain's attention networks fire and connect. Mapping those patterns directly is a useful starting point for a personalised plan.

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Within this domain

Two areas we work with.

Each links to a deeper page covering what we see in the brain, what a typical pathway looks like, and the evidence base.

Focus & attention

ADHD

Attention-network signatures · theta/beta ratio

For children and adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. We work with the brain-rhythm patterns commonly associated with ADHD, alongside paediatric or adult psychiatric care.

Read about ADHD Focus & attention

Executive function

Planning · prioritising · sustained focus

Difficulties with planning, prioritising, working memory, and self-monitoring — often persisting into adulthood whether or not a formal ADHD diagnosis is present.

Read about executive function
In the brain

What a qEEG can reveal about focus and attention.

Attention is not one thing in the brain. It's the coordinated work of several networks — the executive-control network, the salience network, and the default-mode network — switching on and off in concert.

Theta-beta ratio

One of the longest-studied EEG markers in attention research is the theta-to-beta ratio, particularly at frontal-central sites. Children and some adults with ADHD show elevated theta and reduced beta — a pattern interpreted as cortical "under-arousal" of the attention system [1, 2]. The marker is statistical, not diagnostic, and the picture is more nuanced than the early literature suggested.

Default-mode interference

Newer work has focused on how the default-mode network (active during mind-wandering) interferes with task-positive networks. People with attention difficulties often show incomplete suppression of default-mode activity during goal-directed tasks — which lines up with the felt experience of "being there but not there."

Sensorimotor and frontal coherence

Connectivity between the prefrontal cortex and the sensorimotor strip is involved in sustained attention and impulse control. Disrupted coherence patterns here often appear in qEEGs of people with ADHD, particularly the inattentive subtype.

What this means for a clinical plan

None of these markers diagnose ADHD on their own. But put together with a structured clinical interview, your developmental and academic history, and any psychometric assessment your psychologist or paediatrician has done, they help us build a personalised neurofeedback plan that targets the patterns showing up in your particular brain.

Our approach

How we work with focus & attention.

We start with a qEEG to see the brain-activity patterns most often associated with attention difficulties — theta-beta ratio at frontal-central sites, default-mode interference during task, disrupted prefrontal-sensorimotor coherence. From there we build a non-invasive plan drawn from five clinician-led modalities, sequenced to what we measure rather than a template.

  • Neurofeedback — operant training of attention-network rhythms.
  • Biofeedback — autonomic-nervous-system regulation that supports sustained focus.
  • Functional neurological exercises — vestibular, ocular-motor and balance drills targeting specific neural pathways.
  • Neuro-nutrition — foundations for stable energy, blood-sugar regulation, and brain-supporting nutrition.
  • Mind-body work — practices that reinforce regulation between sessions.

Sessions are tracked, the plan is revisable, and you leave each appointment knowing what changed and why.

How this fits with your other care. Formal ADHD diagnosis and consideration of stimulant medication sit with paediatricians, adult psychiatrists, and registered psychologists with assessment endorsement. Our work sits alongside that. We coordinate with prescribing clinicians where medication is part of the plan, and we don't diagnose or prescribe.

Evidence & research

What the literature says about ADHD and neurofeedback.

An honest reading list. The evidence base for neurofeedback in ADHD is the most developed of any condition we work with — but it is also genuinely contested, and we'll engage with that openly.

  1. Arns, M., de Ridder, S., Strehl, U., Breteler, M., & Coenen, A. (2009). Efficacy of neurofeedback treatment in ADHD: the effects on inattention, impulsivity and hyperactivity — a meta-analysis. Clinical EEG and Neuroscience, 40(3), 180–189.
  2. Riesco-Matías, P., Yela-Bernabé, J.R., Crego, A., & Sánchez-Zaballos, E. (2021). What do meta-analyses have to say about the efficacy of neurofeedback applied to children with ADHD? Review of previous meta-analyses and a new meta-analysis. Journal of Attention Disorders, 25(4), 473–485.
  3. Neurofeedback Collaborative Group (2024). Double-blind placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial of neurofeedback for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. JAMA Psychiatry. (The most rigorous sham-controlled study to date — read carefully.)
  4. Monastra, V.J., Lubar, J.F., & Linden, M. (2001). The development of a quantitative electroencephalographic scanning process for attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder: reliability and validity studies. Neuropsychology, 15(1), 136–144.
  5. Sonuga-Barke, E., et al. (2013). Nonpharmacological interventions for ADHD: systematic review and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials of dietary and psychological treatments. American Journal of Psychiatry, 170(3), 275–289.

Citations are illustrative for the prototype build. Final references will be reviewed and updated by Dr Ash and the content team before publication.

FAQ

Common questions about focus & attention care.

Will neurofeedback replace stimulant medication?

No. Medication decisions are between you and the prescribing paediatrician or psychiatrist. We work alongside whatever pharmacological care is in place, and we don't make recommendations about medication.

Do you see children?

Yes — we regularly work with children, typically from around age 7 upwards. Sessions are adjusted for younger nervous systems and we work with parents throughout.

Do I need a formal ADHD diagnosis to come?

No. Many people we see with attention and executive-function difficulties have not pursued (or do not want) a formal diagnosis. We work with the patterns we see, regardless of whether a label is in place.

How is what you do different from "brain training" apps?

Brain-training apps train cognitive performance through repeated tasks. Neurofeedback uses real-time EEG to provide feedback on actual brain rhythms, with a clinician in the loop. The two are different — both have a place; they're not substitutes.

Take the first step

Map the attention network.

A consultation or the online Brain Health Assessment is the right place to start.

Book a consultation See pricing

Scope of practice. Dr Ash Connell (Chiropractor) is registered with AHPRA. We do not diagnose ADHD and we do not prescribe medication. The work described here is offered as an adjunct alongside paediatric, psychiatric, and educational care.

If you need urgent support, contact your GP, call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or in an emergency call 000.

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