Simple Ways to Help Your Brain Stay Sharp and Balanced

Brain Insights

Simple Ways to Help Your Brain Stay Sharp and Balanced

How to Recognize Contributors to Anxiety, ADHD, Mood, and Sleep

Issues

A Resource from The Mind Rewired

Michael Cohen, qEEG-D Founder, Center for Brain Training Author of The Mind Rewired

Your Brain Can Change

• The brain is designed to adapt and reorganize throughout life.

• Many persistent symptoms can improve with the right combination of nutrition, movement, sleep support, and reduced exposure to environmental stressors.

• These challenges are often not “just psychological” or personality based.

• Anxiety, depression, emotional reactivity, racing mind, poor sleep, fatigue, ADHD/ADD, difficulty concentrating, and performance often share common contributors.

• Sometimes, special brain tools are needed to help break stuck patterns.

This guide takes an integrated approach, because brain symptoms rarely have a single cause. Start with 2 or 3 areas to target – this is not an overnight task.

Big Contributors That Deserve More Attention

1) The Gut–Brain Connection (Microbiome)

Why Gut Health Affects your Brain:

• Your microbiome (gut bacteria) communicates continuously with your brain through immune, hormonal, and neural pathways.

• Gut balance strongly influences anxiety, mood, sleep quality, stress tolerance, focus, and overall brain performance.

What many people underestimate:

• Earlier exposures can have long-term effects on the microbiome.

• Past use of antibiotics, medications, alcohol, infections, illness, toxicity, or prolonged stress can alter gut ecology for years.

• Your gut may seem “ok,” yet an imbalance can affect brain regulation without digestive distress.

Why Standard Approaches Often Fall Short:

• Many people already eat well, take probiotics, or follow gut-friendly habits.

• If the microbiome was disrupted earlier in life, maintaining and restoring balance may require more than one strategy.

• Taking care of the microbiome often works best when multiple supports are combined, rather than relying on a single approach.

• It often takes sustained effort, not a quick fix.

The encouraging part:

By creating a multi-step approach, gut–brain balance often improves and brain symptoms often improve along with it.

Microbiome & Brain Health Practical Checklist

☐ Diets that support microbial diversity (more fiber, fruits, vegetables)

☐ Careful, personalized selection of probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics

☐ Reducing alcohol and ultra-processed foods

☐ Less crackers, bread, and sweets made with refined wheat flour

☐ Considering microbiome testing when appropriate

☐ Track brain symptoms, not just digestion, when making changes

10 Ways To Improve The Gut Microbiome - DrJockers.com

2) Blood Sugar and the Brain. Who Knew It Could Be So Important?

Why It Matters

• Blood sugar instability can drive anxiety, irritability, brain fog, poor sleep, and panicattack symptoms.

• Caffeine on empty stomach can destabilize blood sugar, exacerbating anxiety.

• Standard blood tests may appear normal yet miss subtle, rapid fluctuations.

• Past stress, restrictive dieting, chronic undereating or alcohol can increase blood sugar volatility later in life.

Take a Layered Approach

Multiple Steps, Not One or Two

☐ Eat something healthy every ~4 hours; avoid long fasts if anxiety or sleep worsens

☐ Reduce simple sugars and refined carbohydrates (including breads and crackers)

☐ Pair carbohydrates with protein and healthy fats

☐ Stay well hydrated, including electrolytes or a pinch of sea salt when appropriate

Simple Metabolic Supports

☐ Lemon water (often in the morning)

☐ Apple cider vinegar before meals

☐ Cinnamon added to food or beverages

☐ Monitor mood, energy, and sleep not just blood sugar numbers

“7 Simple Strategies to Buffer Blood Sugar Levels” – DrJockers.com

3) Restorative Sleep and the Brain: It’s Even More Important Than You Think

Everyone knows sleep is important. What most people don’t realize is how often poor sleep is missed, misunderstood, or underestimated and how deeply it affects brain function.

Assume There’s a Sleep Problem If:

• You feel very tired during the day

• You struggle badly in the afternoon

• You have obvious insomnia—difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking unrefreshed

• You snore, gasp, or stop breathing during sleep (or a partner has noticed this)

• You wake with anxiety or feeling depressed (often a sign of disrupted sleep)

What Research Shows — and Most People Don’t Believe

• Getting less than ~6.5 hours of sleep significantly impairs performance, attention, emotional regulation, and decision-making.

• Many people feel fine at this level.

• Yet objective testing shows performance is subtly but meaningfully worse.

In other words: You may not feel sleep-deprived, but your brain may still be underperforming.

Why the “Best” Sleep Advice Often Fails

Most people have already been told to:

• Reduce stress

• Meditate or do yoga

• Avoid screens before bedtime

• Take supplements

• Practice breathing

• …and much more

Many have tried all of this and more, without success.

Sleep is complex. Most approaches address only 1 or 2 of the 8+ factors that determine sleep quality.

Sleep quality depends on:

• Brain regulation

• Circadian rhythm

• Light exposure

• Metabolic stability

• Nervous system tone

• Gut–brain signaling

• Environmental stimulation

Addressing just one factor rarely works.

A More Effective, Layered Approach to Sleep

Foundational layers:

• Consistent sleep and wake times

• Morning and evening light exposure to anchor circadian rhythm

• More natural light during the day

Brain regulation layers:

• Neurofeedback and other neuroregulation tools

• Audio-visual entrainment (e.g., MindAlive / David Premier, BrainTap)

• Vagus nerve stimulation or CES devices (e.g., Alpha-Stim)

• PEMF or other calming neuromodulation tools

Biological layers:

• Supporting the microbiome (often more than one strategy is needed)

• Stabilizing blood sugar

• Thoughtful, individualized supplement use (no single “best” option)

Environmental layers:

• Reducing Wi-Fi and wireless exposure during sleep

• Reducing blue and green light exposure 1–2 hours before bed

• Increasing infrared or full-spectrum light to counter indoor “junk light”

• Improving night-time air quality when needed (example: an air filter)

• Ruling out mold exposure when symptoms persist

The brain sleeps best when multiple systems are supported together.

If sleep hasn’t improved despite trying many good strategies:

• The approach likely hasn’t been layered enough

• This guide gives you layers to dig into that haven’t all been addressed

• The microbiome and the brain are incredibly complex. For chronic issues you may need to find professionals familiar with the various layers described

4) EMF (Wi-Fi, Wireless, Bluetooth)

Affects Sleep, Mood, Anxiety, and Brain Regulation

Three Simple Nighttime Rules That Matter Most

Your brain heals, detoxes, regenerates and renews during sleep. Maximize this by:

1. Turn off your wireless router during sleep whenever possible.

• Use a nightly timer or turn it off manually.

• Nighttime reduction is often where the highest benefits occur.

2. If you cannot turn off the router, increase distance.

• Place routers and Wi-Fi boosters 35–40 feet away from sleeping areas when possible.

• Walls and floors are not reliable barriers.

• Keeping routers 20+ feet away from nighttime sitting or working areas also helps.

3. Distance phones and Bluetooth devices during sleep.

• Keep phones, earbuds, watches, and charging devices 8–10 feet away.

• Use airplane mode when appropriate.

• Check proximity of smart meters; shielding may be needed if close.

Key principle: Distance reduces exposure dramatically—without fear or extremes.

Measuring exposure can help identify hidden issues. Meters from companies such as Safe and Sound provide clearer, easier-to-interpret information.

www.safeandsoundrf.com/product-category/meters

5) Blue & Green Light (Not Just Blue): An Overlooked Sleep Disruptor

• Blue and green wavelengths signal the brain to stay alert.

• Evening exposure can delay sleep onset and reduce deep, restorative sleep.

• Indoor lighting and screens are major contributors. What helps:

• Dim lights in the evening

• Reduce screen use at night

• Use blue/green light–blocking glasses after dark.

Important note: Everything will look darker similar to candlelight. Give your brain a week to adapt. Candlelight is good.

Examples (for reference only): Most 'blue light blockers' don't block green wavelengths look for amber or red-tinted lenses after dark.

• TrueDark

• Sleep ZM Blue Block

• BluBlox

6) Head Injury & Post-Concussion Effects

• Even mild head injuries or whiplash can affect brain regulation.

• Symptoms may appear months or years later.

• Emotional regulation, sleep, focus, and stress tolerance are commonly affected.

• Post-concussion syndrome is widely underdiagnosed.

• Even childhood falls, sports impacts, or car accidents qualify

If you’ve ever been “whacked on the head,” it’s worth considering.

Neurofeedback is especially important to explore when brain wiring has been disrupted.

Concussions - Center For Brain Training; Persisting Symptoms after Concussion

Concussion Alliance; Or Concussion Rescue, Amazon, Dr. Chapek, Amen

7) Mold, Toxins, and Environmental Stress

• Hidden mold exposure can affect mental health, sleep, and the microbiome.

• Many people are unaware they’ve been exposed.

• Testing is available.

Make sure this is ruled out, Many persistent brain and mental health issues have a mold component. Common signs include: worsening symptoms in certain offices or restaurants, persistent brain fog despite good sleep, or symptoms that started after moving homes.

Find a local company that can do reliable mold testing. Here’s examples of two online services that support home mold testing. The Dust Test Mold Kit & www.GotMold.com

8) When You Need Extra Help: Neurofeedback & Neuroregulation

Many people do the right things nutrition, supplements, exercise, stress reduction and still feel stuck. Often, this means the brain itself needs more direct support to regulate.

Why Brain Regulation Matters

The brain operates through complex electrical signaling and timing between networks. When these patterns become inefficient—due to stress, trauma, inflammation, illness, or head injury symptoms can persist even when lifestyle factors are addressed.

What Neurofeedback Is

Neurofeedback is a non-drug, non-invasive approach that helps the brain regulate itself more efficiently.

Using real-time feedback from brain activity, the brain learns to:

• Shift out of inefficient or overactive patterns

• Improve timing and coordination between networks

• Develop greater flexibility and stability

Often described as a gym for the brain, it trains rather than forces change.

As regulation improves, many people notice:

• Better sleep

• Reduced anxiety and reactivity

• Improved mood and focus

• Greater resilience to stress

• Better response to other supports

Neuroregulation: A Broader Category

Neurofeedback is part of a broader group of neuroregulation tools that work directly with brain and nervous system activity.

Examples include:

• Neurofeedback

• Audio-visual entrainment

• Cranial electrical stimulation and micro-current approaches

• Vagus nerve stimulation

• Pulsed electromagnetic field therapies

• Photobiomodulation (infrared light–based approaches) Each works through different mechanisms; no single tool is right for everyone.

Why a Layered Approach Works Best

Neurofeedback and neuroregulation are most effective when combined with:

• Sleep and circadian support

• Blood sugar and metabolic stability

• Microbiome support

• Reduced overstimulation and environmental stress

For some people, these tools are the missing piece that allows everything else to work better.

Learn More

The Mind Rewired explores neurofeedback and neuroregulation in depth using real-life cases rather than technical jargon. Many individuals had tried everything else—adding neurofeedback made the difference.

The book covers how these tools work, how they integrate with nutrition, lifestyle, and therapy, and real-world examples of brain change. Also guidelines on finding neurofeedback providers.

• Look for providers who specialize in neurofeedback, not generalists.

• Review credentials, training, and experience.

• Remote training can be effective when in-person options are limited.