Grey Matters of Carmel Uses Neurofeedback Therapy to Improve Mental Health
Writer / Alli Donovan
Photographer / Sarah Browning
According to 2021 National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Indiana data, one in every five U.S. adults experiences mental illness each year, and 1,129,000 adults in Indiana have a mental health condition. Additionally, one in every six U.S. children experiences a mental health disorder each year, and 90,000 Hoosiers aged 12 to 17 have depression.
Grey Matters of Carmel is here to help. 
Grey Matters is a neurofeedback therapy clinic that helps and supports both children and adults, to mitigate symptoms related to various neurological and mental disorders like anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, apraxia, migraines and more.
But what is neurofeedback therapy?
Neurofeedback is a powerful technology that trains the brain on what to do and uses its own reward system, thereby teaching and practicing optimal performance for long-term or permanent change.
This technique teaches you how to identify counterproductive brain activity patterns, so you can consciously disrupt and replace them with healthier, more balanced brain activity patterns.
Neurofeedback ultimately helps you and your brain self-regulate more efficiently and effectively in virtually any situation.
What does a session at Grey Matters look like? Good news – its really simple.
While complex brainwave activity is happening inside your head, patients are able to sit comfortably in a chair and let the sensors placed on the scalp do all the work.
These sensors are only reading electrical signals produced by your brain and transmitting them to a computer. The computer software distinguishes the optimal brainwave pattern from the suboptimal which creates the sounds, or reward system. Its your brain, training itself. This is all done while you are either watching relaxing images, reading a book or just having me time. For the kids, the staff provides coloring books, puzzles, legos or even suggests bringing homework.
During neurofeedback, patients can actually hear the sounds of the brainwave patterns in real time as the brain responds to images, sounds and other input.
When the brain produces favorable brainwave patterns, patients will hear special musical tones. When your brain is not as harmonious, the sounds distort. This instantaneous feedback notifies each patients brain on what it needs to do to make the music more harmonious. With each session, the brain is able to practice efficiency, coordination and balance. Over time, patients are able to noticeably improve the control over their thoughts and actions.
Courtney Boyer has over 20 years of experience in business management, digital marketing, psychology, nutrition and nursing. She is the founder of Grey Matters in Carmel. She is a licensed registered nurse, a certified brain health coach, certified health and wellness coach and a certified holistic nutritionist. She is also trained in infra-slow fluctuation, IFEN, sLORETA neurofeedback, and qEEG acquisition and analysis.
She is the perfect advocate for Grey Matters, and if that doesnt convince you, she is the mother of Greyson (Grey), who is 10 years old and has apraxia and ADHD.
Childhood apraxia is a motor speech disorder that makes it difficult for children to speak. They have difficulty carrying out the movement to create speech.
At age 2, Grey was diagnosed with apraxia, Boyer says. From age 2 to 5 we were in speech therapy, and we werent really making any progress.
Her digital marketing agency began working with a neurofeedback clinic on a website. As she was learning about the company, the lightbulb turned on. She found a possible solution for her son.
Within the first couple of weeks of neurofeedback, Greyson was making eye contact – something we had never gotten before, she says. Words were starting to come out. Granted, they were choppy and missing some syllables, but he was making sense.
Grey had 30 sessions at that clinic before Boyer was presented with the opportunity to open her own clinic in Carmel. That same exact clinic that treated my children and myself encouraged me to open my own clinic in 2020, so with their help and encouragement, I opened Grey Matters in January of 2021, she says.
Grey Matters has kept growing ever since. Having opened in the middle of the pandemic with only two treatment chairs, Boyer has expanded to six treatment chairs within the facility. She is also partnering with AlphaOmega Wellness and Dr. Dee Bonney on opening a second location in Greenwood in August 2023.
Greyson continues to thrive in his treatment plans. He speaks beautifully for his age and knows how to both read and write – an opportunity made possible through his neuroplasticity treatment sessions. You would never even know he faced any challenges thanks to neurofeedback.
The staff at Grey Matters is highly trained in brain-based assessments and treatments. From the moment a patient walks in the door, a Grey Matters staff member is there to support not only the patient, but also the family of the person undergoing the treatment.
Grey Matters has made a significant impact on my family, and its a wonderful resource for the community, says Alicia Murphy, mother to 7-year-old Aidan, who has been a patient at Grey Matters since November of 2022.
Aidan is a first-grader who is very bright, but sometimes his actions would constrict his growth and his focus in school. He would struggle to sit still, find it difficult to focus on what is going on in the classroom, and sometimes would be off in his own world.
Murphy started researching alternative options to help his behavior and found Grey Matters, and they are pleased with his results so far.
Grey Matters is just a place that Aidan enjoys going to, Murphy explains. He loves going there, the staff is just so kind to him, and I really think he just likes how he feels and his mind feels after each session. I also love the amount of support they provide to parents. They answer all questions. They are there if you need someone to talk to because this affects the whole family.
Ethan Russell mentions that Grey Matters is completely life-changing for him. Ethan is an 18-year-old who has suffered five concussions within his lifetime so far. He explains that his concussions caused him to have severe anxiety, depression, anger issues, sleeplessness and more.
His mother, Deanna, became very concerned about him and his mental state. He had become a shell of who he was, Deanna says. He was not able to function as a person.
I was just existing, Ethan says. Thats when they knew they had to do something.
Thats when Deanna found Grey Matters. The team knew exactly how to handle Ethans condition and they were ready to help. He enrolled in Grey Matters in June of 2022, and he continues to improve with every session.
They are phenomenal, Deanna says. It has been nothing short of miraculous. Ethan is a completely different person since starting his treatment.
Ethan receives treatments for his post-concussion syndrome two times per week, and the difference has been life-changing. He is able to focus better, has significantly fewer headaches and is getting his personality back.
The staff wants to help me, Ethan says. Its unbelievable. They want to see me. They enjoy answering my questions and seeing my progress. They are the light at the end of the tunnel.
Let Grey Matters help you or your loved one today. Visit greymattersofcarmel.com for additional details on neurofeedback treatments, to view info on the staff and to schedule a consultation.
Grey Matters is located at 13250 Hazel Dell Parkway, Suite 102 in Carmel. They can be reached at 317-215-7208.
