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Biofeedback Specialist

Dr. Charles Mac Kentnor -  - Psychologist

Dr. Charles Mac Kentnor

Psychologist located in Denver, CO

Charles “Mac” Kentnor, PsyD is a well-respected psychologist in the Denver area who uses biofeedback therapy to help you face stress with a calm heart and focused mind that keeps you energized and participating in life rather than fearful and isolated. Schedule an appointment today to learn a better way of confronting stress.

Biofeedback Q & A

What is biofeedback?

To understand biofeedback, it’s helpful to first understand stress and the role it plays in anxiety, depression, behavior, concentration, and other facets of mental health. When your brain perceives stress as a threat, it works closely with your body to protect you from harm. Powerful hormones ramp up your heart rate, tighten your muscles for action, and increase your respiratory rate so that you’re better able to respond to danger. These very real physical responses are based more on instinct than mental clarity or thought processes.

When you’re facing an angry bear defending her cubs, these physiologic changes triggered by stress may help. When your stress is due to worry over a public speaking engagement, circumstances that remind you of a past trauma, or concern over an ailing relative, your brain’s natural desire to protect can get in the way of your success. Biofeedback is a natural, noninvasive therapy that teaches you how to reorder your thought processes and stop these unwanted, stress-induced symptoms of rapid heart rate, shallow breathing, tense muscles, and brain fog.

Will biofeedback replace psychotherapy?

The mainstay of psychotherapy is creating a safe place to discuss your history, your thoughts and feelings, your hopes and dreams, the very essence of you with a compassionate professional who offers healing rather than judgment. Biofeedback cannot replace “talk therapy” and other forms of professional counseling.

Rather, Dr. Kentnor uses his expertise in biofeedback therapy to help you reach that all-important next step of moving beyond understanding why you feel and react the way you do to eliminating the barriers blocking your path to success. It’s this integrative approach to traditional therapy that allows Dr. Kentnor’s clients to achieve balance and control over their responses to life’s stress.    

In cases such as pain, traumatic brain injury, and issues with cognition or motor skills, biofeedback therapy may be the dominant treatment, and psychotherapy may not be necessary.    

What types of biofeedback are there?

Dr. Kentnor prefers two innovative biofeedback techniques that take advantage of advanced technology to achieve success: HeartMath and Low Energy Neurofeedback System (LENS).

The HeartMath system tracks your heart rate variability in order to assess changes in your physiologic status when you encounter stress. Dr. Kentor uses this analysis to guide you through various actions, such as changing the tempo of your breathing, to return your heart to a natural, relaxed rhythm that prevents your stress response from kicking into high gear.

The LENS system uses electroencephalogram (EEG) sensors and neurofeedback to “nudge” your brainwaves out of negative patterns that affect mood, energy, concentration, and mental clarity. There’s no discomfort with this noninvasive therapy that occurs as you relax in a comfortable position with your eyes closed.

The LENS system adapts well for problems involving the central nervous system when the body encounters difficulty regulating itself. These conditions include:

  • Addictions and dependencies
  • Anxiety and restlessness
  • Brain-generated pain
  • Fatigue, as a primary or secondary condition
  • Cognition and mental clarity
  • Moods, such as sadness and anger
  • Motivation, including task completion and shifting between tasks
  • Motor issues, such as coordination, balance, and tremor control

What is the doctor’s approach to treatment?

Dr. Kentnor takes an integrative approach to therapy and focuses on meeting and respecting each individual’s needs. He provides a space which is compassionate and open, where clients do not feel judged, but deeply understood. Clients are able to experiment with different ways of being and relating, as well as which biofeedback therapy can accommodate which specific symptom that needs addressing for hopeful optimization.  Consultations are held with clients to discuss program guidelines, how success is measured, and other details. Dr. Kentnor wants to help clients feel comfortable when providing feedback about what is helping them and what’s not. He listens avidly to each person’s needs and does his absolute best to accommodate them.