Founded in 2008 and inspired by our experiences with our own children, Gray Matters’ original mission was simple: To apply advances in neuroscience to the way ADHD was diagnosed and treated. That mission is as relevant today as it was then.

Today we treat children and adults in Westport, CT, with a range of issues, but we remain faithful to our founding principles: To diagnose based on measured brain function and to use the latest, evidenced-based techniques, to effectively improve function without medication.

Our emphasis on measuring brain function, rather than more subjective diagnostic methods, is transforming how ADHD is understood and treated: ADHD is not a disease. It has no single, unifying neurological profile, and it can be caused by an almost infinite number of issues. Despite the prevalence of ADHD medication, there is no single effective treatment.

As neuroimaging becomes increasingly refined, it reveals the complexity of human attention and self-regulation. It shows the underlying causes of difficulties commonly described as “ADHD”, very few of which are improved by prescription medications.

Of the thousands of children and adults from Westport, CT, that have come to Gray Matters with previous diagnoses of ADHD, only a fraction had brain profiles that could be improved by ADHD medication.

Many of our patients with an ADHD diagnosis are already taking medication. Our ability to measure brain function allows us to do something extraordinary: To compare brain function on and off medication and evaluate its effect. This analysis is critical to understanding treatment and whether medication is helping.

When brain function is measured, the diagnosis “ADHD” becomes meaningless. In reality, there are just difficulties that fit the description “ADHD”, many of which are from over-aroused, dysregulated brains which are not helped by ADHD medications.

Using qEEG to see and measure brain function in 3 dimensions, we find the cause of difficulties with self-regulation and attention. We then train these areas with highly advanced neurofeedback to improve their function. Our assessments make diagnosis a starting point for treatment, a data point from which to measure improvement, not a statement of limitation.