Using Forbrain For Focus and Energy

Today I’m bringing you a new kind of product review, something I wasn’t familiar with before May: Forbrain – Sound For Life Ltd and their bone conduction headset.  What a unique product this is, and full of possibilities.  In just 15-20 minutes a day for 6-10 weeks, you’ll notice better speech, focus, and self-confidence.

What was in our Forbrain package?

• The Forbrain headpiece that includes the microphone, dynamic filter and bone conductors
• Spare foam pieces to cover the microphone
• A cord to charge Forbrain via your computer USB port
• A direction leaflet
• A booklet with more information
• Everything fits into a handy protective case (that also has room for everything mentioned above)

What is Forbrain?

It’s a headpiece that you wear; think about what the person who takes your fast-food order at a drive through wears.  It looks like that.  The headpiece is comfortable to wear and the mouthpiece microphone is flexible so that you can get it in just the right place for each person.  There aren’t earphones with this, but there are bone conduction pieces that sit over just in front of your ears.  There’s also dynamic filter that transforms your voice between the microphone and the bone conductors.

How does Forbrain work?

The three pieces (microphone, dynamic filter, and bone conductors) create a feedback loop so that your brain ‘hears’ your voice much quicker than listening with your ears does.  It gives you immediate feedback about your voice and filters out extraneous sounds (you’ll still hear everything around you, but you’re concentrating on the sound of your own voice).

Your voice will sound a bit different and with the dynamic filter, it will sound like it’s fading in and out, but that is what it does – it makes you concentrate on how you are forming your words and how to better enunciate them for clearer communication.  It’s an odd sensation to start with, but it soon becomes second nature when wearing the headset.

By filtering the sound of your own voice and focusing on that, outside noises are no longer focused on, thus allowing the user to be more in the moment and better able to focus on themselves and what they are reading.  The effects of Forbrain use continues to be seen after use.

Who is Forbrain recommended for?

Forbrain is recommended for people who are looking for more focus; those with ADD, ADHD, speech and language difficulties, people with difficulties with auditory processing, and those who want to improve their attention and memory.  Ages are right from the young to the very old.

Why did I want to try out Forbrain?

We’re just an average family, there’s nothing exceptional about us, so I was ever so surprised we were chosen to be on this review!  Why did I want to be on this review?  I was interested in seeing if Forbrain could help Tristan be a little more focused on his school work and not take 90 minutes to do a 20 minute class.  Kallista speaks very well for her age, but she has had trouble pronouncing a couple of words, and I wanted to see if Forbrain could give me more energy during the day, especially during the after lunch slump that lasts until dinner time.

How did we use Forbrain?

Tristan used Forbrain for about 15 minutes a day, Monday to Friday.  Usually he used it in the morning, but if we had an appointment or another commitment, then later in the day.  He would read a story book, a chapter book, or a book of children’s poetry.

He’d usually sit on a small children’s chair so he could have good posture.  At first he complained about sitting ‘correctly’ but now it’s second-nature when using Forbrain for him.  If he does slouch, I simply remind him to sit like a plant and grow up to the sun, just as the instructions suggest.

Kalllista used Forbrain for about 10-15 minutes a day, generally just before or after Tristan.  She preferred to read a book or two first, and then sing nursery rhymes or her own songs.

Did Forbrain work for us?

It’s hard to definitively know if Forbrain is working, as much of the changes are subjective for the average user.  However, I have noticed that my children have had different experiences while using it.

I have found that it’s best if Tristan uses Forbrain early in the day; preferably before starting ‘school work’ or shortly after.  He just seems to have a greater focus and concentration.  He will accomplish more in a shorter length of time.  This makes me happy as we are more likely to complete our day’s work; and it makes Tristan happy as it means he will have more time to play once his work is done for the day.

Tristan says that using Forbrain makes him very tired very quickly, but he says he likes to use it.  I know that when he wears Forbrain to read I rarely have to ask him to stop slouching, and he speaks more quietly, not just while using it, but afterwards as well.  This has been an unexpected and pleasant result as I’m forever telling Tristan that he doesn’t need to speak so loudly for others to hear him.

Kallista says that Forbrain ‘makes me happy and awake if I do it first thing in the morning’.  Kallista was having trouble pronouncing a couple of words, and now she’s less likely to mis-pronounce them.  These are words that she’s never been able to get quite right, but that she uses everyday. And Kallista is also speaking softer after using Forbrain.

Not once have I had either child not want to use Forbrain, and I think because it’s only worn for a short period of time, it’s not an inconvenience for them.  They can wear it while reading, which is something they love to do, so they find it almost a priviledge to wear it; it makes them feel special.

Now that the end to my dental work is almost within sight, I’m looking forward to being able to consistently use Forbrain myself (the slight vibration of the bone conductors caused me some irritation).  I’ll update this review once I try it out properly myself, so watch this space for more information.  I’m really looking forward to it.  If it can help give me energy and be less forgetful and scatterbrained, there’s no telling what I could achieve.

We’re going to continue using Forbrain as it’s become a part of our daily routine and I do believe it helps my children focus and complete their work more efficiently. I’m curious to read how other Crew members used Forbrain and how it worked for others who have sensory processing difficulties.

To read more reviews about Forbrain – Sound For Life Ltd  by the Schoolhouse  Review Crew, click on the graphic below and follow the instructions.  You will find 85 honest reviews by the Crew.  If you’d like to know more or would like to follow Forbrain, you can connect with them through their website, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.