The Mendi Headset

Jacqueline: I am at the cutting edge of biohacking. I will strap anything to my brain or my vagus nerve and go the distance. Right now, I’m pretty excited about Mendi. I used to look at websites and think neurofeedback is the answer to training the brain, and, finally, there’s a home option. I’ve been waiting about 15 years for this. It essentially measures blood flow to areas of the prefrontal cortex — some people on Reddit might say it’s just a glorified pulse oximeter.

Anyway, you sit there and play a game on your phone where a ball rolls along a hill. When you activate your prefrontal cortex, the ball starts to rise. You’re essentially controlling the ball on the screen with your mind. Your brain learns through positive feedback what it feels like to activate the prefrontal cortex. My prefrontal cortex struggles with ADHD, so you’re training to focus in a deep way. When I do a deep, slow exhale, like in yoga, the ball goes up every time. The second I take a sharp, deep inhale, all hell breaks loose.

My next move is to try to play the game while not actively staring at it.