Drake Institute – Irvine Clinic

I never post reviews, but Drake Institute is making such a positive change in my son’s life that I had to share my experience.
To all parents like me who suffer the added worry, frustration and feeling of desperation raising a child who has any form of attention deficit disorder, hyper or not, PLEASE, please take your child to Drake Institute before subjecting them to medication. Drugs are not the answer.
From day one, we fought the schools every time they begged us to just medicate our son, who has High Functioning Autism, has ADHD, and anxiety issues. Drugs were NEVER an option. Even as he struggled to sit still and focus long enough to learn anything, we weren’t looking to a drug for answers, weren’t going to risk his long-​term health. At 9-​yrs-​old, we found Drake Institute and it’s taken time, but he’s made great strides in his ability to focus. He sits down now long enough to soak in the info, and learned how to read and write and do some math. He’s on the pathway to catching up and it’s only a matter of time until he reaches his proper education grade level.
The people at Drake actually care about healing your family. Maria is very helpful and always takes time to check on my son whether he is following through with what he needs to get done.
Take your child and get Dr. Velkoff’s opinion, hear all the information, test cases, do your own research and then make an educated decision.
You owe it to your child and your family.
Peace be with you.
Matt

Dr Velkoff Unilocal Review
The Drake Institute is the real deal. Before coming to visit Dr. Velkoff, I was seeing a psychiatrist for severe anxiety and depression. The only help he was able to over me was in the form of prescribing medication. Deep down, I wanted to take control of my life and was looking for a more pro-​active approach to dealing with daily stress. I figured if I could at least gain a handle on my stress it would stop feeding into the depressed feelings I was experiencing.
I did as much research as I could about neuro and bio feedback and was very impressed with Doctor Velkoff during the initial consultation. He was extremely kind and went out of his way to answer multiple personal phone calls in response to all of my questions. The treatment process was nothing short of amazing. Through both bio and neuro feedback, I developed the ability to neutralize stressing feelings, remain calm and slow down annoying racing thoughts. I have been SLEEPING 8 — 9 hours a night without mental interference and my energy levels are through the roof. While seeing a psychiatrist, I was merely functioning at work and at home. After following Dr Velkoff’s approach to healing, I am seeing and living life in the most beautiful way — as it actually is and as it actually happens.
I remember «shopping around» and feeling «skeptical» like others who have posted reviews on Unilocal.However, I have a strong personal desire to heal and felt an actual MD could help me reach my goals light years faster. I’ve always had a gut feeling Dr. Velkoff pioneered and perfected both the bio and neuro feedback process and I’m extremely satisfied I chose to continue to see him. As a result, I continue to practice everything I learned at the Drake Institute on a daily basis. Healing does not stop when you walk out the door. Bring commitment, and a strong personal desire to succeed at the Drake Institute and you will change your life.
Jason

We took our son consistently to the Institute following all their guidelines, working at home with them, but experience absolutely no change in his ability to work with his condition. The Institute did not provide clear benchmarks and exactly how he would or would not improve and true to form he did not improve. There is in my opinion a lack of scientific evidence to support their contention that using Feedback in there manner is truly worthwhile. Considering the costs I would hesitate to recommend this to anybody

During the year we spent in Southern California, we were SO fortunate to learn of Dr. Velkoff’s Drake Institute. Our youngest son, now 14, was diagnosed with ADHD when he was in kindergarten and had been on concerta for approximately 8 years. At the Drake Institute, Dr. Velkoff provided us with an individualized plan of care based on our son’s initial brain scan. After receiving about six weeks of neurofeedback, he asked to stop taking his medicine on weekends. We were not optimistic as our past experiences with taking our son off concerta had not been positive. We were surprised that he was not only fine without the medicine, but seemed more energetic and focused. His social skills seemed better! Under the guidance of Dr. Velkoff and Dr. Jennifer So, the caring, knowledgeable, wonderful psychologist assigned to our case, our son was able to stop taking his concerta. He shared with us that he had suffered from headaches, nausea and lethargy for years on the medication. Now living back on the east coast, our son is happy, healthy and energetic at the start of his ninth grade year. He seems more motivated and organized. The Drake Institute not only provided neurofeedback and the fast forward program tailored specifically to our son’s needs, but also with guidance, relaxation and focus techniques and support. We are so grateful to Dr. Velkoff, Dr. So and all those who worked with our family at the Drake Institute. Thanks to the Drake Institute, our son is happy, healthy and has been medication free now for five great months. Thank you!!!

The drake institute of Irvine has the most wonderful staff. The Drake has changed our life completely. When we first started coming we couldn’t imagine life with out chaos. Every day was a mixture of arguments tears and frustration. Since completeing all our sessions life is so much more peaceful. It was worth all the money and time we put into the program. I highly recommend the Drake Instate and their team of specialist.

This was a life changing experience for me!!! I’m so happy with the results of my therapy at the Drake Institute. I completed the program last fall and I cannot list all of the changes that have occurred but the biggest things are better communication with my family, I’m making more money, my house is clean and I’m happier in general. I expected I would function better in my career but i didn’t expect to feel better and have more energy. My racing mind is much calmer and I can think more clearly. Before I always felt like I was running out of time now I have so much more time. I’m so grateful for Dr. Velkoff and the staff. I felt everyone was committed to my success! Worth every penny!!!

It is nice that they took the time to respond to my experience, but– I stand by my prior review. Find another provider that charges less. I had very positive experiences with neurofeedback, but I went to Connie Hurst in Huntington Beach, she was half the price and I had amazing results.

This place is great. We’ve taken 3 of our kids here and saw amazing progress in each case. They combine neurofeedback with reward based parenting techniques at home to help kids reach their full potential. It has honestly been amazing for our family. We tried EVERYTHING under the sun for our kid with ADHD including, oils, supplements, special diets and medication. This worked. We are now medication free. So, so grateful. My kids are calmer, more focused, have more self control, and we are all generally less frustrated. Our insurance reimbursed us for a large amount of the cost but even if they didn’t it would have been worth every penny. Thank you!

Just wanted to update our situation. After contacting Dr. Velkoff and meeting with him he is genuine in getting his patient the help that they need. He is providing additional treatment and assessment at no additional cost. I guess what has happened our PC did not coordinate our concerns with the Doctor in a timely matter. We are please for the efforts and Dr. V being genuine He even gave his personal cell phone to reach him directly if we don’t hear back from our PC. Overall we are happy that our child is getting the proper care now. There must be a reason why his clinic is super busy all the time.

First off, every child is different. This is our experience. Our son was diagnosed with inattentive ADHD when in 1^st grade. By 4^th grade, homework was a 2+ hour ordeal. He would «zone out» in class and wasn’t completing his work. His grades were slipping down. It became evident that he wasn’t going to «outgrow it». As far as medical interventions for ADHD, our choices were medication or biofeedback. We tried the biofeedback first because I didn’t want our son to have to be medicated for the rest of his life just to make it through school and work. I realize medication does help a lot of people, but I considered it a last resort.
The staff is very friendly. Dr. Velkoff seems to be very passionate about this program. I feel he honestly believes neurofeedback helps people with ADHD. There is a rather long information video we watched on our first visit, but that is because they are throwing out a lot of information. I had no idea what biofeedback was about so I found this video to be helpful. There was also a meeting with Dr. Velkoff to talk about our son’s issues and how biofeedback could help. The program was tailored to our son based on his ADHD diagnosis and the questionnaire we filled out. There was also a brain mapping that shows you the activity or lack of, in different parts of the brain. To complete the program you have to attend 42+ 45 minute sessions of neurofeedback. There are also meeting that the parents attend to learn how to set up a system of positive reinforcement (earned points=rewards). Parents also fill out feedback forms through out the process and these forms are reviewed by your case worker and adjustment are made if necessary. It is quite a commitment, but if you want your child to succeed it is important to do everything possible to help support them. The program is expensive and the office offers a finance program. They way we looked at it, we had the brainmapping, 42 sessions of neurofeedback, parent support meetings and Dr. Velkoff was available by telephone if there were any issues or questions. Non-​medical interventions we considered were Sylvan or private school. Both of those would have been quite an expense too with no guarantees. Also, I’m not sure these would have addressed the source of the inattentive problems.
As for our son he is in 6^th grade now. 5^th grade was a good year compared to the 4^th grade. I credit the neurofeedback for that. He comes home from school, gets out his homework and completes it on his own. I don’t have to sit with him for 2hrs a night to get through homework. His grades are average. He could do better, but he still struggles with organization and time management. Part of that is on us as parents because we are not consistent with our «point system». He is achieving this on his own, unmedicated which I think is a huge accomplishment.

I was interested in learning about the Drake Institute and traveled a distance to do so. Once I received the price list of what services were available and what my daughter needed, I realized they were more interested in making people well, than making money. It is costly, but reasonable for what can be accomplished. My daughter attended the Drake Institute, and two weeks after being there, she gave me a hug, and told me she loved me. That was the first time ever, and she is 20 years old. We are home now doing Fast Forward, so I wont know the total amount of success we will have for a few more months. It is not a quick fix. It takes time and patience, family support and love. I met people who had tried neurofeedback at other places with no success, and they found success here. I’m glad I invested in my child, and would do it again. To see her talking to other people with confidence, and being aware of life around her like never before, Dr. Velkoff’s help was priceless. We are so excited for her future — and now she can be too.

What a waste of 6,000 dollars it made my kid worse he started to have anger issues. they were awesome about financing us and when we complained they offered a couple of free Sessions. what to make him worse they really messed up my child and said it only works for some
do they stay in business, on the hopes and dreams of parents that want a quick fix. consult a professional. dont give your money to these hacks if it doesnot get better they will get worse. I would never left the Review until I had a friend tell me about his kid and I told them not to waste money. i see no Positive reviews.

I have a friend that has had her son being treated by this facility and wow can I see a difference! He used to «show off» all the time, always getting into something when she wasn’t looking and throwing temper tantrums. She absolutely did not want to put him on any drugs. After just a couple weeks of starting treatments he started improving, not all at once, but you could see him thinking through his actions a little more and generally just starting to calm down and communicate better. TO see him behave now versus how he acted before neurofeedback treatments is like day compared to night. The more I learn about Neurofeedback the less I want to see kids with ADD and ADHD on drugs — What great results I have seen from this facility!