Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge, a prominent figure in children's mental health, will present at the Northeast Region Biofeedback Society 2025 Annual Conference in New York City this October, focusing on the youth mental health crisis through the lens of nervous system dysregulation. Her presentation, titled "The Hidden Epidemic: Emotional Dysregulation in Today's Youth," proposes that the core issue behind rising mental health diagnoses is not merely anxiety or attention deficits but a fundamental dysregulation of the nervous system. "When we calm the brain first, kids can focus, learn, and heal. That's the shift I'll be bringing to NRBS 2025," said Dr. Roseann. This perspective arrives amid alarming statistics showing a 61% increase in diagnosed anxiety among adolescents and a 45% rise in depression diagnoses between 2016 and 2023, with nearly one in five teens now living with a diagnosed mental or behavioral condition.
The conference, themed "Rethinking Paradigms: Innovative Approaches for Optimal Wellness," gathers an exceptional lineup of experts including trauma specialist Bessel van der Kolk, nutrition researcher Thomas Campbell, digital stress authority Erik Peper, screen addiction researcher Stoyan Vezenkov, neuroinflammation specialist Marina Makous, and neurofeedback leader Lynda Thompson. These speakers will share insights blending neuroscience, biofeedback, and integrative health. Conference details and registration are accessible at https://nrbs.org/2025-nrbs-annual-conference. The multidisciplinary nature of NRBS 2025 is particularly significant, creating a convergence point for scientists, practitioners, educators, and parents rather than catering exclusively to clinicians.
For practitioners, the event offers cutting-edge clinical tools in biofeedback, neurofeedback, and trauma care to expand treatment options and improve outcomes. Educators will learn actionable classroom strategies to reduce stress and improve learning, addressing how dysregulation disrupts classrooms nationwide. Parents have access to a dedicated Youth Wellness Intensive providing hands-on strategies for raising regulated, resilient children in a digital-stress world. Dr. Roseann's Regulation First Parenting™ framework, which underpins her upcoming 2026 book, asserts that healing and learning are impossible without proper nervous system regulation first. This brain-based approach represents a paradigm shift in addressing youth mental health challenges.
The conference's emphasis on practical, evidence-based solutions is critical as traditional mental health interventions prove insufficient for many children. By targeting the root causes of emotional dysregulation—which affects 30–50% of children in clinical settings and often goes unrecognized in schools and families—rather than merely treating symptoms, the approaches discussed at NRBS 2025 could transform societal support for children's mental health and development. This focus on nervous system regulation as a foundational element for healing challenges conventional methodologies and offers a new pathway amid a pervasive crisis.
