ABC13 Chauncy Glover's functional IQ jumps 21 points after undergoing brain mapping

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Back in September of 2021, ABC13 first reported on a young drug addict who recovered and stayed sober using brain mapping. Doctors said it could help with brain fog and memory loss. ABC13's Chauncy Glover underwent brain mapping himself to see how it might help him with the challenges he has dealt with ever since he contracted COVID-19 two years ago and how it might help others.

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For the past four months, Glover had cords connected to his head three times a week as doctors tapped into his brain. It all started with a brain mapping with a company called Neurologics.

"The brain is the most important organ you have. It's what makes you you," said Karen Odell-Barber.

Doctors at the J. Flowers Health Institute read Glover's mind.

"First thing we're going to do is relax and keep your eyes closed," the technician told Glover.

His head was wired. His brain's impulses were calculated and the goal was to capture how he thinks.

"It looks at over 290 points of your brain, all simultaneously at your problem-solving abilities and how an addiction or medical issue has affected your thoughts, your memory, your memory recall. We can visually see, has this person had a TBI -- a traumatic brain injury -- or anything else in the brain that may not be functioning correctly," said Dr. James Flowers of the J. Flowers Health Institute.

"Under the tree and over the ground," said Glover as he pieced together computer-generated symbols.

It was two hours of drills, puzzles and thought-twisting tests.

"The little tree is green," said Glover during another riddle.

"The activity of your brain at each point was measured," said Dr. Dallas Hack, who reviewed Glover's results. "Your brain is quite strong, but you're not functioning at your brain's fullest potential right now."

A person's functional IQ is their intellectual ability to handle the challenges of daily life when it comes to reasoning and problem-solving. Glover scored a 94, but Dr. Hack had a major concern with Glover's working memory network, which is the amount of information a mind can hold.

The mapping revealed Glover had a memory deficiency. Glover said he had noticed some brain fog before taking the test. Dr. Hack told him it might be connected to his COVID-19 diagnosis from March of 2020. Doctors said they are discovering this in COVID long-haulers.

"People who have lost sense of smell are the ones who are having the long-haul or issues of COVID-19 brain and so on and more," said Dr. Hack.

After finding the deficiencies in a person's brain, by combining neuroscience and medicine with technology, a specific treatment program is generated to fix the problems. In Glover's case, it's what doctors call "COVID brain."

"Then we can actually treat that with this equipment, and a brain mapping equipment, it's called optimization," said Dr. Flowers.

In September of 2021 the equipment was delivered to Glover's home.

"D-R-P-S-B-H," said Glover.

He started brain training with his coach, Meaghan, virtually for an hour three times a week. Glover completed drills, played games and thought-provoking challenges like remembering and repeating sequences of numbers read aloud to him.

"6,8,7,9," said Glover.

Then, four months later, it was time for Glover to take another brain mapping exam to see if the training had improved his thinking. Dr. Hack compared his results.

"Big Improvement. Basically across the board improvement. Some of them, more than 10 points, but basically everything," said Dr. Hack.

Glover's functional IQ shot up from 94 to 115. His fluid reasoning, the ability to solve problems without existing knowledge, increased 13 points. He also had a big change in memory skills, too. Those scores went up 35 points. Doctors said they believe the brain mapping and training from Neurologics is the answer to repairing problems in the brain.

"It's 15 to 18 points, is what we promise. So, you have 21 points, which exceeds what we promised," said Odell-Barker.

This breakthrough brain mapping is not only giving hope to those like Glover, suffering the long-term impact of CO VID, but it's now being used by astronauts, NFL players, people with traumatic brain injuries, kids with autism and even those fighting addictions. Doctors at the institute, along with Neurologics, are pushing the technology to hopefully make it affordable for everyone. As of right now, insurance does not cover the training, but doctors are calling it the brain saver worth every penny.

J. Flowers Health Institute is the only assessment in the country where all patients undergo brain mapping to guide diagnosis and treatment, according to doctors.

"I would say an investment in brain health, your future, that's one of the most important ones you can make," said Odell-Barber.

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