A favourite Netflix show or YouTube video could become part of a ‘brain-training’ session offered by a UAE startup that brings its equipment to clients’ homes.
McWellness founder and CEO Shauna McGuinness highlighted the service at AccessAbilities Expo 2026, describing how brain mapping and personalised neurofeedback use recorded brain activity to guide screen-based sessions.
Shauna McGuinness
Among her clients was a 12-year-old boy already diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. McGuinness said he initially struggled to relax but became calmer and was able to focus better at school during the programme.
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She said he stopped taking medication after six sessions and subsequently completed a 25-session package, with plans to continue for additional support.
“He’s just finished the package, but he’s actually going to continue because there’s still some areas that he wants help with,” she said.
It does not demonstrate that neurofeedback can replace prescribed treatment and medication changes should be discussed with the treating clinician.
How the sessions work
McWellness offers quantitative electroencephalography, or qEEG brain mapping, using a 23-channel system to record electrical activity through scalp electrodes. McGuinness said clients receive a detailed report, sometimes around 12 pages, which informs personalised training.
During neurofeedback, clients wear headphones and watch a video while software monitors their recorded activity. In the demonstration she showed, the picture became smaller or larger according to whether that activity met the training target.
“They just have some headphones on, watch a video, like a Netflix show or YouTube, anything that they enjoy and they think they’ll be engaged with,” she said.
McGuinness said the process involves no electrical stimulation and requires little conversation. She regularly pauses to ask whether clients feel focused, relaxed or sleepy, adjusting the session accordingly.
She said she works with children, adolescents and adults, including people with ADHD and autism, and clients seeking support for anxiety or sleep difficulties.
However, services are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent medical or psychological conditions. A 2025 JAMA Psychiatry review also found no significant improvement in overall ADHD symptoms on probably blinded assessments and did not support neurofeedback as a stand-alone ADHD treatment.
‘This is home to me’
McGuinness said the home-visit business launched in August, with about 10 clients undertaking packages and others choosing brain mapping alone.
She said she has three years’ neurofeedback experience, studied psychology for four years and later trained in London. Her own mental-health difficulties also influenced her interest in wellbeing. “My goal was to help people in the UAE because this is home to me. I grew up here,” she said.
“I love Dubai, and I just wanted to give back to the people here as much as possible.”
AccessAbilities Expo runs from October 19 to 21 at Dubai World Trade Centre.