"Excited" isn't an emotion typically associated with getting a medical test, but nothing about this experience was typical. I wasn't in a hospital, but rather a chic wellness urban retreat.

I hadn't just suffered a brain injury, nor was I experiencing seizures — typical purposes of an EEG, which records your brain's electrical activity. 

I was there to learn more about my brain waves' rhythm, and how I could fine-tune it. 

Amen is a proponent of SPECT scans, which measures blood flow to different areas of the brain. It first involves getting an IV of a radioactive substance. 

They're typically used for diagnosing and monitoring brain diseases like Alzheimer's, stroke, and seizures, according to the Mayo Clinic. 

An EEG, or what I got, is a less expensive and less invasive technology that measures electrical currents near the surface of the brain, neuroscientist Alex Ring of Wave Neuro, the company offering the test, told me. EEGs can give information about real-time brain function.

While EEGs in a hospital setting cost insurance companies thousands of dollars, Wave Neuro's service — which includes a "brain care report" — is less than $100 total, charged to the consumer. 

Because it doesn't diagnose any conditions, it's not covered by insurance. (My scan was a complimentary part of a media event.)  

The company now only offers EEGs at its center in Cardiff, California.

Kumar said the electrodes pick up how my neurons are communicating. 

"Is the front of your brain and the back of your brain, are they actually communicating with each other, or is there some disconnect?" he asked. "Or even more importantly, even in the same region in the brain, are the cells that are next to each other, are they speaking the same language or are they speaking a different language?" 

By the time I smoothed out my hair and left the room, my "Braincare Report" was ready — practically instantaneously. Ring walked me through it on-site.

My brain was also facing a higher-than-ideal amount of "interference," which can manifest as some fogginess and fatigue. 

While there's no way to know what's causing the lags, a look at my lifestyle provides clues: While I exercise daily and eat pretty healthfully, I save my biggest meal for very late in the day (often 9 pm or 10 pm), regularly drink alcohol (though I did go dry in January), and, likely relatedly, never sleep through the night. 

"This makes me very unpopular, but alcohol is one of the worst things you can do for your sleep," Dr. Erik Won, Wave Neuroscience's chief medical officer and president, told me on a call later. And subsequently, consistent, high-quality sleep is one of the best things you can do for your brain. 

Won suggested avoiding drinking most days and stopping in the early evening on days I do imbibe. Trying not too eat so close to bedtime can improve sleep too, he said he's found using his own tracking device.

Alpha waves fall between 8 and 12 hertz, the medium-blue tone in the charts. They're most active when the subject is in a state of wakeful rest.

The report showed that the front of my brain (the top graph, above) and back of my brain (bottom) are essentially speaking the same language since they peak at about the same frequency. That's a good sign. 

The red line indicates the frequency my brain wants to peak at. Fortunately, though, the discrepancy between my current peak and the red line is "minimal," Won said. 

He said his company often sees people with peaks around 5 or 6 hertz, which he called "very concerning." 

Mathematical, engineering types, by contrast, tend to have steeper slopes and sharper peaks. 

But because alpha waves are linked to creativity, and I have more "alpha density," it makes sense why I work as a writer who also loves to draw and sing, but I have no sense of direction.  

Won said he doesn't see this in everyone. Remember, the scan was conducted when I was in an alpha-wave state. 

The bump could represent "grit, motivation, determination," as beta waves are characteristic of a "strongly engaged mind" like a person giving a speech, according to Scientific American. 

Whether it was gunning for the lead in the musical back in high school, training for triathlons more recently, or just surviving the New York City grind, I like to think I have some grit. 

Won's assessment wasn't all flattery, though: "Gone awry," Won added, "that can manifest as a bit of anxiety." If the bump were bigger, he said, it could indicate a propensity for panic attacks. 

Most people make more alpha waves in the back of their brains, but Ring said estimates vary but research suggests anywhere from 5% to 15% of the population makes more in the front.

The front of the brain is responsible for higher cognitive functions such as memory, emotions, impulse control, problem solving, social interaction, and motor function. 

Being a frontal generator — an unchangeable trait — has pros and cons, Ring said. 

The pros: We can be highly focused, with "ability to just hone into the deep detail." As a reporter who likes to dig deep into one story at a time — as opposed to managers and editors who excel at keeping track of a lot of moving parts — this assessment hit home. 

Frontal generators also tend to be dynamic and able to process a lot of information, Won said, which is also important for my job. 

Finally, we tend to remain unflustered in the midst of chaos. That's because our fixation on details can protect us from broader stresses that weigh on others. 

The cons: Frontal-generators can be rigid in their habits and thinking, struggle to juggle tasks, and tend towards rumination.

For us, it's "so easy to focus in on details and keep them in your mind with clarity, that it's hard to let go of that," Ring said. 

I do beat myself up for days if I do something relatively inconsequential, like overeat or accidentally miss a work call. Others seem to move along. 

Ring's advice? "Be comfortable giving yourself a break from yourself." 

The device, called Sonal, uses spinning magnets programmed to your brain's ideal frequency to essentially train your neurons to operate at that level. 

"It's kind of like putting someone on a swing and pushing it with your pinky finger. If you push at the right rate, it's going to pick up" that rhythm, Ring said. 

The Sonal, which is pre-selling now for $6,500, is meant to wear for 30 minutes a day, which users can do while reading, listening to music, or just relaxing. 

The benefits would be more pronounced in someone with a serious brain injury or PTSD, for example, than someone who just needs a little more sleep. 

In the future, Ring said the company has plans to set up "brain care performance centers," where people can stop in to wear the device for a boost without needing to pay for one in their homes. 

Blue light, which gets a bad rap from screens, has benefits in the right doses — especially when it comes from the sun. 

"This was our ancestors' first biological cue to wake up," Won said. Research shows it's the most important factor in synchronizing the circadian rhythm, which in turn leads to more restful sleep at night.

Won also recommends supplements like curcumin and regular exercise to optimize brain health.

Animal studies show curcumin may increase levels of a protein that helps neurons grow and survive, but it's unclear what that means for human supplementation, Healthline reports. 

Exercise has myriad brain benefits, including by slowing down neuronal damage.  

Experiencing the benefits of healthier habits can be motivating too, Won said.

"You may notice yourself remembering things, just being a bit sharper, connecting dots better than you used to," he said. "For many people we've talked to, that's life-changing."