Biofeedback Info

What is Biofeedback?

Biofeedback is a therapeutic technique using sensitive instruments to measure, amplify and provide feedback on physiological responses. It is scientific fact that thoughts and emotions influence our physiological response. Most of us are unaware of the subtle ways in which our bodies respond to our thoughts and emotions. Now it is possible to observe the connection between the two. Under the guidance of a qualified practitioner using biofeedback instrument, an individual can learn to apply self-regulation skills to influence their body in more healthful and efficient ways.

One commonly used device, for example, picks up electrical signals from the muscles and translates the signals into a form that people can detect. This device triggers a flashing light or activates a beeper every time muscles become more tense. If one wants to relax tense muscles, one must try to slow down the flashing or beeping. People learn to associate sensations from the muscle with actual levels of tension and develop a new, healthy habit of keeping muscles only as tense as is necessary for as long as necessary. After treatment, individuals are then able to repeat this response at will without being attached to the sensors.
Other biological functions which are commonly measured and used in similar way to help people learn to control their physical functioning are skin temperature, heart rate, sweat gland activity, and brainwave activity.

Clinicians rely on complicated biofeedback machines in somewhat the same way that you rely on your scale or thermometer. Their machines can detect a person's internal bodily functions with far greater sensitivity and precision than a person can alone. This information may be valuable. Both patients and therapists use it to gauge and direct the progress of treatment.

Although most people initially viewed these practices with skepticism, researchers proved that many individuals could alter their involuntary responses by being "fed back" information either visually or audibly about what was occurring in their bodies.
In addition, studies have shown that we have more control over so-called involuntary bodily functions than we once thought possible. As a a result, biofeedback can train individuals with techniques for living a healthier life overall - whether one is afflicted with a medical condition or not.

What problems can be treated by Biofeedback?

Biofeedback has been found helpful by researchers and clinicians to help in the treatment of:

Stress related illnesses, rehabilitation, neurological processing disorders and in the development of athletic and performance skills.

The stress related disorders treated with biofeedback include:
headaches,
high blood pressure,
anxiety,
diabetes,
irritable bowel syndrome,
sleep apnea,
insomnia,
motion sickness,
chronic pain,
myofascial pain,
jaw pain,

Biofeedback is also an effective approach to Neuromuscular re-education and rehabilitation for symptoms related to injury, stroke and incontinence.

Neurofeedback

Neurofeedback, a biofeedback technique which monitors brain waves, has been found to be an effective treatment for:

Epilepsy,
Attention deficit/hyperactivity
Addictive behaviors such as alcoholism.

Biofeedback instruments adapted for sports training or work site interventions provide athletes or workers with the ability to refine their skills and efficiency and improve body mechanics.

Biofeedback is an effective treatment for migraine and tension headaches among both children and adults. This has been proven by numerous controlled studies with follow-ups of up to 15 years. The American Association for Headache cites biofeedback as an acceptable treatment.

The Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Consensus cites biofeedback as the primary treatment for urinary incontinence, a condition affecting up to 30 percent of elderly people living independently and about 50 percent of patients in long-term care facilities. Illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy or lupus, as well as strokes and prostrate surgery can cause incontinence.

Eighty percent of individuals with essential hypertension who underwent biofeedback training in one study reduced their prescription medications or no longer needed them at all, even after years of taking medication.

More than 700 groups worldwide are using EEG biofeedback (neurofeedback) for treatment of ADD/ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder). Clinicians have reported that patients who experienced a 60 to 80 percent significant improvement in the condition and a marked reduction in medication requirements.

Dr. Lester Fehmi, the Director of the Princeton Biofeedback Centre is a consultant to Coach Bob Ward of the Dallas Cowboys (NFL) for stress management and performance.

The New England Journal of Medicine stunned the health care world when it reported that alternative medicine almost equaled traditional medicine in total revenues.

In more than 90 percent of children under the age of twelve with sleeping problems such as bedwetting, recovery is expected within the first two months of biofeedback treatment.

Therapists in several states, including Florida, Wisconsin and New Jersey have found that some spinal cord injury and chronic neuromuscular disease paralysis victims have been able to regain most of their muscular limb abilities after biofeedback training. This dramatic approach is not yet readily available in many states. The results, though they sometimes appear to be miracles, (i.e., helping people told they will never walk or use their hands again to walk or feed themselves) are really just the results of practical use of existing biofeedback technologies.

Numerous studies have shown that people with panic and anxiety disorders who undertake biofeedback training gain significantly in their ability to control these states, to the point that these no longer interfere with their daily life.

Photos: Description of Biofeedback