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When it comes to stress relief methods for me, the devil is in the execution. More likely than not, I will stack whatever it is (or an article or book about it) on my bedside table and expect it to sink in through magic and osmosis. Alas …
I got a call early last week from my friend Parvathi, who works for a Washington clinical psychologist specializing in cognitive therapy for patients with anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder. “You need to check out some of these biofeedback devices for stress,” she said. “My doctor has a few of them in the office. He lends them out to patients who are having anxiety."
I was skeptical. When I actually saw a picture of one of them, the question was obvious: How do you reduce stress by sticking your finger into a socket thingy and breathing for a while?
“Biofeedback is remarkable,” said Erik Peper, a San Francisco State University professor who has been involved in self-regulation and stress management for decades as both a teacher and a clinician.
He proceeded to lead me through a 30-second breathing exercise on the phone that left me lightheaded. “You see? Even small changes in your breathing can make a significant difference in your physiology — in your body, mind and emotions.”
Very simply put, the science behind guided biofeedback has to do with heart rate variability, or the variation in the beat-to-beat interval of your heart rate. Researchers have found a significant link between reduced heart rate variability and a decreased quality of life, including greater stress, pain and worry, and a host of other conditions. Higher heart rate variability is associated with better overall physical and emotional health, as well as with a reduced risk for stress-related illnesses.
“It’s a brand new technique that’s about 2,500 years old,†joked Richard Gevirtz, professor of psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University"
Great article! Biofeedback does undoubtedly help many, however I would point out that while the instruments can enable some to better harness the healing force/energy/intelligence/etc.of the patient, the real magic is already inside you! Have a healthy day everyone!
My son has ADD and we used biofeedback as a treatment to help "slow down" his brain activity and help hiim focus. It has really helped him and I would recommend it highly.
Thanks for making me laugh JackofAllTirades. I feel guilty now.
Excellent video, very enlightening!
GTFO with your Chiropractic pseudo-science.
Biofeedback worked for me but I was receiving it for a specific problem with pelvic pain. Biofeedback helped me learn when I was tensing my pelvic floor muscles and how best to relax them. It's made a HUGE difference in my quality of life. I would recommend it to anyone who has the same problem I had.
Short of it; it does work. I've been using combo of focused meditation and biofeedback relaxation techniques for 30 years.
Therapies that have been proven to work aren't alternative, they're just medicine. The "alternative" treatments you speak of aren't proven to work… that's why they're "alternative" to begin with.
I've found that if I whack my head against a pole I get really dizzy…..he he.
Biofeedback definitely does help. it cured my IBS and panic attacks and made me look at life from a different angle.
PERHAPS IF I BREATH REALLY DEEP I WILL STOP SHOUTING!!!!
YOUR POST IS STRESSING ME OUT!!!
It is amazing how those so called "doctors" claim the invention or discovery of so and so when this breathing techniques and other "biological feedback" mechanisms have been practiced for millennia by the Chinese in their Tai Chi practices and by Tantra technicians.
hahahahahhahahaha!!!!
Biofeedback works to help some conditions yes, but it is not a panacea for all of life's hassles. You know what is, though? The placebo effect.
NIMH has funded multiple biofeedback studies. Perhaps they just didn't fund HIS study.
We need to do more non-biased research into Alternative therapies and start moving away from drugs with all their side-effects
wow, the good doctor had the author breath in and out real fast, and voila – she hyperventilated! This is newsworthy!
biofeed back doesn't work thortec, if you have your head up your ass!!
I FIRMLY BELIEVE THE MIND CAN CHANNEL THE BODY IN THE DIRECTION YOU SO DESIRE. I'VE BEEN INTO BIOFEED BACK SINCE 1970. IT HAS ALLE VATED HOT/COLD FLASHES, MENSE PAIN AND LOTS OF OTHER PAINS INCLUDING MY INLAWS!!. I CAN CONTROL MY BLOOD PRESSURE ALMOST LIKE A SWITCH…UP DOWN. THE MORE YOU BELIEVE AND PRACTICE THE EASIER IT BECOMES.TRY IT YOU'LL LIKE IT!
That chick in the main header photograph is hot
One of these days, we will finally recognize the importance of a naturally aligned skeleton to stress-free living. Sound strange? Consider this: When bones are not aligned according to the natural human design, the muscles that attach to those bones must compensate, causing unnecessary "tension" in muscles. Tension in muscles translates into tension in the mind. This is one of the main ways that the body/mind is one and the same. Our culture's obsession with "fitness" contributes to a host of future structural problems that are overlooked because of the temporary "fix" one gets when artificially releasing tension through exercise. Problem is, the tension always returns and the exercise has to be repeated again and again and again . . . Healthy toddlers and women who successfully carry healthy loads on their heads with ease are the role models for how to live in aligned, relaxed bodies. This video offers a graphic explanation of this: