Understanding Biofeedback

FOREWORD – ABOUT THE MIND BRAIN BALANCE TEAM

“The Center for Mind Brain Balance” was established to bridge the gap between a person’s psychological and emotional needs versus their brain-based or physical imbalances that are so often overlooked.

Founded in 2004 in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, “The Center for Mind Brain Balance” actually started business as “A Light of Hope”. Through the years we have expanded in the region evolving from our original counseling roots into the ever more demanding and exciting Brainwave Assessment and Regulation. In easier to understand terms, we are the leading providers in Brain Training and Neurofeedback.

Not only have we become leading pioneers in brain training technologies, but we are also proud to offer the Full "qEEG" Gold Standard 19channel Brainwave Assessment. For a complete list of our services, please visit the Services section of our newest website, www.mindbrainbalance.com. Join our many clients from across the country in finding your own optimum Health & Happiness!

“The Center for Mind Brain Balance”

See you soon! The MBB Team
Administrative Office:
N19 W24400 Riverwood Drive, Suite 350, Pewaukee, WI 53188

Assessment & Training Center:
3960 Hillside Drive, Suite 105, Delafield, WI 53018

Satellite Offices Coming Soon!

Phone: 414.429.1516 | www.mindbrainbalance.com | info@mindbrainbalance.com
n© 2004 – 2017 | All Rights Reserved.
Understanding Biofeedback
Let us begin with a basic understanding of the difference betwee
Biofeedback and Neurofeedback.

BIOFEEDBACK
• Regulates the body’s stress response
• Identifies the body’s systems that are running in overdrive

NEUROFEEDBACK
• A sub category of biofeedback
• Neurofeedback – regulates the brain
BIOFEEDBACK DEFINITION

Recently, three professional biofeedback organizations, the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback (AAPB), Biofeedback Certification International Alliance (BCIA), and the International Society for Neurofeedback and Research (ISNR), arrived at a consensus definition of biofeedback. It is…

“a process that enables an individual to learn how to change physiological activity for the purposes of improving health and performance. Precise instruments measure physiological activity such as brainwaves, heart function, breathing, muscle activity, and skin temperature. These instruments rapidly and accurately 'feed back' information to the user. The presentation of this information — often in conjunction with changes in thinking, emotions, and behavior — supports desired physiological changes. Over time, these changes can endure without continued use of an instrument.”

Now that we have looked at an official definition, let us further explore biofeedback and what it actually means to you and me. Biofeedback training teaches how to consciously change and control the body's vital functions that are normally unconscious, such as breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure, through information provided by electronic devices, or commonly called sensors which are attached to your body. Biofeedback is intended to help you learn more about how your body works, so that you can develop better control over these body functions and be able to address health conce
s.

In essence, biofeedback is built on the concept of “mind over matter.” The idea is that, with proper techniques, you can change your health by being mindful of how your body responds to stressors and other stimuli. Chronic stress can have dramatic effects on the body, such as elevating blood pressure, increasing body temperature, and disrupting brain function. Through developing a more effective mental and physical response to stress, biofeedback aims to help a person control body processes like heart rate and blood pressure that were once thought to be completely involuntary.
HOW DOES BIOFEEDBACK WORK?

Electrodes, which look like stickers with wires attached to them, are placed on the client's skin (don’t worry; there is absolutely no discomfort whatsoever). Once this is done, an electronic “cue” is attached (usually a beep, tone or visual image on a screen) to a measurable physiologic process. A person can thus monitor his or her internal responses and develop a sense of how to move or control them in positive ways. Sophisticated biofeedback equipment and software programs can detect internal bodily functions with sensitivity and precision, and allow involuntary physical functions to be translated in ways that can be understood. The information, or "feedback," that the "cue" provides is used to monitor these functions and facilitate treatment for a variety of disorders, while moving the patient toward a more balanced internal state, and hopefully a happier, and more rewarding lifestyle.

The results of biofeedback are measured in the following ways.

• Muscle tension, with an electromyography (EMG)
• Heart rate, with an electrocardiograph (ECG)
• Brain-wave activity, with an electroencephalograph (EEG)
• Electrical conductivity of the skin, called the galvanic skin response
• Skin temperature

During the biofeedback session, a clinician will teach you how to lower your heart rate through breathing exercises, relaxation techniques, and mental exercises. You can measure the results of these techniques and exercises on the monitor, which encourages more positive reactions and relaxation.

A typical biofeedback session usually lasts between 30 and 60 minutes. The number of sessions needed to resolve an issue will vary greatly depending on a number of factors, including how quickly you learn to control your own physical responses.
BIOFEEDBACK USES

Biofeedback can help many different conditions, but it appears to be most effective for conditions that are heavily influenced by stress. As of 2014, there were well over 150 recognized applications for biofeedback, and the list continues to grow on a near daily basis. It is also worth noting that the FDA approves neurofeedback as effective for diminishing stress among other conditions. Here is a rundown of some biofeedback benefits.

• Addiction to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs
• Anxiety disorders
• Asthma
• Bruxism (teeth grinding)
• Cardiac arrhythmia (abnormalities in heartbeat)
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Chronic pain
• Circulatory problems (such as Raynaud's phenomenon)
• Complex regional pain syndrome
• Concentration improvement for education and meditation
• Control of brain waves for spiritual development and inner tranquility
• Constipation
• Diabetes
• Epilepsy
• Fecal incontinence
• Fibromyalgia
• Headaches (including migraines)
• High blood pressure
• Insomnia
• Irritable bowel syndrome and other digestive disorders
• Jaw pain and dysfunction (including temporomandibular joint syndrome)
• Menopausal symptoms
• Menstrual cramps
• Migraine headaches
• Mild depression
• Nausea and motion sickness
• Neuromuscular re-education
• Paralysis, spinal cord injury and other movement disorders
• Premenstrual syndrome
• Stress and phobias
• Torticollis (neck muscles contract involuntarily, causing the head to turn)
• Tourette's syndrome
• Urinary incontinence
• Vulvovaginal pai

Additional biofeedback uses include:

• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD)
• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Depression
• Injury
• Pain
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Raynaud's disease
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Sexual Disorders
• Social Anxieties

Although biofeedback is perhaps most closely associated with stress relief, new applications are being developed regularly. As an example, motion sickness being one of the newest applications. Following that discovery, NASA then developed their own biofeedback techniques to deal with astronaut’s space sickness. Now the space agency's techniques are being used to help others who suffer from nausea, vomiting and motion sickness.
FINAL THOUGHTS

Unlike many other approaches to health care, biofeedback puts you in charge. It requires you to listen to your body and make changes accordingly. Daily practice, even when your symptoms are responding to treatment, reinforces your newly learned skills. Biofeedback is aimed at combating stress through relaxation techniques and is a process that enables an individual to learn how to change physiological activity for the purposes of improving health and performance. Over time, these changes can endure without continued use of an instrument.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Health Care Policy and Research also recommends biofeedback as a viable treatment option. Some people prefer biofeedback as a form of treatment for these conditions because it is noninvasive and does not rely on medications. Others prefer to pair biofeedback with more traditional treatment options to improve overall wellness.

Of course, biofeedback is a relatively new field. It was only during the late 1960's that scientists believed that normally unconscious, autonomic functions could be voluntarily manipulated and controlled. And while this is an industry that has made giant strides in the past few decades it is also true that guidelines and regulations are still in the process of being developed and approved. It is therefore recommended that all prospective patients perform their due diligence verifying the credentials of a qualified provider or clinician before starting any therapy. And quite candidly, this is no different than what any of us would do when looking for a new doctor, or atto
ey, accountant, etc. It is of equal importance to make sure your clinicians have been properly trained and certified by the highest possible credentialing board within the biofeedback industry, BCIA.org.

Finally, this is just the beginning of an exciting new journey for you, the client and your practitioner. And it is important to remember that Biofeedback not only gives you new-found power to use your own thoughts to control your body, but often it helps improve health related conditions and optimizes physical performance.

Yours in Health & Happiness!

Kyle S. Ferroly

Founder & Presidentr
Mind Brain Balance
414.429.1516

Wishing You the Best in Health & Happiness!
The Mind Brain Balance Team
Administrative Office:
N19 W24400 Riverwood Drive, Suite 350, Pewaukee, WI 53188

Assessment & Training Center:
3960 Hillside Drive, Suite 105, Delafield, WI 53018

Satellite Offices Coming Soon!

Phone: 414.429.1516 | www.mindbrainbalance.com | info@mindbrainbalance.com
n© 2004 – 2017 | All Rights Reserved.