Wednesday 20 November 2019

The Power of Psychophysiological Stress Profiling

The Power of Psychophysiological Stress Profiling

Baseline levels show if there is residual stress reaction in the person. High muscle tension or skin conductance levels or low hand temperature or heart rate variability can mean that the person is in a state of stress and tension even when attempting to relax.
Changes that occur during stress periods of the PSP can indicate which modalities react more and if they seem to be related to the type of symptoms the person is presenting with.
Return to baseline or lack of return to baseline can indicate how well the person recovers from stressful situations prior to biofeedback therapy. If they are not returning to baseline then it shows them that they have something to improve on.
If you can show that the modalities that are dysregulated have a logical connection to the client’s symptoms then it helps to make the case for biofeedback being a potentially useful therapy for them. It also helps them to “get” the connection between how they are reacting to stress and their symptoms. Many clients are relieved to see that their problems are not “all in their heads”. Seeing measurable evidence is in some way reassuring to them.
The data also gives the biofeedback provider a starting point for therapy planning. It helps in choosing which modalities to work with and setting goals for the ones you decide to work on. Using Psychophysiological Stress Profiling is a better way to do biofeedback. It is much better than just deciding which modality you are going to work with before you have this valuable information. The textbook recommendation although usually good does not take into account

To learn more about Psychophysiological Stress : The Power of psychophysiological Stress Profiling

Website : Biofeedback Resources International

Friday 15 November 2019

BioFun Games - Biofeedback Training

BioFun Games

BioFun is a newly released software add-on for BioGraph Infiniti, consisting in a series of video games and toy interfaces to help your clients become healthier by teaching strategies of self-regulation and developing voluntary control while having fun!

Travel the World

You are invited to participate in the “Fly around the World” competition; a prestigious hot air balloon race inspired by Jules Verne’s classic novel.

Control a balloon with your physiology and fly over famous cities such as Vancouver, Hong Kong, Moscow, Cairo, Paris, Montreal and New York. Do not limit yourself, fly up and reach the stars!

PhysioRacer – MyoRacer – NeuroRacer

Three variations on the same theme: you guide a craft in a path using your physiology. Choose a character: a race car driver, a spy flying a stealth plane, a submarine in a secret mission, a clown fish or even a super hero!

BioFun Toy Interface

Connect BioGraph to toys such as Raceways, electrical train or robots and use your physiology to control them.

BioFun contains ready-to-go screens for all our popular Suites (English only): EEG, Physiology, Z-Score, Rehab and Continence Suites.

Comprehensive instructions are provided to create your own screens and find new ways to use these games.

Physiology Suite

Train to relax or take control of your HRV while flying around the world in a balloon. Drive, fly or dive and boost up your engine using physiological control.

EEG Suite & Z-Score Mini-Suite

Train your brain with NeuroRacer – a fun and engaging racing game. Provides contingent, relevant feedback, as vehicle speed, track size and obstacles are directly controlled by EEG activity. Avoid obstacles and receive points in reward conditions, while discouraging artifacts and inhibit-band activity.

Rehab Suite & Continence Suite

Fly a balloon while working your muscles. Gain control over your muscles and movements while swimming like a fish, piloting a race car, or even flying like a super hero!

BioFun $ 150.00

Buy Now

Wednesday 13 November 2019

Neurofeedback Equipment for Mental Health

Mental health symptoms and solutions are being openly discussed more than ever. Most days that I turn on the news I hear at least one story related to mental health. Just today I heard a report about three separate people who were survivors or a relative of a survivor of a school shooting who committed suicide. We often hear reports of the devastation across the country related to abuse of opioid drugs. Concussions caused by car accidents, slip and falls, sports injuries cause memory loss, behavior and mood changes as well as other problems.

People are being diagnosed with ADD and ADHD and prescribed medications that may have to be taken for the rest of their lives with potential side effects.

Neurofeedback equipment is being used as one therapy modality that can help with many mental health conditions. Healthcare professionals including psychologists, psychiatrists, neurologists, mental health counselors, social workers, nurses, chiropractors are using neurofeedback adjunctively with other therapies to help people with many of these mental health problems. For more information on conditions that neurofeedback therapy is used for refer to Comprehensive Neurofeedback Bibliography D. Corydon Hammond, PhD.

The electrical signals that are produced by the brain are measured using a device attached to the person by sensors placed on the head. The signals are separated into Delta, Theta, Alpha, (SMR) Sensory Motor Rhythm, Beta, and Gamma. During an assessment it is determined if there are imbalances in the brainwave activity. The same or similar neurofeedback equipment is then used to measure, give visual and or auditory feedback, and train the brain to produce more regulated or “normal” electrical patterns.

This usually will help to decrease the types of mental health symptoms mentioned earlier.

As an example, a person suffering with anxiety may show a pattern of higher than expected high frequency beta wave activity which is associated with over thinking and worry. They may also show lower levels of alpha than normally expected. Alpha is associated with a relaxed state so if their alpha level is low then they would probably not feel relaxed.

In this case the protocol on the neurofeedback equipment would be set up to encourage the brain to produce less of the high frequency beta and more of the lower frequency alpha. The encouragement for the brain is the visual and or audio feedback which is a signal that the desired brain pattern is happening at that moment. As soon as the conditions are no longer being met the feedback or reinforcement stops. In this way the reward or lack of reward trains the brain to produce the desired pattern more often. After a while this pattern that is being reinforced becomes more normal and occurs more often for the person even when they are not actively receiving feedback and they are not connected to the instrument. This is a non-invasive therapy that has been used effectively for several mental health conditions for decades.

Here you can see Biofeedback Resources International Training and Certification Video:-