The thermometer has just recorded that you are running a Fever. What do you do? Go to bed, drink plenty of fluids or call up the doctor. Some days later, the weighing scales reveal that you have gained a few pounds, what do you do? First you resolve to eat less and secondly go for regular exercises. Both were the reactions to the feedback given to you by the body.

Biofeedback operates on this very notion that we have the innate ability and potential to influence the automatic functions of our bodies through the exertion of will and mind. As a therapy, biofeedback helps in gaining control over our body processes in order to increase relaxation, relieve pain, and develop healthier and more comfortable life patterns.Biofeedback is not a treatment per se; it is more of an educational process, which enhances our understanding of our specialized mind-body skills. Through practice, we become familiar with our own unique psycho physiological patterns and responses to stress, and learn to control them rather than having them controls us. For example, a person can be trained in a matter of days to cause the temperature of one hand to rise five to ten degrees higher than that of the other hand, while not contracting the hand Muscles. Such type of control over "involuntary" responses is now seen to be effective in the treatment of Migraine headaches, Asthma and other disorders in certain individuals. Biofeedback training familiarizes us with the activities in various body systems enabling us to learn to control these activities to relieve stress and improve health. In short, it enables us to change our physiologies in the desired direction. In the late 1960s, Barbara Brown, of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Sepulveda, California, and Elmer and Alyce Green of the Menninger Foundation, a clinical and research centre for mental illness in were the first to study the concept of biofeedback. Prior to this, the medical fraternity believed that body's autonomic functions like the Heart rate, digestion, Blood pressure, Brain waves, and muscle behaviour, could not be voluntarily controlled. Their work led to an exploration of the use of biofeedback for a wide range of physical ailments, including Migraine headaches, Insomnia, and Circulatory and gastrointestinal disorders. The word ‘biofeedback’ was coined in the 1960s to describe the laboratory procedures that were used to train research subjects to alter Brain activity, Blood pressure, Heart rate, and other bodily functions. At that time, many scientists looked forward to the day when biofeedback would give us a major degree of control over our bodies. They thought, for instance, that we might be able to "will" ourselves to be more creative by changing the patterns of our brainwaves. Some believed that biofeedback would one day make it possible to do away with drug treatments that often cause uncomfortable side effects in patients with high Blood pressure and other serious conditions. Although, today scientists believe that such high hopes are not realistic. The concept of biofeedback is also recorded in the studies of Indian yogi masters, which illustrate that the Nervous system and metabolic rate could be consciously regulated.

The first important studies on biofeedback were conducted in the late 1960s by Barbara Brown, of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Sepulveda, California, and Elmer and Alyce Green of the Menninger Foundation, a clinical and research center for mental illness in Topeka, Kansas. Prior to these studies, it was thought that the body's autonomic functions like the Heart rate, digestion, Blood pressure, Brain waves, and muscle behavior, could not be voluntarily controlled. The researchers' studies of Indian yogi masters showed that the Nervous system and metabolic rate could be consciously regulated. Their work led to an exploration of the use of biofeedback for a wide range of physical ailments, including Migraine headaches, Insomnia, and Circulatory and gastrointestinal disorders. The word "biofeedback" was coined in the late 1960s to describe laboratory procedures then being used to train experimental research subjects to alter Brain activity, Blood pressure, Heart rate, and other bodily functions that normally are not controlled voluntarily. At the time, many scientists looked forward to the day when biofeedback would give us a major degree of control over our bodies. They thought, for instance, that we might be able to "will" ourselves to be more creative by changing the patterns of our brainwaves. Some believed that biofeedback would one day make it possible to do away with drug treatments that often cause uncomfortable side effects in patients with high Blood pressure and other serious conditions. Today, most scientists agree that such high hopes were not realistic. Research has demonstrated that biofeedback can help in the treatment of many diseases and painful conditions. It has shown that we have more control over so-called involuntary bodily function than we once thought possible. But it has also shown that nature limits the extent of such control. Scientists are now trying to determine just how much voluntary control we can exert.

Whenever we account a stress, our body prepares to fight the stress of through both conscious and unconscious pathways. Irritability, panic, rage, butterflies in Stomach etc. are the conscious pathways. While the unconscious pathways are the internal changes that occur in the body for e.g. changes in Heart rate, Blood pressure,

temperature, and muscle tone and also in the Brain wave pattern. These internal changes are also referred to as ‘stress signals’ as they alert the body to stress. In our fast paced life most of us are primarily unaware of these stress signals until it demands attention. However, by expanding our internal awareness, one can sense these signals invoke positive responses thus fighting off the stress in a healthy way. Biofeedback therapy is based on this very principle of perceiving body signals by enhancing the mental prowess so as to gain control over the body. In short, it is using our own mind for self-improvement and self-regulation. In patients, the biofeedback therapy increases the internal awareness and enables one to control automatic functions like Heart rate, muscle tension, breathing, perspiration, Skin temperature, Blood pressure and even Brain waves. In this way it helps them to improve their medical conditions. Thus it is a technique in which people improve their health and performance by using signals from their own bodies. These signals are received through special sensors that are attached to the body. The changes in the pulse, Skin temperature, muscle tone, Brain-wave pattern or some other physiological function are noted through these sensors. These changes activate a signal or a sound or a flashing light or a change in pattern on a video screen and alert the physiological change that occurs. Gradually, with the help of the biofeedback therapist, one learns to alter these signals by taking conscious control of the body's automatic body functions. For e.g. if a person starts recognising an Headache due to tension in the Muscles in the forehead, he will take steps to relax those Muscles and thus forestall a Migraine.

Method of Application

Biofeedback is a mind-body technique and requires motivation, time, effort, practice and honest communication with the therapist. The session begins with proper history taking, expectations from the treatment, current medications and any other treatment tried before biofeedback. The therapist then discusses the probable

results one can achieve and expect. The therapist then connects the body to an electronic device, which helps one to understand the body’s physiological responses to various situations like stress, pain, and various such conditions. At the same time, the therapist also teaches the relaxation techniques using Guided Imagery and progressive muscle relaxation, to provide a way to actively control these bodily responses. The sensors are electrodes that look like stickers with wires attached to them. They are placed on the client's Skin. The biofeedback devices report progress by way of a change in the speed of beeps or flashes, or the pitch or quality of the tone. The results of biofeedback are measured in the following ways:

The body temperature The basal Skin response (BSR) or the Electrical conductivity of the Skin. The electromyography (EMG) or the Muscle tone. The electroencephalograph (EEG) or the Brain-wave activity.

Using muscle feedback or the EMG: It measures the muscle tension or the tone. This keeps the person aware about the muscle tension, and gradually one learns to recognise the feeling at earlier stage and take precautionary measures in order to control the tension right away. This is mainly used to promote the relaxation of those Muscles involved in backaches, headaches, Neck pain and grinding of Teeth as in bruxism. An EMG may be used to treat some illnesses whose symptoms tend to worsen under stress, such as Asthma and ulcers. Using temperature biofeedback: The sensors are attached to the Fingers or Toes to measure the Skin temperature. As the body temperature often drops when one is under stress, a low reading prompt one to begin relaxation techniques. Temperature biofeedback can help to treat certain Circulatory disorders, such as Raynaud's Disease, or reduce the frequency of migraines. Using Skin response training: These sensors measure the activity of the sweat glands and the amount of perspiration and helps in alerting one to Anxiety. This information can be useful in treating emotional disorders such as phobias, Anxiety and stuttering. Using the Brain wave activity or the EEG: An EEG monitors the activity of the Brain linked with various mental states, such as wakefulness, relaxation, calmness, light sleep and deep sleep The altered Brain wave activities signals the arrival of an epileptic episode at the earlier stage. The technique thus helps patients to understand their own body and thereby control it. Sportsmen and celebrities use these techniques even for enhancing their physical or mental performance also called peak performance training. Initially, the internal changes are detected with help of gadgets but with time, body is able to sense the changes even without these gadgets.

Biofeedback therapy is a self-healing therapy. It can reduce or even eliminate the need of medications especially pain killers and muscle relaxants. It has a great potential to help in those cases that do not respond to medications. The therapy helps you in charge of your own healing by providing measurable feedback, allowing you to monitor your progress and learning. It can be used as an adjuvant therapy in treatment of pain disorder and in bedridden patients. However, it's entirely useless in treating infections, curing cancer, relieving allergies, or healing injuries. Although biofeedback promises to remedy certain ailments through disciplined mental effort, it has nothing in common with other forms of mind-body therapy such as Meditation and Yoga. It does not rely on maintenance of some sort of theoretical balance or harmony in order to reap its benefits. Instead, it seeks control over specific, measurable physiological reactions that have somehow gone awry. Certain precautions have to be taken while undergoing biofeedback therapy.

People having a pacemaker or serious Heart disorder should consult their physician before undertaking biofeedback. Biofeedback can alter the Blood sugar levels. Hence the Blood sugar should be monitored during the therapy. The biofeedback devices sold for home use vary widely in quality. Hence one should ask a physician or biofeedback therapist for advice about a good brand before making such purchase.

Biofeedback has been used in variety of health problems, although there are very little scientific evidences. It is helpful for people who have lost control over urination and stools due to diseases or accidents (such as, muscle movement or Brain functions). Biofeedback has been used to treat:

Headaches, especially tension headaches and Migraine Chronic pain Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders Digestive disorders, including Constipation Incontinence (both Urinary and Foecal) High Blood pressure (Hypertension) Abnormal Heart rhythms (cardiac arrhythmias) Addiction, including to alcohol Raynaud's Disease (a Circulatory problem that causes Cold hands and bluish fingertips) Epilepsy Paralysis and certain movement disorders Spinal Cord injury Sleep Disorders Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) Bedwetting (enuresis) Attention-deficit disorder (ADD) and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Panic disorder Anxiety disorder

Although the practice isn't licensed, biofeedback therapists can receive certification from the Biofeedback Certification Institute of America (BCIA). To be certified they must meet certain education requirements, pass an exam and either be licensed in a health care field or work under the supervision of a licensed health care professional. The National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S.A. has approved the use of biofeedback, in addition to conventional medicine, in the treatment of chronic pain and Insomnia.