In recent years, scientists have noted a significantly increased number of children with various pathologies. Free medicine often has outdated methods of correction and treatment, which are extremely ineffective. This is especially true of psychosomatics, stress, alalia and other disorders. Many do not know about non-traditional methods. For example, biofeedback therapy - what is it, if not a new trend? This abbreviation stands for simply: Biofeedback. It is used in the treatment of mental illness, is the use of special equipment. It registers the physiological information received from the patient and returns it.
History of Creation
When parents learn that their child has a mental illness, they begin to explore non-traditional treatments. For example, biofeedback therapy - what is it and who created it? In fact, this method has a long history.
Active study began in the 50s of the last century. Significant contributions were made by scientists Miller and DiKara. Their research was not related to humans, but thanks to experiments on animals, they managed to make revolutionary discoveries. So it was possible to provecreation of visceral conditioned operant reflexes. Another scientist, Sterman, increased the sensorimotor rhythm in the central gyrus and received increased convulsive readiness. Kamya noted an arbitrary change in EEG parameters when receiving feedback. All these studies served as the basis for the creation of biofeedback therapy. What did this mean for the scientists of those times?
In the development of this idea, such Russian scientists as Pavlov, Sechenov, Anokhin and others took a great part. They were closely engaged in the study of the cerebral cortex and conditioned reflexes. Anokhin owned a revolutionary discovery about the relationship between feedback and higher human adaptive functions.
BFB-therapy device and prerequisites for its creation
Total biofeedback therapy includes two components: the apparatus itself and special software. Experts identify a number of prerequisites for the creation of this technology. First, it is the development of computer technology. It was they who made it possible to create a device capable of receiving, processing and analyzing a signal in real time. Secondly, the percentage of dissatisfied with pharmacological treatment grew. This mood was observed not only among the parents of sick children, but also among medical workers. For example, uncontrolled use of antibiotics has reduced their effectiveness.
Do not forget that not all symptoms are amenable to pharmacological treatment. Some side effects are a serious contraindication for taking them. Unfortunately, with the rapid development of the drug market, thetheir price. But the effectiveness of many drugs has fallen. Therefore, today there are more advantages of biofeedback therapy in comparison with traditional treatment.
Development history
So, various scientists who studied the brain laid the clinical ground for the creation of biofeedback therapy. The direction itself was developed in the 60s of the last century in the United States. Initially, it was used in psychotherapy. Throughout history, therapy has become popular all over the world. Devices are placed in almost every doctor in Japan, Germany and the rest of Europe. Today, two magazines specialized on the topic are being published, a trade union is functioning, and evidence-based medicine is increasingly recognizing this method. Most insurance companies are already ready to cover the costs of the patient.
According to the definition, biofeedback therapy for children and adults is aimed at informing a person about his bodily functions. Thus, conscious regulation is formed.
Parts of the machine
As mentioned above, biofeedback therapy consists of two components: apparatus and software. The device contains several devices. The main part is sensors for registering brain signals, heart rate, respiration and for recording the bioelectrical activity of muscles. The second part of the device is a signal converter that converts them into a form convenient for a PC.
What is the essence of the method?
As you know, all of the above is not a controlled process on the part of consciousness. Accordingly, the taskpreparation - to receive a signal, transform it into a form understandable for the patient: a picture or sound. So a person learns to control a particular function.
For example, how can biofeedback therapy help with urinary incontinence? In pediatrics, this problem is extremely common. The complexity of treatment is in the almost impossible to establish the cause of the disease. Urination is a complex process in which it is necessary to tighten and relax the muscles of the pelvic floor. This is the task of biofeedback therapy. As a result of its use, children learn to control their urge to urinate.
Another example: BFB therapy for voice problems. Especially important for professional vocalists, announcers, etc. For example, it helps to develop correct controlled speech output. This is true for children with speech disorders (for example, prosody suffers from dysarthria). This is an indispensable tool for working with deaf children, as it is necessary to relieve tension from the speech muscles, develop control over the tempo of speech, the fusion of sounds. Psychologists offer biofeedback therapy as a tool for correcting attention and memory.
Diagnosis
When people are trying to find out what is biofeedback therapy, what is it besides treatment? This is a good diagnostic tool. So when using it, you can make a complete assessment of the functional side of the body. The respiratory and circulatory systems, the central nervous system, the autonomic nervous system and much more are evaluated. As a preventive measure, the device allows you to deal with the symptoms of overwork and stress,anxiety, worry, etc.
Contra-indications
When you find out what BFB therapy is, the reviews of parents who have tried it on their children are completely positive. In fact, like any other procedure, biofeedback has contraindications. These include gross intellectual disabilities, complex mental illnesses, epilepsy, and severe somatic illnesses. Also, experts do not recommend using therapy before the child is five years old.
So who is BFB therapy for?
Many parents, before choosing the "BOS-therapy" method, they will find out the reviews. Some mothers share their impressions that this method, of course, is not magic, do not expect a great result, but the child has become collected, calm, more coordinated. Some parents think that such methods are aimed at extorting money. In fact, it is important to evaluate what the technique is used for. It is indicated for borderline psychiatric disorders, addiction and deviant behavior therapy, and as a way to treat psychosomatics. It has been proven to have a beneficial effect on depression, neuroses, headaches, etc. In any case, it does not hurt to consult a doctor first.
Scope of application
BOS-therapy will be used in various fields of activity. Roughly, they can be divided into clinical and non-clinical. So, with non-clinical use, problems such as professional burnout, stress, overstrain can be corrected. Provenhigh efficiency on students, which allows them to improve their results. Athletes and artists do not interfere with the use of therapy.
Clinical use includes mild mental disorders such as ADHD and autism, autism spectrum disorders. It is also effective in the correction of addictions, especially chemical addictions.
BFB-therapy - what is it in correcting children's problems?
This technique has widely established itself as a means of correcting ADHD in children. With this violation, the effectiveness of drug treatment is almost zero. Thanks to biofeedback therapy, the child learns the means of self-control, self-regulation and correction of his behavior. This is especially true in preparation for school. BFB sessions are built in a playful way, so it is interesting for children to study.
BFB-therapy is actively used in the correction of speech disorders. This applies to both dysatria and rhinolalia and stuttering. At the first stage, diagnostics takes place, which includes the collection of an anamnesis, speech analysis. At the second stage, the child is introduced to the BFB method, signals. It is important to reduce emotional tension. At this stage, correct diaphragmatic breathing is formed. It is developed extremely simply: the child is explained how to breathe (inhale through the nose, smooth and long exit through the mouth). Then he watches a video file or pictures. While he does everything smoothly, the picture is clear, it is worth going astray - and it will become blurry. At the third stage, the main components of speech are corrected. Here it is important to make the work of breathing and the muscles of articulation synchronous. Hereprosody develops: tempo, intonation, smoothness, emotional coloring. At the final stage, the acquired skills are consolidated.
Thus, we can conclude that biofeedback therapy is an effective method for correcting many disorders. Despite the need for a large number of classes, the skills gained are worth it. This is especially true of behavior correction and related problems. It is important to contact qualified professionals, as inept use of the device will only harm or generally have no effect.
