The Nature of Stress

To better understand how biofeedback works, as well as Quantum Biofeedback, is to first understand the nature of stress.

• Stress is defined as a nonspecific response of the body to any demand made upon it which results in symptoms such as rise in the blood pressure, release of hormones, quickness of breath, tightening of muscles, perspiration, and increased cardiac activity.

Stress is not necessarily a negative thing. Some stress keeps us motivated and alert, while too little stress can create problems. However, too much stress can trigger problems with mental and physical health, particularly over a prolonged period of time.

Anything that relieves mundane stress on a daily basis, such as relaxation, can help. However, Hans Selye, a Hungarian medical scientist, was the first to use the word "stress" in connection with a picture of health wellness. His theory is that when the body reacts to stress, it creates an "alarm" response. That means that your body is in good shape to react accordingly to any given stressor, hopefully appropriately and effectively in ways that relieve it.

If the stress continues, however, an "adaptation" state may result, where we learn to accommodate or bear the symptoms of stress by adjusting to them. This can, more positively, mean creating an increase in our tolerance to frustration and moving back into the alarm state, which relieves the stress, or, negatively, reacting with an accommodating adjustment that (temporarily) alleviates the pain of the stress but becomes a new holding pattern. If the stress continues even longer, an "exhaustion" state is created that may lead to a considerably weakened system.

This alarm / adaptation / exhaustion model fits all forms of stress, whether physical, mental, or emotional. Obviously, reducing stress is a key to well-being. Relaxation helps, but how do we know where stress may be hiding in the adapted or exhausted states physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Classical Biofeedback

Biofeedback is a treatment technique in which people are trained to improve their health by using signals from their own bodies. Physical therapists for example, use Biofeedback to help stroke victims regain movement in paralyzed muscles. Psychologists use it to help tense and anxious clients learn to relax. Specialists in many fields use biofeedback to help their patients or clients cope with pain.

Chances are you have used biofeedback yourself. If you have ever taken your temperature or stepped on a bathroom scale, you have received "biofeedback" information. The thermometer tells you if your body temperature is normal or not, and the scale tells you if you have lost or gained body (bio) weight. With this information, you can take the necessary steps to correct this condition.

Clinicians rely on more complicated biofeedback devices in somewhat the same way in order to detect a person's internal bodily functions with far greater sensitivity and precision. For patients, the Biofeedback device acts as a kind of "sixth sense" to allow them to "see" or "hear" activity inside their bodies.

Biofeedback Beginnings: The word "biofeedback" was coined decades ago to describe laboratory procedures 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. This early research demonstrated that biofeedback can help in the treatment of many diseases and painful conditions. Some believe that biofeedback will one day make it possible to do away with drug treatments that often cause uncomfortable side effects in patients with high blood pressure and serious conditions.

Quantum Biofeedback: The INDIGO