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Claire Ceriani's picture

Biofeedback

This last class made me think of biofeedback treatments.  Biofeedback uses sensors to monitor electrical signals from muscles, skin temperature, heart rate, brain wave activity, and other processes in the body.  The information from the sensors is represented visually.  The patient then attempts to control the activity with his or her mind, training the brain to consciously monitor things it normally does automatically.  Biofeedback doesn’t work for all forms of paralysis, but it has been used to help people with muscle degeneration or mild injury to “relearn” how to control their muscles.  I think it’s also been used to help people learn to control their heart rates and blood pressure.  I remember reading an article a few years ago suggesting that biofeedback could help people control migraines and stress headaches.  There may be many things happening in the brain of which the “I-function” is not aware, but it seems to be possible to bring at least some of these processes to our attention and conscious control.  If this is the case, is it possible that some people’s “I-functions” naturally have more control/awareness than others’?

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