Biofeedback?

[Andrew1980]

I know some people in my family are currently using biofeedback to combat depression. I recently saw a talk where a priest had condemned it. I had never really heard of the term before and wasn’t sure what it was.

I wanted to see if anyone could fill me in on what it entails and whether or not it is something that cooresponds to the teaching of the Catholic church? Thanks!

 

[puzzleannie]

like any other therapy it is morally neutral unless used by an immoral practioner for immoral ends. the Church is silent. if you don’t have a source, then it was not said.

 

[Andrew1980]

like any other therapy it is morally neutral unless used by an immoral practioner for immoral ends. the Church is silent. if you don’t have a source, then it was not said.

It is in the series of talks by Father John O’Connor on the Reign of the Antichrist. It is a two hour long talk, but I think it is in part 2 of 4. He lists various practices and biofeedback was one of them. The talks are available on Youtube.

 

[puzzleannie]

It is in the series of talks by Father John O’Connor on the Reign of the Antichrist. It is a two hour long talk, but I think it is in part 2 of 4. He lists various practices and biofeedback was one of them. The talks are available on Youtube.

without knowing what he said or what his basis and source are we could not possibly comment. I know of no specific Catholic Church teaching that specifically condemns biofeedback.

 

[Lokabrenna]

I found this definition:

A method of treatment that uses monitors to feed back to patients physiological information of which they are normally unaware. By watching the monitor, patients can learn by trial and error to adjust their thinking and other mental processes in order to control “involuntary” bodily processes such as blood pressure, temperature, gastrointestinal functioning, and brain wave activity.

Biofeedback is now used to treat a very wide variety of conditions and diseases ranging from stress, alcohol and other addictions, sleep disorders, epilepsy, respiratory problems, and fecal and urinary incontinence to muscle spasms, partial paralysis, or muscle dysfunction caused by injury, migraine headaches, hypertension, and a variety of vascular disorders, including Raynaud’s phenomenon. A method of treatment that uses monitors to feed back to patients physiological information of which they are normally unaware. By watching the monitor, patients can learn by trial and error to adjust their thinking and other mental processes in order to control “involuntary” bodily processes such as blood pressure, temperature, gastrointestinal functioning, and brain wave activity.

Biofeedback is now used to treat a very wide variety of conditions and diseases ranging from stress, alcohol and other addictions, sleep disorders, epilepsy, respiratory problems, and fecal and urinary incontinence to muscle spasms, partial paralysis, or muscle dysfunction caused by injury, migraine headaches, hypertension, and a variety of vascular disorders, including Raynaud’s phenomenon.

from here: medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=10810

So, it’s basically the use of devices to allow someone to control bodily processes like blood pressure and temperature, that’s what I got from that definition.

 

[Andrew1980]

Thanks for the info… looks like nothing to really worry about.

I was thinking it might have been some sort of New Age type spiritualization that are becoming more and more common.

 

[Lokabrenna]

Thanks for the info… looks like nothing to really worry about.

I was thinking it might have been some sort of New Age type spiritualization that are becoming more and more common.

I think you might be thinking of “biorhythms” which are used by some New Agey types. Perhaps the priest in your first post was thinking of it when he said “biofeedback”?