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Practitioner – Dr Steve Hawkins
You might be surprised to find that Steve, our neurologically based Chiropractor, is more interested in your brain function, than your back or neck pain.
That’s because your brain controls the rest of your body through your nervous system. The best way to explain this is through an understanding of the three systems of the body:
1. The Passive System:
Think bones, ligaments, tendons: all of which help to protect the organs, provide structure, and help to support you and keep you standing against gravity.
2. The Active System:
Includes your heart, lungs, muscles, digestive system, and all other systems that work to maintain your health and function.
3. The Control System:
Includes your brain, nervous system, and all signals that pass between them. I believe this is the most important system in the body, but is so often overlooked. Without proper control, the rest of your body can’t function at its peak. The nervous system has a direct impact on the stress hormones released in your body – adrenaline and cortisol. These are inflammatory in nature and we know that inflammation is implicated in many of the more serious health conditions. So if you’ve got health issues or just feel stuck in a rut, it might well be that your control system is not functioning very well. My job as a Neurologically Based Chiropractor is to help you to get better control and achieve a higher function.
Working with Children
Steve loves working with children! Be assured, the approaches Steve uses are gentle. Often the first visit or two are “getting to know” one another – Steve knows and understands that happy children respond much better.
Steve and his wife have 3 children of their own, one with some extra needs. He has checked how well their nervous systems are working from birth.
The approaches he uses with children are different from those he might choose with adults – after all children have different needs and work very differently to grown-ups.
One thing children and adults have in common is that the nervous systems run how we work – it’s our internal communication system.
It is important your child’s nervous system is operating effectively.
More information on Neuro and Biofeedback found here:
Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback is a form of treatment modality, using real-time display of brainwave activity.
It involves direct training of the brain, by which the brain learns to function more efficiently.
Neurofeedback is training of self-regulation. It is simply biofeedback applied to the brain directly.
Self-regulation training allows the nervous system (the central nervous system) to function better.
Neurofeedback has been found helpful in helping people manage a wide range of conditions.
For more information, please refer to:
- The Association of Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback or
- Biofeedback Certified International Alliance – Australia
Some take medications to help, others wish to avoid medications.
Neurofeedback is also used In the field of Peak Performance.
We observe the brain in action from moment to moment using an Electroencephalography(EEG).
We then show that information back to the person and we reward the brain for changing its own activity to more appropriate patterns.
This is a gradual learning process. It applies to any aspect of brain function that we can measure.
Biofeedback
Biofeedback is a technique to help one gain awareness of one’s biological activity to improve performance. We learn about your biological activity by measuring your:
- Respiration rate
- Heart rate
- Skin conductance
- Skin temperature
- Muscle tension
- Brain waves (EEG)
Biofeedback has been used widely to help people improve a number of conditions made worse by stress.
For more information, please refer to:
- The Association of Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback or
- Biofeedback Certified International Alliance – Australia
It is non-invasive, and carries no significant risks or cause undesirable side effects. Biofeedback has been used in the field of peak performance, with the aim of improving mental functioning and stability.
This approach has been adopted by some high level sports people such as members of AC Milan and freestyle skier Kyle Nissen for example.
Some other examples of the application of biofeedback in peak performance can be found here:
- Thought Technology and
- NASA and type Biofeedback into the search field.
Electromyogram (EMG) – This measures muscle activity and tension. It may be used for back pain, headaches, anxiety disorders, muscle retraining after injury, and incontinence.
Thermal -This measures skin temperature. It may be used for headache and Raynaud’s disease.
Electrodermal activity (EDA) -This measures sweating and can be used for pain and anxiety.
Heart rate variability (HRV) – This measures heart rate. It may be used for anxiety, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and irregular heartbeat.
The goal of biofeedback is to promote relaxation.
During a biofeedback session, sensors are attached to your skin. Finger sensors can also be used.
These electrodes/sensors send signals to a monitor, which displays a sound, flash of light, or image that represents your heart and breathing rate, blood pressure, skin temperature, sweating, or muscle activity.
When you are under stress, these functions change. Your heart rate speeds up, your muscles tighten, your blood pressure rises, you start to sweat, and your breathing quickens.
You can see these stress responses on the monitor as they happen.
Biofeedback aims to teach you how to fine-tune the control of these different body functions. For example, you might use a relaxation technique to turn down the brainwaves that activate a stress response.
As your heart rate slows down – your blood pressure becomes lower, muscle tension starts easing, and you will get instant visual feedback on the screen.
Eventually, you’ll learn how to control these functions on your own, without relying on biofeedback equipment.
Several different relaxation exercises can be used during a biofeedback therapy session, including:
- Diaphragmatic breathing
- Progressive muscle relaxation — alternately tightening and then relaxing different muscle groups.
- Guided imagery — concentrating on a specific image (such as the color and texture of an orange) to focus your mind and make you feel more relaxed.
- Mindfulness meditation — focusing your thoughts and letting go of negative emotions.
Biofeedback sessions are typically done in a therapist’s office, but there are also computer programs available that connect the biofeedback sensor to your own computer.
Biofeedback therapy sessions last between 15 and 30 minutes. Usually, you can start to see biofeedback benefits within 10 sessions or less. As every person is different, I suggest a discussion to determine whether this approach may be helpful in addressing your health goals.
For more information, please refer to:
- The Association of Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback or
- Biofeedback Certified International Alliance – Australia
It is non-invasive, and carries no significant risks or causes undesirable side effects. Biofeedback has been used in the field of peak performance, with the aim of improving mental functioning and stability.
Chiropractic Blog Posts:
- How well is your nervous system functioning? Blog Post
When people come to see me, one of the things I check regularly is how they distribute their weight when standing. In other words, I put them on two regular scales to see how much weight they are carrying down their left side and down their right side. It is based on work of Nobel […]
