Einstein goes high-tech to treat patients with eating disorders

The body’s innate relaxation response is an incredibly effective remedy for stress and anxiety. Relaxation methods such as deep breathing, guided meditation, visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, and various forms of yoga can aid individuals in activating this powerful response.

When performed on a regular basis, these various activities can eventually cause a decrease in daily stress or anxiety levels and contribute to a heightened level of happiness and peace. In addition, they instruct individuals in techniques to utilize to stay calm and level-headed when faced with a stressful or unexpected situation.

The Belmont Center for Comprehensive Treatment, part of the Albert Einstein Healthcare Network, has begun employing Healing Rhythms as an aid to a variety of behavioral disorders. Patients recovering from eating disorders may, early on, experience panic attacks and physical discomfort while learning how to eat healthy. This software is used in 50-minute sessions, twice a week, to help patients cope with a wide range of symptoms.

Healing Rhythms, developed by a San Diego company called Wild Divine, is designed to help patients learn to relax and control their heart rate, pulse and skin response through their breathing.

One program shows balloons peacefully rising and falling on the screen. As the participant does deep and focused breathing, the balloons will slowly float in a steady and straight course across the screen. In a different program, balls are juggled in the air. The more relaxed the person becomes through their breathing, the slower the balls move. If the person increases his or her stress levels, the balls are juggled faster and higher.

“The aim is to offer these patients another way to gain control of their psychological and physiologic responses, and, ultimately, their lives,” said Stacey Saleff, an occupational therapist at Belmont.

Original Suorce

http://philadelphia.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/stories/2009/02/02/newscolumn1.html

Journey to Wild Divine The Passage and Wisdom Quest

By artfully combining beautiful biofeedback activities with effective meditation and breathing techniques, Healing Rhythms allows you to transform the rhythms of your mind and body as you watch them play together on-screen.

Healing Rhythms is an entirely unique and interactive program that uses biofeedback to help you to achieve a deeper sense of well-being, to relieve stress, and to live a stronger, more balanced life.

Healing Rhythms, is the first biofeedback training program that brings together the most prominent leaders in the field of health and wellness – doctors Deepak Chopra, Dean Ornish and Andrew Weil.

Wearing three finger sensors that track your body’s energy levels, you move through enchanting and mystical landscapes using the power of your thoughts, feelings, breath and awareness.

Wise mentors guide you throughout the realm, empowering you with yoga, breathing and meditation skills.

The Passage

Wisdom Quest

Unlike traditional computer games, Journey to Wild Divine incorporates a biofeedback unit called the Light Stone that allows the story and events of the game to unfold based on your brain activity, blood pressure, muscle tension, heart rate and other critical bodily functions.

Stop for a second and let that one sink it.

Yes, this is a computer adventure game that you not only control and influence with your intellect by figuring out what to do next, but it’s also an inner-active journey that reacts in different ways depending on your

* brain activity
* blood pressure
* muscle tension
* heart rate
* and other critical bodily functions.

Tell me that isn’t just about the coolest thing you’ve heard recently?

The Journey to Wild Divine is the first “inner-active” computer adventure that combines ancient breathing and meditation with modern biofeedback technology for total mind-body wellness. Progress through the realm using the power of your thoughts, feelings, breath and awareness.

The Passage is not just a game, it’s a tool to reduce stress and improve physical and mental health.

The unique biofeedback hardware in The Journey to Wild Divine helps you learn to balance your physical and emotional responses to life.

The “LightStone” and biofeedback finger sensors are the link between you and The Passage.

Wearing three finger sensors that track your body’s heart rate variability and skin conductance, you move through enchanting and mystical landscapes using the power of your thoughts, feelings, breath and awareness.

Wise mentors guide you throughout the realm, empowering you with yoga, breathing and meditation skills needed to complete over 40 biofeedback ‘energy’ events.

Build stairways with your breath, open doors with meditation, juggle balls with your laughter, and so much more. The Journey makes biofeedback, a popular method of alternative health care, easily accessible and empowers you to take mind-body wellness, literally into your own hands.

Navigate through a realm of enchanting beauty as you wander through mountain tops, waterfalls and sumptuous gardens.

Throughout this game you’ll practice breathing and meditation techniques, like the heart breath, an ancient yogic breathing technique that will help you achieve control over your mind & body to help reduce stress and improve physical and mental wellness.

Learn important skills about personal health, relaxation, and finding a calm place inside. With The Journey to Wild Divine: The Passage, you can practice new and exciting meditation and breathing activities for advanced training as you learn to integrate this wisdom into your daily life.

According to Dr. Deepak Chopra,M.D.: “The Journey to Wild Divine allows people to influence what is happening in their body, in their mind, and the world they create everyday.” -

Biofeedback hardware is included with The Passage. Wisdom Quest is a software only product that works with the hardware from The Passage. Learn more about the Wild Divine Project