Most people aren’t aware that anxiety is a leading cause of drug abuse and relapse in the United States. Because of that, finding ways to manage anxiety effectively is an integral part of rehab. Thankfully, that’s just what biofeedback therapy does. However, how does biofeedback therapy help manage anxiety? Can integrating biofeedback therapy with other addiction therapy programs make a difference in treatment?
What Is Biofeedback Therapy?
To understand how does biofeedback therapy help manage anxiety, people must know how it works. In short, it’s a type of nondrug treatment that aims to teach patients how to control bodily processes. These processes are traditionally involuntary. However, which involuntary bodily processes can biofeedback help people manage? Some of the most common are heart rate, blood pressure, and muscle tension. Learning to control these reactions gives people a natural way to control certain conditions. Some of these include high blood pressure, migraine headaches, and tension headaches. Over the years, biofeedback therapy has grown in popularity. One reason is that it’s a noninvasive therapy that doesn’t involve drugs. As a result, biofeedback is a low risk and doesn’t produce undesirable side effects. While it doesn’t work for everyone, there’s little harm in at least trying it.
How Does Biofeedback Therapy Help Manage Anxiety?
With more knowledge about biofeedback, it’s easier for people to put the pieces of the puzzle together regarding anxiety. Many of the symptoms that occur with anxiety are controllable through biofeedback. In some cases, people can learn to control their bodies so that they don’t have anxiety attacks. For example, when people start to feel anxious, they start to breathe faster and get a rapid heartbeat. These are two biological factors that they can learn to control with biofeedback. Controlling these biological factors helps them get ahold of the anxiety. Controlling anxiety is essential for people who struggle with substance abuse because anxiety often leads to relapse. Fortunately, biofeedback can teach them natural coping mechanisms that they can’t learn in other types of therapy.
What Happens During Biofeedback Therapy?
Biofeedback therapy is only helpful if people can see the measurements behind the changes in their brains. For that reason, doctors hook them up to computers during biofeedback sessions. The computer reads biological and psychological changes in the body using sensors. Typically, the sessions include many of the same topics that traditional psychotherapy touches on. With biofeedback, though, people can see the psychological changes in real-time. Then, they can tie the visual changes to how they feel to understand their emotional problems better.
Stop Anxiety in Its Tracks With Biofeedback Therapy
Are you in the market for a biofeedback therapy program Hanover PA has? If so, it’s time to reach out to The Ranch PA. We can help you with mental health problems such as anxiety disorders. We can also help you overcome substance abuse problems using addiction treatment programs such as:
Don’t let anxiety lead you further down the path of substance abuse. Let us teach you more about how does biofeedback therapy help manage anxiety. Reach out to our friendly staff today at 717.969.9126.