heart-rate variability

Posted on March 30th, 2009 at 8:45 am by admin

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We saw the doctor at the neurofeedback clinic over (Canadian) Thanksgiving.

He said good work etc., but we need to shift the focus onto heart-rate variability.

HRV involves using a breathing belt around the waist and a pulse monitor on the finger, instead of electrodes attached to the head. The computer presents two graphs: one for breathing, one for heartrate. The object is to get the rise and fall of these two graphs to match.

To do this, the child has to find the optimal breathing speed, which is usually slower than normal. When the heart-rate functions in response to the breathing, instead of independently, then the sympathetic and autonomous nervous systems are working in synch.

The child will feel calmer.

With a little practice every day, the child learns to feel this in-synch rhythm and feels more in control. In a very short time, staying in synch becomes natural. Stress and anxiety go down, and the child is calmer.