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Skin TemperatureWhat is it?Skin Temperature is a measure of a person's state of relaxation. We have all touched someones hand that felt very cold. Some people always seem to have warm hands. Learning to increase your finger tip temperature is called Temperature training. This is one of the most basic techniques used in Biofeedback. How do you do it?A Skin Temperature measuring instrument is used to continuously monitor the temperature. A small sensor is attached to a finger or toe using tape or a velcro band. If finger warming is being carried out the sensor can be lightly held between thumb and finger, when using this be aware that the reading can be increased for a short time by holding the sensor tighter but this can not be done for long. At the beginning the person is asked to think about warming their hand (or foot) getting warmer. Visualization helps, but the effective visualization varies from person to person. Examples are thinking of having your hands in front of a warm fire or in a warm muff. Within a short time the Temperature reading will start to change. This gives positive feedback that the person is doing the correct thing. Note this should be carried out in a warm room , 20deg C or 68 F for best results. Often when someone first tries this they try to hard and the reading will go down, then if they relax the reading will start to rise. With practice the amount of temperature rise will increase. Practice needs to be done for at least 20 min. a day an twice a day is better. It is useful to record the start and finish levels to get some idea of improvements over time.What is it used for?Temperature training is an effective way of learning relaxation and increasing the blood flow to the extremities. The Skin Temperature reading is an indication of autonmic response and can be used in psychotherapy for giving information on a persons resistance. Temperature training is a very good way of helping a person become more in tune with their body. In conditions involving chronic pain e.g. Rheumatoid arthritis, temperature training helps to reduce the pain and improve a person's general outlook. It is used as an effective treatment for Raynaud's disease, high blood pressure, migraine headaches, OOS (RSI) and for general relaxation.What equipment do I need?The only equipment is a thermometer. An electronic model is best as it will allow changes of 0.1Deg to be seen. Being able to see small changes is important when starting out as initial changes may be small. It must also update the reading at least every 2 seconds. Beware that most low cost thermometers only update the reading every 10 seconds and this is too slow to be useful in Biofeedback. The sensor should not be to large as the larger the sensor the slower the response. Basic low cost temperature trainers typically only have a digital readout, but are a very useful basic tool and home trainer. More advanced instruments measure Skin Temperature and display it as a sound and bargraph. Computer systems often have a selection of displays and sounds. An example of a basic home trainer
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