In 1924, the German psychiatrist Hans Berger for the first time connected several electrodes (small circular metal disks) to the patient's scalp and detected the electrical current using a ballistic galvanometer. Between 1929 and 1938, Berger published 14 reports dedicated to his research on EEG. Much of the modern knowledge on the subject, especially about medium frequencies, stems from his research. In 1932, Fourier analysis was applied to the EEG records, and thus the studies of what was later called QEEG (quality EEG, qualitative EEG) emerged.
Dr. Joe Kamiya popularized neurofeedback in the 1960s when in 1968 his article concerning the alpha brain wave experiments he had been conducting got published in Psychology Today. Kamiya's experiment consisted of two parts. Firstly, the person being tested was asked to close his eyes, and when the sound appeared, the person was to say if he thought he was in the alpha phase. He was then informed whether he was right or not. Thus the feedback was dependant on the trainee, not the equipment. Initially, the people tested averaged about fifty percent correct, but some developed the surprising ability to better distinguish between their states. In the second part, people tested were asked to reach the alpha state when the bell rang once, and to exit the state when the bell rang twice. Once again, some patients were allowed to enter the alpha state on command. Alpha states were associated with relaxation, and alpha training showed the ability to relieve stress.
At the same time, and even slightly earlier, in the 1950s, a huge amount of research and experimentation with EEG was carried out by Dr. Elmer Green (1917 - 2017) together with his wife Alyce Green. At the very beginning of Green's exploration of neurofeedback, there was the same motivation that guides Foundation 108's activities today: a fascination with the brain and consciousness and their interrelationships. Thanks to neurofeedback, it was possible to identify the unifying action of brain functions, leading to the transfer of unconscious content into consciousness, which in turn led to self-regulation and self-mastery.
The Greens were the first to use biofeedback in a number of medical disorders, hence became the pioneers of clinical biofeedback. For instance, they found that warming the hands through skin temperature feedback was effective in treating some types of migraine headaches. They also developed a very effective biofeedback protocol for hypertension. They understood biofeedback from a much broader perspective than from the level of physiology itself. Long before broader research into biofeedback was undertaken, they knew that voluntary control of physiology occurs through mind regulation and that silencing the mind opens the door to transpersonal growth.
Around 1970, Elmer Green and his colleagues studied the Hindu yogi Swami Rama in Menninger, measuring his ability to voluntarily control bodily processes such as heartbeat, blood pressure, and body temperature, which are usually considered uncontrollable. Swami Rama was able to voluntarily change many of these parameters.
Film o doktorze Green i jego żonie:
Similar yet broader research on yogis, meditating monks, and athletes who achieve outstanding results was carried out by Dr. James Hardt, Canadian psychologist and founder of the Biocybernaut Institute and a student of Dr. Joe Kamiya. For over 40 years, Dr. Hardt has been studying the electrophysiological basis of spiritual states called peak experiences. He also traveled to India several times to study advanced yogis. Moreover, he studied Zen masters and Christian prayer and contemplation. In addition, Dr. Hardt is interested in a virtual reality application focused on the brain.
Only the technology of video games introduced on a larger scale to neurofeedback allowed for concentration training (beta 2 waves and so-called smr) that was interesting for the ones being tested.
The pioneers of changes in the so-called the Peace Revolution of the 1960s John Lennon and Yoko Ono were also interested in neurofeedback. They demonstrated how alpha-wave Neurofeedback can be used to play "music" on an American talk show.
However, in the absence of a scalable commercial marketing model and relatively expensive technology, as well as for paradigmatic reasons (inconvenient results), neurofeedback was marginalized at universities in the early 1980s. Nevertheless, it began to be intensively researched and used by special services and the military, especially in Russia.
Currently, in many counties of the world, basic neurofeedback is very popular. Its aim is only to increase beta 2 waves or so-called SMRs, supporting the functions of focus, efficient counting, and motivation to act. The trainees are to perform specific tasks within simple computer games.
On the other hand, trainings of other waves - such as alpha and theta, which give the possibility of greater relaxation, perspective, healing traumas, lucid dreaming, or experiencing extended states of consciousness - are conducted by the few therapeutic pioneers who provide clinical services in independent, created by themselves, centres.
