Somatic Vision

Thu 22 Nov 2012, 5:48 pm

Hi all,

I am not a "games guy." To give you an idea, I spent 75 cents playing three games of Pong once in a bar in San Francisco in 1975. That's about it for me and games!

Don't get me wrong. I am in awe of the visuals and games in Alive! They are elegant and beautiful and well-engineered. However, personally, I am happy as a pig in mud just watching a graph or following a breath pacer. Is that unusual? Exciting, right?

I have no doubt that games and visuals can be powerfully entertaining, motivating and reinforcing for some clients, however I wonder if they are "necessary" in a clinical sense?

My question is: Are there clinical benefits to games, et al beyond motivation, entertainment and reinforcement?

I'll be interested in any discussion.

Rex
Khon Kaen, Thailand
[email protected]

Hi Rex,

Part of the idea here is that you learn to relax under conditions more similar to the stresses found in daily life.

For example, in the Dual Drive or Tropical Heat games, you have the added stress of having to steer, which in and of itself is a major change from simply relaxing and breathing without having anything to do. Furthermore there is a competitive element (against the other cars) as well as a time pressure element (must relax now or the cars will pass and I'll be in last place).

So, we recommend starting with more mellow feedback, and if higher peak performance is desired in life, and therefore the ability to stay calm and make good decisions in stressful situations, that you include the games in your heart rate smoothness practice.

Best,

Ryan

Tue 18 Dec 2012, 7:01 pm

Oh, my! It took me a long time to finally login to see your answer, Ryan. Thanks for taking the time to reply. And thanks for the completely clear explanation.

Happy Holidays!

Rex
Khon Kaen, Thailand
[email protected]

Yes, exercise and movement are very, very important, for health, relaxation and emotional state. Some athletes also use biofeedback to improve their sports performance. Others are in front of the computer often, and can use one of these games as a way to relax and improve their mental state during times when they can't or don't wish to exercise. I also STRONGLY recommend taking mini-breaks, short meditation, rest, etc. during busy days in front of the computer. Alive can be a part of this routine, but it can also be done in any way that clears the mind, if possible including physical exercise can make a big difference in a busy day.

Hi Michael,
I agree and disagree in regards to Video Games and Health.

We all need to be outdoors and find ways to move, get exercise; and, yes, today's world includes far too much indoor 'tv and computer' involvement, even if gaming, or learning oriented.

However, there are many contexts wherein video game play, especially the type of gaming associated with the quality of life improvement in cognitive training, biofeedback based breathing, focus and relaxation techniques or even first person based shooter games (which I have never played, nor value), have proven to have benefits.

Respectively, and respectfully, there are hundreds of ongoing university studies from renowned institutions evaluating these specific gaming situations. The elderly, those with adhd, and the inherently stressed in our society are finding benefits from the various video game interactions, including studies which prove that first person shooter games increase the mental faculties of the players -- and, with implications and transference of skillsets to real life.

In regards to the specific value of biofeedback based video entrainment, I point you to this study of a driving based simulation for the elderly which would portend to immense value in real life (and which is somewhat similar to the Dual Drive game in Alive quoted here, which I can expound upon): the study says, the participants aged 60-85 drove a virtual car for 12 hours over a month timeframe and "not only improved their performance at the game, but this skill transferred over to other cognitive tasks". Adam Gazzaley, a leading neuroscientist and head of the study at Univ of California at San Francisco said, "a similar approach could become a therapeutic tool for people dealing with a range of issues, like ADHD, dementia, autism. All of these have a common denominator – the loss of cognitive control, which includes the closely linked capacities to attend, make decisions, and multitask."

In the end, video games are here to stay, so we should use them to our highest advantage AND we should all find time to engage in outdoor activities to be our healthiest.

Here is the link to the article in Nature:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalto ... -function/

Relating to Ryan's comment about the use of biofeedback in sports performance, there are many examples and studies. Here is one that is quite interesting as it says, "video gaming can stimulate neurogenesis (growth of new neurons) and connectivity in the brain regions responsible for spatial orientation, memory formation and strategic planning, as well as, fine motor skills."

Please note that the article in Psychology Today quoting the above study by the Max Planck Institute in Berlin was written by a world class endurance athlete and contributing athletic expert, Christopher Bergland in The Athletes Way.
Here is that article link:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the ... nnectivity

In this context - I struggle with Persistent Postural-Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD, call the AAAAA [American Association against Acronym Abuse]) since a stroke, a disturbance in the central processing of balance & spacial orientation apparently mediated by brainstem nuclei influenced by vagal activity. Therapy focuses on "habituation," both real-world & virtual, & I've been using videos produced by the physiatry dept. at Emory University (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrhGWx ... e7ZTaq9J_w) for this.
I've been simply using these in a separate window, adjacent to HRV feedback, as a "disturbing challenge," but it would be very nice to incorporate these as feedback-manipulated "games" (e.g., with the Advanced Media Player extension to Alive).

I gotta concur with Rex, tho you're three games of Pong up on me; I was involved in biofeedback professionally back in the day when desktop computer interfaces were first coming on the scene, & we relied on meters, & lightbar displays felt cutting-edge (& we ran our devices on kerosene & had to walk uphill to the office, both ways ... ). Technology is amazing - it falls on us to determine judicious use (I've yet to twitter). Some of this is lovely & finds true utility in practice.

Am set up now with the bluetooth-connected iFeel PPG Sensor & Android software suite on a Dragon S8 Android tablet, All is working beautifully. The Overlay APP is very nice - provides a respiratory pacer & HRV / smoothness feedback display on top of any running Android APP. In the settings it's possible to configure to grey-out the display and mute sound from the overlain application, so I can run my dizziness-challenge videos (streamed on youtube or downloaded & run in VLC) & these are displayed crisply so long as I'm running good HRV smoothness, progressively greyed-out & muted as smoothness falls. So working on maintaining HRV smoothness during the challenge; when I get dizzy & smoothness drops they fade out & I can fall into recovery mode. Sweet. In addition to the dizziness-provoking videos, I can run my Deva Premal videos, rewarded with these when HRV smoothness is high.
The Graph Training App is very nice as well, very much the Alive application with a bit of streamlining - it's where I suspect I'll be spending much of my time, old-school as I am. Also working with the Android Particle World APP, for Alive-Environment-like displays.

Haven't paired yet with my Polar H7 HR monitor chest belt, will try that out soon. Excellent signal quality from the iFeel finger sensor (using the optional movement-tolerant sensor).

Nice to discover that all session data is saved to .csv files, so can be exported & emailed to my Mac for processing in Kubios.

Well done Ryan!
Problem now is that we can expect even more great things from you to follow ;^).

Games very beneficial of our health because physical games fit and active our body. Research says those people who plays a physical games are stay away from anxiety, depression, obesity, sleeping disorders, and stress.