by Cathy Gatto Brennan
Abstract
Traditional Chinese Medicine has been used for thousands of years in eastern cultures. It has been gaining popularity in the United States in recent years. In this paper I take a look at the use of traditional Chinese Medicine in women’s health through the lens of both practitioner and client. I gained an inside look at the process for one client and what a typical session entailed in this practitioner’s practice.
Introduction
Biofield therapy is based on the concept that all living things, including the human body, have an energetic life force that plays an integral role in the health and well-being of the organism. Biofield therapies encompass a diverse group of modalities that tune in to the biofield and move life force energy through a practitioner to a participant with the intent to improve health (Gronowicz, Bengston, & Yount, 2015). Biofield research has shown some consistent physiological effects within the human body and animals but has shown inconsistent results with individual cell samples (Mackay, Hansen, & McFarlane, 2004). With the growing popularity of biofield therapy in the general public there has been an increase in interest in the mechanisms of biofield therapies and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative medicine established research centers in 2002 to study the effects and mechanisms of biofield therapy (NCAM, 2016).
Technology has allowed us a closer look at how the brain functions and its impact on healing in a non-invasive manner. As science explores and understands more of the effects of biofield therapy coupling this information with brain research offers a rich area to explore. The effect of biofield therapy on the human brain, in both the participant and the practitioner, may lead to better understanding of how the human biofield functions and it’s impact on health and well-being.
Defining the human biofield has its challenges. There is not a universally accepted definition, in part because there is not universal acceptance that a human biofield exists, despite the acceptance of the field by the National Institute of Health ( Gronowicz, Bengston, & Yount, 2015). In allopathic medicine, there is the widespread use of medical devices designed to regulate the bioelectrical state within the human body. Treatments like pacemakers for heart regulation, deep brain stimulators for motor control in Parkinson disease, as well as the use of pulsed electromagnetic frequency for pain control and bone fracture healing appear to confirm that at a minimum there is a bioelectrical field within the human body (Muehsam, Chevalier, Barsoti, & Gurfein, 2015).
Hammerschlac and Jain (2012) used the premise that the biofield was based on the measurable bioelectric and biomagnetic frequencies within the human body as well as frequencies too small to measure called subtle energy during their roundtable discussion of biofield research. As part of the panel at the Biofield Research Roundtable James Oschman (2012) presented that the potential to measure this subtle energy may be within our capability by using superconducting quantum interference devices which were currently being used to measure electromagnetic energy in the brain. This technology could help in the efforts to define and measure the biofield. The biofield if viewed as a dynamic, complex, self-regulating system offers answers to some of the ongoing questions that have plagued biofield therapy. A self-organizing system that is non-linear exchanges energy, matter, and information and displays a dynamic steady state rather than a single homeostatic point ( Rubik, 2002). This type of system is influenced by external factors and cannot be deconstructed and subsequently reconstructed with identical results. This may offer a possible explanation for the inconsistent research results of biofield therapy on in vitro samples because removing the cell removes it from the system and out of the dynamic state of homeostasis (Rubik, Brooks, & Schwartz, 2006). Gronowicz, Bengston, and Yount (2015) reported that biofield therapy was not effective in vitro and had better results in vivo because the system as a whole was needed for the therapy to be effective. The cell responds differently within the system. Biofield therapy employs weak stimuli that may have a stronger influence on a dynamic system than a single cell. Rubik’s (2002) theory is that biofield therapy impacts the dynamic homeostasis within an organism. If an organism is in dynamic balance the stimulus from the biofield therapy has no effect. If there is an imbalance in the dynamic homeostatic state the weak stimulus from the biofield therapy brings the organism back into dynamic homeostasis allowing the organism to self-regulate.
The definition of biofield as a system that organizes information to regulate biological function within an organism to create a state of dynamic homeostasis is what was used as a starting point for Mueham, Chevalier, Borsotti, and Gurfein(2015). They stated that the biofield functioned on multiple levels within the organism as well as in conjunction with external factors.
There is a growing body of research that is measuring electromagnetic frequencies that are smaller than the expected thermal electromagnetic frequency of cellular function, which seems to support the concept of a subtle energy field within the biofield (Mueham, Chevalier, Borsotti, & Gurfein, 2015). Rubik (2002) reported that an electromagnetic pulse could travel through the human body at speeds approaching the speed of light. In comparison nerve conduction travels at approximately twenty meters per second. This high rate of speed may give us clues as to why biofield therapy appears to affect changes in the participant so rapidly and warrants further study. There are many measurements of frequencies within the human body. The brain has several frequency states that are measured by cycles per second or Hz. Looking at the effect of biofield therapy on the brain often involves measuring these states. These states are associated with different levels of cognitive function. Delta is 0.5 – 3.9 Hz. Theta is 4 – 7.9 Hz. Alpha is 8 -12.9 Hz. Beta is 13 -29.9 Hz. Brain frequency has been noted to be resonant between practitioner and participant during biofield therapy (Uchida, Iha, Yamaoka, Nitta, & Sugano 2012). Oschman (2012) reported that cells have the ability to repeat a signal and magnify it exponentially giving a weak stimulus the ability to have a significant effect. This may play a role in the resonance that has been noted with biofield therapy.
Biofield therapies are based on the premise of a practitioner acting as a conduit to provide an energetic stimulus to a participant’s biofield in an effort to restore health and well-being. There are a large number of biofield therapies. Among the most common are Reiki, Therapeutic Touch, Joheri, Pranic Healing, Healing Touch, Qigong, and polarity therapy. Making it a field that is largely unregulated with no national oversight, certification, or licensure organization. Each modality sets its own technique and practice guidelines (Gronowicz et al., 2015). This provides a challenge in conducting evidence-based research and in the development of best practices for the field. Best practices generally include dosing, measurement of outcomes and side effects, and collaboration with other practitioners within the healthcare team. Standard dosing is not readily available as the length of treatment and the number of treatments required varies from participant to participant, practitioner to practitioner, and modality to modality leaving it up to each individual practitioner to set their own standards. As for measuring outcomes most often there are subjective descriptions with little objective data recorded. Collaboration with allopathic medical practitioners may be impeded by the skepticism surrounding biofield therapy and the participants’ reluctance to disclose the use of a non-traditional healing method (Gronowicz et al., 2015).
Research of biofield therapy has several obstacles that impede cohesive results. The difficulty in controlling variables including the practitioner’s psychological state, the variety of techniques practiced, and the impact of intention. The effect of intention is a variable that is being studied in relation to biofield therapy as well as its role in the placebo response. The research chosen for inclusion in this paper was done so with the intention of mitigating these obstacles as best possible.
In research conducted by Uchida et al. (2012) studying the effects of the biofield therapy Okada Purifying Technique (OPT) on the human brain, they noted an increase in alpha frequency in the frontal and central cortex of the brain. They noted these areas are associated with decision-making, judgment, and reasoning. The study was conducted using one OPT practitioner that had 10 years of experience and 19 participants, 9 men and 10 women. Each participant received a sham session and an OPT session on separate days at the same time of day lasting fifteen minutes. The sequence of sessions was randomly assigned. Each participant assessed his or her mood state using the Profile of Mood Status before and after each session. Each participant was attached to a 13 lead electroencephalograph (EEG) during the sessions. The OPT practitioner was positioned behind the participant, out of their line of sight, and did not touch or speak to the participant. In the sham sessions, the OPT practitioner was instructed to direct the biofield energy toward himself and toward the participant during the OPT sessions. The EEG results showed the alpha state was reached up to thirteen times in the participant during the OPT session. Of note was the increase in alpha frequencies were all recorded after the four-minute mark in the session. This result could provide a clue to best practices in dosing and warrants further research. There were no notable pattern changes in the EEG during the sham sessions. The results of the POMS showed a reported decrease in anxiety, tension, confusion, anger, and depression with both the OPT and the sham sessions. This subjective experience may be attributed to the placebo effect or the effect of the healing intention in the room despite not being directed at the participant.
Research conducted on biofield therapies’ effect on human neurophysiology by Pike, Vernon, and Hald (2014) showed left cerebral cortex activation and subjective decreases in anxiety. The biofield therapy Institute for Research and Applied Cosmic Energy (IRECA) was utilized for this experiment because of its simplicity, short duration, and use of intention. There were 21 participants and 21 practitioners. The practitioners were trained in IRECA and had a minimum of four years of experience. The IRECA process had some unique elements in its process. The practitioner focuses on energy centers in the body. For this experiment, they focused on the energy centers on the crown of the head, the forehead, the throat, and the center of the chest. They also hold an intention for facilitating healing and adopt a mindset of noninterference. These elements are designed to help the practitioner keep a clear channel and allow for easy use in everyday life. The practitioner placed their hand one to two inches above each energy center as they focused upon it. The experiment had three conditions the IRECA session, a sham session, and a control. Brain frequencies of the participants were measures with an EEG and assessed using the Alpha Asymmetry Index (AAI) to determine response to stress and biofield therapy. Participants took the State-Trait Anxiety Index three times, at the beginning, after an activity inducing a mild stress response, and after the session. The sessions lasted for five minutes. EEG results showed activity in the left anterior cerebral cortex increased after the mild stress event and when the IRECA practitioner-focused attention on the energy centers on the crown and forehead. The participants also subjectively rated lower anxiety levels after the IRECA sessions. The AAI scores were similar in both the sham and the control group. The IRECA group showed a significant positive AAI score at the one-minute mark and the five-minute mark, which the authors interpreted, and a reduction of stress during the IRECA session. They proposed that the practitioner’s intention might nonlocally entangle with the participant to facilitate a shift in brain frequency that induces healing.
The research conducted by Achterberg et al. (2005) looks at the potential of distance healing. They measure brain activity using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while participants received distance healing. The study included 11 participants and 11 practitioners using various biofield therapies. The participants were placed inside an fMRI scanner. The practitioners were placed in a separate control room and instructed to send distance healing with intention based on the techniques they were taught in their respective biofield therapy. All healers were instructed to send distance healing with the command on and to stop sending healing with the command off in a specific timed sequence by the experimenter. The participants were unaware of the on/off sequence. The participant spent 34 minutes in the fMRI scanner including a 10-minute period to assess the baseline brain activity of the participant. The fMRI results showed brain activity that correlated to the time periods that the distance healer was instructed to send the healing intention. The left anterior cingulate cortex, left superior frontal lobes, and the precuneus was activated in the participant’s brain. The authors noted that this correlation may be supported by the theory of entanglement in quantum physics. Due to the use of multiple biofield modalities used in the study and the lack of measurement of the practitioner’s brain frequencies, there is no correlation that can be made to a particular biofield modality.
Hinterberger, von Haugwitz, and Schmidt (2016) measured brain frequency simultaneously for practitioner and participant. They studied 10 novice participants and 10 experienced (3 years or more) Theta Healing Practitioners. The participants’ and practitioners’ brain frequencies were measured by a dual 32 lead EEG system. The participants completed the Basler Befindlichkeitsslal mood state assessment before and after the session. The participant and practitioner were positioned to face each other. The experimenter communicated through an intercom to the practitioner when to start, move on to the next phase, and stop. There were no sham control sessions. In examining the EEG results the researchers noted a decrease in theta frequency, the opposite of their hypothesis. This decrease took place in the active phase of the healing session at six minutes into the session. There was no change in the participant’s brain frequencies. The theta frequency coherence between practitioner and participant was noted to be non-significant. The authors noted that the theta, delta, and beta frequency changes for the practitioner were in agreement with their prior research on brain frequency changes with meditation. The technique used for theta healing was noted to be a joint meditation between the practitioner and the participant.
Ventura and Persinger (2014) reported different results with theta coherence in their study with the biofield therapy Reiki. They studied 9 male and female participants and 9 practitioners, five had four or more years of experience and four were sham practitioners with no experience, all were female. In both sham and Reiki sessions, participants and practitioners were connected to a 19 lead EEG. The participants’ back was toward the practitioner and the practitioner laid their hands over the participants’ back. Reiki words and symbols were imagined rather than being spoken and traced in the air. Sham practitioners were shown the symbols and words immediately prior to the experiment. They were told to remember them and imagine them when they were instructed to start. Each session lasted ten minutes. After three minutes of Reiki theta coherence between participant and practitioner reached 57% primarily noted in the left frontal cortex. The authors made note of the similar frequency shown in coherence to the Schumann Resonance of 7 – 8 Hz. Ventura and Persinger (2014) state the Schuman resonance is the electromagnetic field generated between the earth and the ionosphere.
Each brain frequency is associated with various consciousness and cognitive states. Delta is measured at 0.5 – 3.9 Hz and is associated with deep dreamless sleep and very deep meditation. Theta is measured at 4 – 7.9 Hz and is associated with sleep, deep meditation, and deep thought, which enhances learning and memory. Alpha is measured at 8 – 12.9 Hz and is associated with alert quiet thoughtful states and mind-body integration. Beta is measured at 1 – 29.9 Hz and is associated with problem-solving, paying attention, thinking, and focusing, this is where most waking moments are spent (Muehsam et al., 2015).
The areas of the brain that were noted to be activated during the experiments were the left frontal cortex, the anterior cingulate, and the precuneus (Achterberg et al., 2005) (Hendricks et al., 2005) (Uchida et al., 2012)(Ventura & Persinger, 2014). The precuneus is thought to be connected to self-reflection and consciousness. Executive function, verbal responses, judgment, decision-making, and processing information are functions connected with the frontal cortex and the anterior cingulate (Achterberg et al., 2005).
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