I am not sure how well the term ‘Self-Regulation’ is known outside of professional biofeedback circles or how important a term it is felt to be by the general populace. Within the community of biofeedback therapists, the term is quite well known and important. Indeed, there is an entire professional journal devoted to the techniques and methods of self-regulation. While self-regulation can apply specifically to the processes and methods used in biofeedback (helping a patient/client become aware of previously unconscious physiological processes
and through this increased awareness helping the patient/client to normalize these processes and re-establish healthy physiology in order to recover from pain and dysfunction.) It can be applied in a broader sense as well.
It seems fairly intuitive to think that obesity (for example) is a failure of self-regulation and recovery of optimal weight is a product of improved self-regulation skills (through managing diet and exercise). Is it intuitive to think of recovering from adult-onset diabetes with self-regulation skills? How about epilepsy or hypertension or chronic headaches or chronic anxiety? While the techniques would be different for each of these, we can find examples for all these diseases that have been cured using self-regulation techniques.
Recovering from or curing any specific health problem is a fairly demanding activity that requires commitment, support, guidance (coaching), time, and often money. When illness becomes manifest it usually means that the processes that govern the body have been out of balance for a long time so it stands to reason that correcting these disease-producing processes will take time and effort. Luckily, there is a growing body of knowledge in the Alternative or Complementary Medical Community that can help with training, support, and treatment.
But, what if we could actually prevent or avoid disease by adopting self-regulation techniques before disease manifests itself? Or, what would happen if we applied self-regulation techniques at the first sign of illness Perhaps illness could be avoided or the recovery period would be easier and shorter.
There is a growing consensus that by paying attention to our bodies and regulating our lifestyles we can take charge of our health and we can stay healthy longer than if we ignore our bodies and don’t pay attention to how we treat them. Rather than being a message of blame or guilt, this is a message of hope. If we can contribute to our ongoing health by managing our lifestyles intelligently, if we can help stay healthy or change our behavior in ways that help us become healthy when we had been ill, it is much more hopeful and positive than thinking we can’t do anything ourselves.
Despite the ever-growing movement to use alternative medical techniques, there are massive influences in our society that would have us stay unconscious and not pay attention to the fact that we can do something to help ourselves stay healthy. We have a choice whether or not we will be working to maintain and improve our health or allow our health to deteriorate. This is why self-regulation is important, without it we can too easily fall victim to dis-regulation.
