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Beyond Biofeedback – Drs Elmer and Alyce Green

One case reported in some detail is that of a twenty-four-year-old married woman who had been given daily enemas for the first six months of her life and had never had normal bowel function. Shortly before beginning biofeedback training she was experiencing episodes of severe abdominal cramps and diarrhea as frequently as fifteen times per day on an average of two to three times per week.

This patient learned control very quickly; after three weekly biofeedback training sessions she was able to turn peristaltic activity on and off at will. Furman describes her astonishing progress:

"From the first feedback session . . . she has had three mild attacks, none lasting more than three hours. She was placed on a bowel regimen and has had one normally formed stool a day for the past three months. She has been relieved of her distress for six months now and has been asymptomatic for the last three months. For the first time, she has taken a job with confidence and enthusiasm."