title: The use of relaxation training to enhance functional outcomes in adults with traumatic head injuries.
abstract: Impaired anxiety management and poor emotional control have a negative effect on the adaptive functioning of persons with head injuries who are in the postacute stages of recovery. This paper outlines a relaxation training program administered individually to 4 adults with severe head injuries. Each subject was in the postacute phase of recovery and had reported stress to be a persistent problem in daily living. The relaxation training protocol combined biofeedback, imagery, autogenic training, and deep breathing. Significant improvement in function, measured by scores on a scale of illness-related dysfunction, support the potential benefits of stress management training as part of functional training programs for persons with traumatic head injuries.
authors.affiliation: Center for Adaptive Computer Education, School of Occupational Therapy, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lysaght
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bodenhamer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001676:Biofeedback, Psychology; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D004576:Electromyography; D006801:Humans; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011187:Posture; D012064:Relaxation Therapy; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology