Description
The Mindfield eSense Skin Temperature Biofeedback device is a powerful thermal biofeedback device designed to help users precisely monitor and regulate their skin temperature. This advanced device provides real-time feedback, making it ideal for stress management, relaxation training, and health improvement. By tracking subtle changes in skin temperature, users can learn to control their body’s response to stress and achieve a calm, balanced state. With the Mindfield eSense Skin Temperature sensor, gaining control over the mind and body is easier than ever, bringing the benefits of biofeedback into everyday routines.
The Mindfield eSense Skin Temperature Biofeedback home-use device is a small sensor for measuring skin temperature on the go using the microphone input of smartphones or tablets (Android or Apple iOS). A free app from Mindfield allows temperature biofeedback training with your device in your home comfort to improve your state of mind, overcome stress and its consequences, and manage your health.
The system presents measurements using visual and auditory feedback. You can also export your measured data as a CSV file and PDF Report (e.g., via e-mail, Dropbox, or Google Drive).
What is skin temperature, and how does it reflect our mind/body state?
The skin’s surface temperature changes with blood flowing through the tissue. Smooth muscle fibers surround the small blood vessels (arterioles) crossing through the tissue, and the sympathetic nervous system controls these fibers.
In a state of increased exertion, excitement, and stress, these muscle fibers contract, causing stenosis (narrowing) of the vasculature. This reduces blood flow to the skin, consequently reducing skin temperature. In contrast, in a state of relaxation, the musculature of the vessels is also relaxed, causing the expansion of the vessels and, consequently, an increase in blood flow to the skin. Hence, the skin temperature rises.
Mental stress often leads to lower peripheral perfusion and decreased skin temperature at the hands, caused by increased sympathetic nervous system activity. This has a sense of evolution because tension and anxiety originally served as the preparation for an impending flight or an attack. As a result, the body directs as much blood as possible to the working muscles (upper arms, thighs, and torso) by narrowing the vessels in the hands, feet, and forearms. We have all experienced times in our lives when our hands became wet. For example, think of a speech you gave in front of an audience or a job interview panel. Can you remember having cold (and sweaty) hands if you were anxious?
This physiological stress reaction can be useless or even harmful in many contexts in modern society (e.g., mental exertion, worries, psychosocial stress, and anxiety disorder). Conscious control of physiological stress can help you react more relaxed and efficiently to many situations.
eSense Skin Temperature Biofeedback home-use device is an established way to learn this kind of control!
How does hand-warming biofeedback work?
Biofeedback training can be conducted by striving for a rise in the skin temperature to reduce stress and its vegetative symptoms.
A straightforward and effective biofeedback method is hand-warming training. It works with the eSense Temperature sensor attached to a finger or between the thumb and index fingers. You will learn through direct feedback to intentionally raise the temperature of your fingers, thus increasing perfusion in your hands. The biological temperature sensors in our hands give us only an inaccurate impression of our skin temperature. We can roughly decide between warm, cool, cold, etc. The real-time feedback with the precise eSense Sensor will give you much more accurate information about the perfusion and temperature of your hands, enabling you to learn conscious control of these parameters and your relaxed well-being.
Handwarming training aims to show people their skin temperature and help them gain direct control over the blood circulation in their outer limbs.
Biofeedback training consists of four training stages.
Schedule about 60 to 90 minutes of free time for the first training, during which you can conduct the training undisturbed and flexibly.
It must also be differentiated between different types of stress. There is “bad stress,” distress, and “good stress,” eustress. You need to ask yourself if you are stressed because you feel overwhelmed and angry about something or upset. Or are you “stressed” because you are full of drive and excitement? In both cases, the eSense Skin Response shows elevated values, but this is only to be judged negatively in the first case. In the second case, you can enjoy and use the active or euphoric state.
Indication for use
Biofeedback training can be conducted by striving for a rise in the skin temperature to reduce stress and its vegetative symptoms.
Biofeedback with skin temperature is mainly applied in relaxation exercises. It’s easy to handle and learn. Experience with this technique shows a high success rate and improvement in subjective well-being. In the therapeutic field, skin temperature biofeedback is often used in migraine and chronic pain.
If you suffer from a severe disorder or medical condition, always consult a professional physician or therapist, and do not attempt to treat yourself. Biofeedback training is not an officially recognized medical procedure. Hence, the eSense Skin Temperature Biofeedback device is not medical and may only be used for stress reduction training.
eSense Skin Temperature Biofeedback device can be effectively used to manage:
- cold hands or feet,
- anxiety,
- panic attack,
- depression,
- migraine and tension headaches,
- Raynaud’s syndrome (poor circulation in hands),
- neurosis,
- chronic pain,
- phobias,
- blood pressure fluctuations,
- stress and its vegetative symptoms (cold hands, tachycardia, arrhythmia, high blood pressure, tachypnea, etc.),
- optimal performance (public speech, taking exams, etc.),
- guide for meditation.
Procedure
Introduction to Handwarming Training
Handwarming training aims to show people their skin temperature and help them gain direct control over the blood circulation in their outer limbs.
Biofeedback training consists of four training stages. For the first training, schedule about 60 to 90 minutes of free time to conduct the training undisturbed and at a stretch.
Create the conditions needed for successful training:
- find a quiet room (mobile phone, etc., switched off)
- the appropriate temperature of 20-22° C (68-72° F)
- convenient seating
- comfortable clothing
Skin temperature also depends on ambient temperature, so you should try to perform each training session under similar conditions.
It would help if you got accustomed to the ambient temperature for at least five minutes (acclimatization), letting the training start while your body is relaxed and constant. This phase of acclimatization can already raise your hand temperature by several degrees.
Conducting Training Sessions
Compared with other biofeedback techniques, you will need fewer sessions for reliable success. Six to ten sessions should be sufficient. Limit each session to about 30 minutes to keep focused throughout the entire session. You should shorten your sessions and practice more often if you tire while training.
A procedure consists of several assembled modules. With this new feature, you can build the perfect individual relaxation guide, do a stress test, and use it for pre-defined biofeedback training or research.
An incredibly effective and commonly used biofeedback method is the hand-warming exercise.
You can attach the eSense Temperature Sensor to your index or middle finger using the included Velcro strap, or you can hold it between your thumb and forefinger.
There are many possibilities. During a procedure, the system records your skin response or temperature, depending on the eSense sensor you have. After the recording, you can view your results for each module and the total.
To find more details regarding the eSense Skin Temperature Biofeedback device and hand-warming session procedure, please look at the Instruction Manuals (download/see from links below).
Supported iOS and Android™ devices
- All Android™ Smartphones and Tablets from 6.0 (Your Android™ device requires a 3.5 mm jack and headphone jack for external microphones!).
- Apple® iPhone® 7 to iPhone® 11 Pro and newer (in combination with a Lightning to 3.5 mm Headphone Jack Adapter).
- Apple® iPad® from the third generation or higher.
- Apple® iPad® Pro is from the first generation or higher (if necessary, combined with a USB-C and 3.5 mm headphone Jack adapter).
- Apple® iPod® touch from the fifth generation or higher.
eSense Temperature includes
- Mindfield® eSense Temperature Sensor.
- Velcro strap for the sensor.
- eSense App by Mindfield® (Apple App Store, Google Play, or Amazon App Store).
- Detailed instructions for effective biofeedback training.
The eSense sensors can be combined with restrictions. You can use this combination in the eSense app in both Open Training and Procedure.
Since the eSense Skin Response, eSense Temperature, and eSense Respiration each use the 3.5mm headphone jack on your smartphone or tablet, you cannot combine these three sensors.
The video explains the exact procedure for combining the eSense. The settings in the eSense app show how to evaluate the combined measurements later.
Since the eSense Pulse connects via Bluetooth, you can combine it with each of the other sensors (via the 3.5mm headphone jack).
This results in the following possible combinations regarding sensors and biofeedback parameters (in brackets):
- eSense Pulse (pulse) + eSense Skin Response (skin conductance)
- eSense Pulse (pulse) + eSense Temperature (temperature)
- eSense Pulse (pulse) + eSense Respiration (respiration) (+ eSense Skin Response)*.
*The eSense Respiration can only be combined with the eSense Skin Response, based on the Skin Response.
You can save money by purchasing a Biofeedback eSense Temperature Set (€ 169.00). This set includes the eSense Temperature, the finger clip, the Magic Blue smart light bulb, and a roll-up poster.
