Q. . I am writing to find out if Biofeedback Training would be effective for treating BPD. My husband has not been diagnosed with BPD yet, but we see the psychiatrist next week.

I have been doing a lot of reading about the disorder and feel he meets the DSM criteria. He suffers from severe depression and is a recovering alcoholic/addict as well and has been sober for almost 7 months.

He currently takes Effexor 150/mg 2/day and 200mgs of Seroquel at bedtime for insomnia. He also sees a clinical psychologist once a week.

However, he does not seem to be getting any better and seems to be putting up more walls around him and is not letting anyone in. I don't know how to help him.

I recently went through an intensive seven week Biofeedback training program for addiction and alpha/theta brain wave training and it changed my life.

It taught me to deal with stress much better, which is something I did not know how to do appropriately. Do you think biofeedback would have any success in treating BPD.

  A. I am not aware of any well controlled trials in BPD, but they may be out there somewhere. Nonetheless, biofeedback is an effective tool that helps some, but not all, individuals, better handle stress by teaching themselves relaxation techniques. I doubt it is the total answer, but there is no such thing for the vast majority of psychiatric illnesses. Biofeedback is a tool that can help. Have him try it. If it helps, great. If not, find another tool.