  | Newsletter |
BST President’s MessageGreetings and Happy New Year to all members of BST and all interested in Biofeedback. Your Board of Directors met in Dallas in November to begin working on the 2008 goals and conference. Our goals for 2008:
Members present at the meeting:
Since that meeting, Kathy Ropers, LPC in Austin has been appointed to the board. Natalie Thomas and Mary Ann Lovett have been checking out hotels in San Antonio looking for some place for our 2008 meeting. I believe they have it narrowed down to about three and should have an announcement by the next newsletter. If there is anyone interested in presenting at next years conference, please contact Natalie at natdat@earthlink.net or call at (972) 202-9200. The two most important issues facing us as an organization are growth and fiscal stability. The new dues increase will help to cover the ongoing expenses of running the organization, but without the growth, addition of new general members and student members we will not be able to become fiscally stable and be able to meet the budgets of years to come. This board will be working hard to reach the 2008 goals and stay within the budget, but it is going to take the membership as a whole working together to really become successful. J. D. Massingill, LPC About Jana Downum, 2009 BST President-Elect Dr. Gabriel Tan, left and Jana Downum, LPC, 2009 President-Elect, rightBelieve it or not, I was raised in Miami, Florida and came to Texas to go to school. Culture shock! I learned how to two-step and with that, Texas hospitality so I decided to stay. I graduated from Texas Tech University with an Undergraduate and Masters degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. I came out of college to work with people with developmental disabilities. My work supervisor was also my LPC supervisor. I moved to the Big D and to work with another supervisor who introduced me to his passion in biofeedback. I took all the classes I could at North Texas in biofeedback and received my Certification as a biofeedback therapist. I continued my work with individuals with disabilities. With Medicare and Medicaid changes, I began work with patients in chronic pain. I am now working with clients who have had a traumatic brain injury. In all these patient populations I have had the opportunity to use my biofeedback training. As a counselor, I believe in the power of the mind-body connection. Biofeedback is also my passion and a powerful tool. At my first Biofeedback Society of Texas conference, I came as a student presenter. I have continued to attend yearly conferences and developed contacts with peers as well as friendships. I wanted to be a part of this organization and agreed to sit on the Board. This past year I was the Program Chair and now, well I am the President-Elect. The Biofeedback Society of Texas is an excellent organization of which I am proud to be a member. Jana Downum, LPC About Mary O'Connor, BST SecretaryI started in clinical EEG in 1971 at Memorial Hospital in Houston, Texas. in 1976. I started doing research with depth electrodes on macca mullata monkeys at Texas Research Institute of Mental Science (TRIM). This is where I learned to make and insert depth electrodes into monkey and rat brains. I was responsible for medical management of the animals, autopsy, and pathology slides. In 1981 I decided research was not for me and went back to do clinical work with Memorial Neurological Association, this is where I have been since then. Physicians with different interests have been hired as the company has grown. Over the years I have been registered in electromyography, evoked potentials, ultrasound and bio-feedback. Biofeedback phased out of our clinic after our psychiatrist-neurologist left the practice. I did not phase out of the Society because I have made so many dear friends working with the Harris County Biofeedback Society, and now the Biofeedback Society of Texas. In the past I have been treasurer, secretary and executive secretary of the Harris County Biofeedback Society. I am currently in charge of the historical documents, and video library of the Harris County Society, which closed down due to lack of interest. I received my BCIA-C in 1985 and I am considered a senior-fellow. We used stand alones and focus on headache and migraines. I am currently secretary of the Biofeedback Society of Texas, and CEU Chair which is a position of 5 years. My husband Peter is well known in the Society because of his back pain problem and how our many practitioners helped him become well, which in turn helped him to be able to continue his sailing hobby without pain or surgery. He is quite a fan of bio-feedback and feels that the therapy they suggested gave him back his life. Biofeedback has always been more than just a new addition to my resume. Meeting and getting to know the many friends I have made in the Society has enriched my life and my knowledge of medicine. Mary O'Connor, REEG/EPT |
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Contact Biofeedback Society of Texas at... office@bstx.org |