Bioresonance (MORA, BICOM)

1. Introduction

Version followed: bioresonance as its manufacturer-side literature (Bicom UK LLP, naming REGUMED Medizintechnik as originator of the BICOM method) and a Swiss insurer's patient page describe it, with the MORA history as German medical and Swiss press sources report it. Sections 1-3 describe the method; section 4 is the psychotherapist's own work with a client who uses or is considering it. The psychotherapist does not perform, sell, prescribe or recommend bioresonance.

What it is. Bioresonance is an electronic "energy" or "information" method used for both testing and treatment. Its proponents hold that every organ and cell emits characteristic electromagnetic frequencies, that illness arises when these are disturbed, and that a device can detect the disturbed ("disharmonic") oscillations and return them to the body in altered (inverted) form so that the body's self-regulation is restored [source: Helsana]. The BICOM literature frames this as "information": specific electromagnetic wave patterns are said to act as information carriers, and the device is said to remove "disturbing or stressful information" and find "hidden causes" [source: Bicom UK page]. These are the method's own concepts, attributed here, not established physiology.

Origins. The physician Franz Morell and the electronics engineer Erich Rasche presented the method in 1977 as "MORA therapy" (from their surnames) [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003, which spells the second name "Raschke"; Helsana; Blick]. Swiss press reporting states that Hans Brüggemann, who worked with them, developed the BICOM device and coined the term "Bioresonanz" in 1987, that the BICOM is produced by the German firm Regumed, and that the founders were Scientologists whose first device drew on Scientology's E-Meter; the Scientology spokesperson quoted said the church takes no position on bioresonance [source: Blick 2020] [uncertain: press report, not confirmed in manufacturer sources].

Core idea of how change happens (as proponents state it). Recording the client's "own information" through applicators, modulating it (amplifying, weakening or inverting it) and feeding it back is said to reactivate self-regulation; substances ("endogenous and exogenous", "native" or "digitised") are also used in the method [source: Bicom UK page]. Proponents present it as gentle and without side effects [source: Bicom UK page], while an insurer's page lists transient "regulatory reactions" and a possible "initial worsening" [source: Helsana].

Status in one line each.

Evidence status: no scientific evidence that it has any effect; disease-related electromagnetic oscillations have not been demonstrated, and controlled allergy tests found it unable to identify allergens [source: Helsana; Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003].
Regulatory status: device registration or CE marking is not evidence of efficacy, and diagnosis or treatment claims are restricted or have been acted on by regulators in the UK, Australia and the USA (details in section 2) [source: ASA guidance; TGA; Quackwatch].

[source for section: Helsana; Bicom UK page; Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003; Blick 2020; ASA guidance]

2. Framework

2a. The method as its providers describe it

Who practises it. Complementary therapists, naturopaths and some doctors; the manufacturer-side site claims more than 30,000 therapists use BICOM and promotes it to veterinarians and animal naturopaths as well [source: Bicom UK page]. In Switzerland, supplementary insurance may reimburse sessions given by therapists with EMR certification [source: Helsana]. The formal training and certification route run by the manufacturer is not documented in the sources cited [uncertain].
What a client experiences. The therapist attaches electrodes to parts of the body (for example hands, feet or acupuncture points), or the client holds electrodes or lies on a plate, depending on the device. The device is said to record the body's frequencies, separate harmonic from disharmonic ones, reverse the disharmonic ones and send them back. Clients may notice warmth, light sweating, headache or tingling ("regulatory reactions"), and some are told to expect an "initial worsening" of symptoms. The therapist draws up an individual plan setting the number of sessions and the cost [source: Helsana].
Uses claimed by providers. A wide range of acute and chronic complaints, especially allergies and food "intolerances", skin, digestive and sleep problems, pain, "detoxification", smoking cessation and weight loss; in children, mainly allergies and eczema [source: Helsana]. Some sellers have advertised it for serious infections, cancer, Crohn's disease, alcohol addiction and depression; regulators ruled these claims unsubstantiated (see Harm account) [source: ASA guidance; Nightingale Collaboration].
Providers' own cautions. The insurer's page advises avoiding treatment with a pacemaker, caution with epilepsy and with severe mental illness (false hope, possible worsening), telling the practitioner about pregnancy, and seeing a doctor if symptoms persist or worsen; it states that bioresonance does not replace medical treatment or diagnostic tests [source: Helsana].
Regulation and licensing by jurisdiction.
- UK: advertising claims to diagnose or treat require a suitable conformity marking for the device and robust clinical evidence; CE marking alone is not evidence of efficacy; marketers must not discourage essential treatment [source: ASA guidance]. Device questions sit with the MHRA [source: ASA guidance; Nightingale Collaboration].
- Australia: the BICOM Australia "Biofeedback system" entry (ARTG 138918) is recorded as cancelled under s 41GL(d) [source: TGA]. From May 2019 the TGA ran a sector-wide compliance activity on bioresonance advertising: it reported a high rate of non-compliance, treated claims that the devices detect and treat illness (including cancers, anxiety, ADHD, autism and addictions) as prohibited or restricted representations, and said it was investigating the scientific credibility of their diagnostic and therapeutic use; it tells advertisers not to advertise a device that is not on the ARTG [source: TGA bioresonance advertising compliance page]. A 2020 account reports that all bioresonance devices had left the register by May 2020 after that review [source: Ernst blog guest post] [uncertain: secondary, unverified]. The national allergy body asked the TGA in 2019 to reconsider BICOM's listing because of risk to people with severe allergy [source: ASCIA letter].
- USA: a consumer-protection source states that devices using skin-resistance measurement to diagnose or treat disease are Class III (premarket approval) devices and that none is lawfully marketed for those purposes; biofeedback clearance does not cover other uses [source: Quackwatch] [uncertain: secondary]. A German medical journal states the method has not been officially approved as a treatment in the USA since 1996 [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003] [uncertain: secondary].
- Germany: statutory health insurers do not reimburse it because efficacy is not demonstrated [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003].
- Switzerland: some supplementary insurers reimburse it [source: Helsana; Blick 2020]; the expert commission of the Swiss allergy society has called it diagnostic and therapeutic nonsense [source: Blick 2020].

2b. The psychotherapist's framework alongside it [synthesis]

There is no published protocol for psychotherapists working alongside bioresonance; the phases below are the clinician's own structure, built from the psychotherapist's own tasks alongside the method [synthesis].

Ask and record (intake, then at reviews): goal is an accurate, non-judgemental record of what device, by whom, for what, at what cost, and what results the client was given. Move on once the facts are known.
Understand (usually 1-2 sessions, woven into ordinary therapy): goal is the client's explanatory model, hopes and what draws them. Move on when the client feels understood and you know what is at stake.
Screen risk (same session as 1, repeated whenever new "results" or plans appear): goal is to spot delayed medical care, allergy danger, children, pregnancy, implanted devices, restrictive diets, financial or group pressure. Any red flag takes priority over all other phases.
Support an informed decision (as long as needed): goal is a decision made by the client on their own values, with accurate information from the right professionals.
Coordinate (with consent): goal is that the client's doctor, allergist or pharmacist knows what is being used and what was "found".
Work on the psychological drivers where present (health anxiety, somatic symptom distress, environmental intolerance; cross-ref Domain II), and on harm after the fact (Harm account).
Review and document: revisit at natural review points; record decisions, advice given and referrals.

Format: ordinary individual sessions; no extra sessions are needed unless risk or a health-anxiety formulation calls for them [synthesis].

3. Guiding principles

All principles below are the psychotherapist's stance [synthesis] unless a source is given.

Curiosity before correction. Ask what bioresonance means to the client before saying anything about it. Practical meaning: your first three questions are open questions.
Attribute, do not adjudicate the worldview. Describe "frequencies", "information" and "self-regulation" as the method holds them; state the evidence and regulatory status plainly when relevant. Practical meaning: "The practitioners say…; the regulators and medical bodies say…".
Never perform, sell, prescribe or recommend. Practical meaning: no device in your room, no referrals to practitioners, no opinions on sessions, plans or products.
Medical questions go to medical professionals. Practical meaning: "results" (allergies, intolerances, "toxins", infections) are taken to the client's doctor or allergist; you never interpret them.
Never advise on medicines. Practical meaning: any thought of stopping, reducing or swapping a medicine, inhaler or adrenaline auto-injector goes straight to the prescriber or pharmacist.
Safety outranks rapport. The method's own providers say it does not replace medical diagnosis or treatment [source: Helsana]. Practical meaning: if medical care is being delayed, you say so clearly in the same session.
Autonomy with information. Adults may choose complementary methods; your job is that the choice is informed and free. Practical meaning: no pressure in either direction.
Children are different. Parents' choices for a child are subject to safeguarding duties. Practical meaning: ask specifically whether children are being tested or treated.
Watch the money and the group. Practical meaning: ask what has been spent and who else is involved.
No conflicts of interest. Practical meaning: you have no financial or personal tie to any provider, device or product, and you disclose and manage any that arise.
Document neutrally. Practical meaning: record what the client uses, what was discussed, risks identified and referrals, in plain descriptive language.

4. Intervention inventory

These are the psychotherapist's own interventions alongside a client's use of bioresonance. No published psychotherapy protocol for bioresonance exists, so steps and wording are [synthesis] unless a source is given. Example language is illustrative. Risk flags drawn from the sources are cited inside each item.

4.1 Routine, non-judgemental inquiry and recording

Purpose / when: At intake and at reviews, and whenever a client mentions "frequencies", "scans", "energy testing", an allergy or intolerance test from a natural-health practice, or a "detox". Clients rarely volunteer complementary use unless asked neutrally [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Ask about complementary and alternative methods in the same list as medicines and supplements. (2) If bioresonance comes up, ask: the device or brand name if known (MORA, BICOM or other), who provides it and their profession, what it is being used for, whether it was used for testing, treatment or both, what results the client was given, the plan (number of sessions, products), the costs so far and committed, and whether their doctor knows. (3) Record in neutral, descriptive terms ("client attends bioresonance sessions at a natural-health practice for skin and gut symptoms; told she has several food intolerances; GP not yet informed"). (4) Note any items for the risk screen (4.6).
Example language (illustrative): "Many people I see use things alongside their medical care, like supplements, energy treatments or special tests. Is there anything like that for you?" / "What did the practitioner tell you the test showed?" / "Roughly what has it cost so far, and what are you signed up for?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: The client answers openly and adds detail later without being asked. Watch for embarrassment or defensiveness (signal of expected judgement), for "results" that name diseases, infections, parasites or "toxins", and for advice to change diet, medicines or vaccination. Working: you have a factual picture you could pass on to the doctor with consent.

4.2 Exploring meaning, hopes, expectations and the explanatory model

Purpose / when: After 4.1, when the client is invested in the method or the decision matters. Understanding why it appeals (control, hope, gentleness, a feeling of being listened to, distrust of medicine, identity, a community of users) guides the rest of the work [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Ask what led them to it and what they hope it will do. (2) Ask how they understand their problem: what causes it and what would fix it (explanatory model). The method's own model is that disturbed frequencies cause illness and that the device restores self-regulation [source: Helsana]; let the client describe their version in their own words. (3) Ask what medical care has felt like for them. (4) Ask what it would mean if the method did not work, and what they would do then. (5) Reflect values and needs behind the choice ("wanting to be treated as a whole person", "wanting to avoid drugs"). (6) Note gaps between hopes and what providers themselves say (for example that it does not replace diagnosis or treatment [source: Helsana]).
Example language (illustrative): "What drew you to bioresonance in particular?" / "In your own words, what do you think is going on in your body, and how is this meant to help?" / "If after a few months nothing had changed, what would that mean to you?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for all-or-nothing hope ("this is my last chance"), anger or shame about medicine, and for the method carrying meaning beyond health (belonging, identity, a relationship with the practitioner). Working: the client can name their hopes and their limits, and talks about medical and complementary care in the same conversation.

4.3 Making sense of bioresonance "test results"

Purpose / when: When the client has been given findings from a bioresonance test (allergies, food intolerances, "toxins", infections, "blockages") and is acting on them. Controlled tests found bioresonance unable to identify allergens that standard prick tests detected [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003], and the ASA states it has seen no evidence that such devices can diagnose existing or future conditions [source: ASA guidance].
Steps: (1) Ask what was found and what they have been told to do about it. (2) Ask what changes they have already made (foods removed, products bought, medicines changed, appointments cancelled). (3) Without interpreting the results yourself, say plainly that these findings need to go to their doctor or an allergist for proper testing before anything else changes. (4) Offer to help them prepare for that appointment (list of symptoms, the "results", questions). (5) If foods are being cut out, apply the eating-disorder and nutrition screen in 4.6. (6) If a known severe allergy is now described as "cleared" or "erased", treat as urgent (4.6).
Example language (illustrative): "I'm not the right person to judge what the test means, but I'd like your doctor to see it before you change anything else. Would you be willing to take it to them?" / "Has anyone suggested you no longer need your allergy pen or to avoid that food?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for growing lists of forbidden foods, fear of eating, products bought to address "results", and any suggestion that an allergy is cured. Working: the client books and attends a medical review and brings back what was said.

4.4 Supporting an informed, values-based decision without coercion

Purpose / when: When the client is deciding whether to start, continue, extend or stop bioresonance, or is weighing it against medical care. No published decision aid specific to bioresonance is known [uncertain]; use a general shared-decision structure [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Clarify the decision in one sentence. (2) List the options, including combining with medical care and doing nothing more. (3) Help the client gather accurate information from appropriate sources: their doctor or specialist for the medical side; the method's own providers for what the sessions involve and cost; the regulators' published positions for evidence and claims (for example the ASA position that CE marking is not evidence of efficacy [source: ASA guidance], and the Swiss insurer's statement that there is no scientific evidence of effect [source: Helsana]). (4) Elicit what matters most to them (safety, cost, control, gentleness, time). (5) Ask what they would need to see, and by when, to judge it was or was not helping, written down by the client. (6) State your own position only on safety and scope ("I'd be worried if this delayed seeing your doctor"), not on the method's merits beyond the published facts. (7) Respect the decision; revisit at the agreed time.
Example language (illustrative): "It's your decision. My part is making sure you have the full picture and that nothing important is missed medically." / "What would tell you, in three months' time, that this has or hasn't been worth it?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for pressure from the practitioner, family or group, sunk-cost thinking, and for you pushing (the client goes quiet or agrees too quickly). Working: the client can state the options, what they value and a review point, and the decision feels like theirs.

4.5 Coordinating with the client's doctor, allergist or pharmacist

Purpose / when: Whenever bioresonance is used for a medical problem, results have led to diet or medicine changes, the client is pregnant, has a pacemaker or other implanted device, or has epilepsy (conditions the method's own providers flag [source: Helsana]), or any risk in 4.6 is present.
Steps: (1) Explain why sharing helps (safety, joined-up care). (2) Obtain explicit, specific consent: what will be shared, with whom, and how. (3) Prefer the client telling their doctor themselves, with your support; offer a short letter if wanted. (4) In a letter, describe only facts: the method, the provider type, what the client was told, changes made, your concerns; no judgement of the practitioner. (5) Route every medicine question to the prescriber or pharmacist. (6) Record consent and what was shared. (7) Without consent, share only where law or safeguarding requires (4.6, 4.9).
Example language (illustrative): "Would it be all right if your GP knew about the bioresonance sessions and the food list you were given? You could tell them, or I could write a short note with you." / "That's a question for your pharmacist, not me. Shall we write it down for them?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for fear of being judged by the doctor, and for an unseen prescriber learning late that medicines were changed. Working: the doctor knows; the client reports a respectful conversation; changes to medicines are made only by the prescriber.

4.6 Risk recognition and response

Purpose / when: At first mention and whenever plans or "results" change. The documented harms of bioresonance are indirect: delayed or abandoned medical care, false reassurance in serious allergy, discouraged vaccination, money lost, and harmful products sold alongside (see Harm account).
Steps (screen each, then act):
1. Delayed or stopped medical care. Is the method being used instead of seeing a doctor, instead of recommended investigations or treatment, or for a serious or progressive illness (cancer, infection, inflammatory bowel disease)? Regulators have ruled against claims to treat Ebola, cancer, Crohn's disease and COVID-19 [source: Nightingale Collaboration; ASA guidance; ASA Grant ruling]. Response: say clearly that you are concerned, encourage prompt medical review, offer coordination (4.5), and record it.
2. Severe allergy. Has a food or insect allergy been declared "cleared", or is the client dropping avoidance, an adrenaline auto-injector or emergency plan? Allergy specialists warn that people at risk of anaphylaxis may be endangered if they rely on BICOM [source: ASCIA letter], and patients may forgo life-saving emergency medication [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003]. Response: urgent contact with their doctor or allergist the same day; never advise on the medicine yourself.
3. Vaccination. Has the client been told a device or "nosode" replaces vaccination? The ASA ruled such claims socially irresponsible [source: ASA Grant ruling]. Response: refer the question to their doctor or nurse; for children see 4.9.
4. Physical cautions the providers themselves list. Pacemaker, epilepsy, pregnancy, severe mental illness [source: Helsana]. Response: ensure the client's doctor knows; for severe mental illness, attend to false hope and destabilisation in your own work.
5. Restrictive eating. Long lists of "intolerances" can drive restriction; screen for eating-disorder and orthorexic patterns (preoccupation with "pure" or "safe" foods, weight loss, fear foods, rigid rules) and refer to the doctor or an eating-disorder service as clinical pathways require [synthesis].
6. Money and commerce. Packages, products, home devices or courses; pressure to buy (4.10).
7. Group pressure. A practitioner or community discouraging medical care or contact with critics (4.10).
Example language (illustrative): "I respect that this matters to you. I'm also worried, because the lump hasn't been looked at by a doctor yet. Can we talk about getting that done this week, whatever else you decide?" / "Your son's nut allergy is serious. Before anything changes, his allergist needs to know about the test result."
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for minimising ("it's only a small change"), secrecy, and an escalating plan. Working: risks are named, the medical team is involved, and the client keeps the safety measures in place while exploring options.

4.7 Responding to "regulatory reactions" and "initial worsening"

Purpose / when: When a client describes new or worse symptoms after sessions and has been told this is a healing reaction. Providers describe transient "regulatory reactions" and an "initial worsening", while advising that a doctor be seen if symptoms persist or worsen [source: Helsana].
Steps: (1) Ask what the symptoms are, since when, and how they are changing. (2) Ask what explanation they were given. (3) Without judging the explanation, apply the providers' own advice and ordinary safety sense: persistent, worsening or alarming symptoms need medical assessment. (4) If the symptoms are anxiety-driven (scanning, catastrophising), note this for 4.8, but medical review comes first when symptoms are new.
Example language (illustrative): "Whatever the reason for it, a rash that keeps spreading needs a doctor to look at it. Even the practitioners say that."
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for "worsening means it's working" reasoning that keeps the client away from care. Working: new symptoms are assessed medically.

4.8 Health anxiety, somatic symptom presentations and environmental intolerance (cross-ref Domain II)

Purpose / when: When bioresonance use sits within persistent health worry, multiple unexplained bodily symptoms, or beliefs about sensitivity to foods, chemicals or electromagnetic fields. Repeated testing that "finds" many problems can feed worry and avoidance [synthesis].
Steps: Use the established psychological approaches set out in Domain II (cognitive-behavioural formulation of health anxiety and somatic symptom distress: symptom monitoring, attention and threat appraisal, reassurance-seeking and checking, avoidance and safety behaviours, behavioural experiments, graded re-engagement). Specific to bioresonance [synthesis]: (1) map repeated scans or tests as possible reassurance-seeking or checking; (2) map food or environmental avoidance driven by test "findings" as safety behaviours, but only after medical review has excluded real allergy; (3) explore what each test result did to anxiety in the short and long term; (4) collaborate rather than debunk.
Example language (illustrative): "After each scan, how did your worry change that day, and a week later?" / "It sounds like the list of things to avoid keeps growing. What has that done to your life?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for the client experiencing the formulation as dismissal of their symptoms. Never treat avoidance of a food as a safety behaviour until an allergist has assessed it. Working: less checking and avoidance, better function, symptoms discussed with the doctor.

4.9 Children: consent, assent and safeguarding

Purpose / when: When a child is being tested or treated, or a parent's decisions affect a child. Providers market bioresonance for children's allergies, intolerances and infant eczema, while advising that a paediatrician be consulted first [source: Helsana]; specialists warn of danger to people with severe allergy [source: ASCIA letter].
Steps: (1) Ask specifically about children in the household. (2) Ask what the child has been told and whether they agree (assent), in age-appropriate terms. (3) Screen for: medical care, vaccination or emergency allergy treatment being withheld; restrictive diets affecting growth; distress caused to the child. (4) Encourage the parent to involve the child's doctor (4.5). (5) If a child is at risk of significant harm through deprivation of medical care, nutrition or emergency treatment, follow your local safeguarding procedures and consult your safeguarding lead [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Is your daughter having sessions too? What does her doctor think of the diet changes?" / "Because this is about a child's safety, I need to talk with you about involving her paediatrician."
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for weight faltering, missed appointments, a removed adrenaline auto-injector. Working: the child's doctor is involved and the child's medical care continues.

4.10 Financial exploitation, commercial and group pressure

Purpose / when: When costs are high or rising, products are sold with sessions, home devices are bought, or a community or practitioner shapes the client's decisions. Cases in this field include high-priced cancer packages and home-use devices sold with medical claims [source: Washington AG; ASA Grant ruling]; Swiss reporting linked several device firms' founders or staff to Scientology, which the church and some firms dispute [source: Blick 2020].
Steps: (1) Ask what has been spent, what is committed, and whether contracts or prepayments exist. (2) Ask who benefits from the purchases. (3) Ask whether doubts are welcome in the community, and whether contact with family or doctors has been discouraged. (4) Help the client step back: cooling-off periods, a trusted person to consult, written terms. (5) Point to consumer-protection routes (4.11) if they feel misled. (6) If high-control dynamics are present, see the relevant group-dynamics entries.
Example language (illustrative): "Can we add up together what this has cost so far?" / "How does the practitioner respond when you ask questions or have doubts?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for debt, secrecy from family, escalating packages and isolation. Working: the client makes spending decisions slowly and openly.

4.11 Reporting routes

Purpose / when: When a client was given misleading health claims, sold a device with unlawful claims, harmed, or when a child is at risk. Reporting is the client's choice unless law or safeguarding requires otherwise [synthesis].
Steps: Help the client identify the right body:
- UK: advertising claims to the Advertising Standards Authority; device questions to the MHRA; claims about cancer or consumer fraud to Trading Standards (the ASA has referred bioresonance cancer claims there) [source: ASA guidance; Nightingale Collaboration]; how the MHRA's adverse-incident reporting applies to this device type is [uncertain].
- Australia: advertising and device complaints to the TGA, which also takes consumer questions about bioresonance testing or treatment [source: TGA; TGA bioresonance advertising compliance page].
- USA: the FTC and the state Attorney General for deceptive health claims [source: ConsumerAffairs; Washington AG]; the FDA for unapproved devices [source: Quackwatch] [uncertain: secondary].
- Professional boards or registers where the practitioner is a licensed health professional (US boards have disciplined practitioners for electrodermal devices) [source: Quackwatch].
- Safeguarding services for children or adults at risk [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "If you feel you were misled, there are organisations whose job is exactly this. Would it help to look at how to make a complaint?"
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for shame or fear of the practitioner. Working: the client feels able to act, or has decided not to, without pressure.

4.12 The therapist's own boundaries and conflicts of interest

Purpose / when: Always; especially if you work in a mixed complementary practice or a colleague offers bioresonance. No ethics-code wording is cited; the points below are [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Keep devices and products out of your therapy work. (2) Do not refer to, receive referrals tied to, or benefit financially from any provider. (3) Do not give opinions on practitioners' competence; stick to published facts and safety. (4) If a colleague uses bioresonance to make claims about mental health (for example addiction, insomnia or depression, claims the ASA has ruled against [source: ASA guidance]), raise it through supervision and professional channels.
Example language (illustrative): "I don't offer or recommend it myself, and I don't have any connection to the people who do. I'm interested in what it means for you."
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for being drawn into endorsing or attacking a practitioner. Working: the client sees you as neutral and safe to talk to.

4.13 Documentation and review

Purpose / when: Every session where bioresonance is discussed [synthesis].
Steps: Record the method and use; client's goals and explanatory model in their words; risks screened and responses; information given and its source; consent and coordination; decisions and review dates. Revisit at each review point and when anything changes.
Example language (illustrative): "I'll note that we talked about the sessions and that you're seeing your GP about the test, so we can come back to it next month."
What to watch for / how you know it's working: Watch for judgemental wording in notes. Working: another clinician could pick up the record and know what is being used, what the risks are and what was agreed.

5. Handling problems

The sources address the method and its regulation, not psychotherapy alongside it; all responses below are [synthesis] unless a source is given.

The client expects you to approve or condemn the method. Name your role: you neither offer nor oppose it; you care about their safety and choices. Give published facts only when asked or when safety requires (for example the ASA position that a CE mark is not evidence of efficacy [source: ASA guidance]).
The client feels judged and withdraws. Repair openly: "I think I came across as dismissing something important to you. That wasn't my aim." Return to 4.2.
The client asks you to interpret a scan, list or "frequency" result. Decline the interpretation, keep the curiosity, and route to their doctor (4.3).
Medical care is being delayed and the client will not see a doctor. State your concern plainly once, record it, keep the door open, ask what would make seeing a doctor possible (fear, past experience, cost), and offer practical help. If capacity is in doubt or a child or adult at risk is involved, follow safeguarding procedures (4.9).
A severe allergy has been declared "cured". Treat as urgent: same-day contact with the doctor or allergist; do not advise on the medicine [source: ASCIA letter; Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003].
Non-adherence to medical treatment framed as "letting the body self-regulate". Explore the meaning (fear of side effects, wish for control), validate the value, and bring the question to the prescriber with consent (4.5). Never advise on stopping or restarting.
Symptoms worsen and the client is told it is "initial worsening". Use the providers' own advice that persistent or worsening symptoms need a doctor [source: Helsana] (4.7).
Escalating testing, products and avoidance (health anxiety). Shift to a Domain II formulation (4.8) once medical review is done.
Money worries, debt or pressure to buy more. 4.10; involve a trusted person; consider consumer-protection routes (4.11).
Family conflict. One partner uses it, the other is alarmed, or adult children disagree. Help each name their fears and values; keep the focus on shared goals (safety, the relationship), not on the method's truth.
The client is a practitioner or seller of bioresonance. Keep the work on their therapeutic goals; do not buy, endorse or advertise; if they make medical claims to you about clients, consider whether anyone is at risk.
Your own reaction (irritation, rescuing, or wishing to please). Take it to supervision; notice whether you are trying to win an argument.
The client has been harmed or misled (money, health, delayed diagnosis). Move to the Harm account section below: grief, regret, shame and anger, practical redress.
Modality-specific: the device sits in a high-control setting. Swiss reporting describes founders and some firms linked to Scientology [source: Blick 2020]. Do not assume group membership; ask about pressure and freedom to doubt (4.10).

Harm account

What was actually done

Cancer "BioResonance" package, USA, 2001-2002. David L. Walker and DLW Consulting promoted a "CWAT-Treatment: BioResonance Therapy" for cancer online and in presentations across the US. It combined an oral herbal mixture, coffee enemas, dietary supplements and an electrical "bio-resonance oscillator" or "molecular enhancer" used daily at home. The promotion claimed a 95% success rate and that conventional treatment such as surgery and chemotherapy could be unnecessary; consumers paid between about $2,400 and $5,200. The Washington Attorney General sued in October 2001, finding far fewer patients and far lower survival than claimed; the FTC filed a federal case in March 2002; settlements in October 2002 permanently barred unsubstantiated health claims and required $229,000 in consumer restitution in Washington. An oncologist testified that the mixtures could harm cancer patients [source: Washington AG; ConsumerAffairs].
BICOM claims for Ebola and cancer, UK, 2014-2015. Bicom UK LLP websites suggested bioresonance could help people with Ebola, citing other haemorrhagic viruses. The ASA upheld all complaints in January 2015 (18 code breaches), barred the claims and any discouragement of essential care, referred cancer claims to Trading Standards and asked the MHRA to check the device was being used as certified [source: Nightingale Collaboration].
Mental-health and other disease claims, UK, 2015-2019. The ASA upheld complaints against a clinic claiming bioresonance treated alcohol addiction, insomnia and depression without qualified staff or medical supervision (2015); against a clinic claiming to diagnose a long list of conditions (2018); and against claims including treatment of Crohn's disease (2019) [source: ASA guidance].
Home-use "resonator" sold as replacing COVID-19 vaccination, UK, 2021. A battery-powered "bio-resonance machine" was advertised by Anthony Grant (t/a Resonator.uk) as destroying COVID-19 in the body, treating Long Covid and being a safer alternative to vaccination. It had no medical device marking. The ASA ruled the ads misleading, discouraging essential treatment and socially irresponsible [source: ASA Grant ruling; ASA guidance].
Allergy "testing and treatment". BICOM was promoted in Australia to test and treat allergies including food allergy; the national allergy body asked the TGA in 2019 to reconsider its listing [source: ASCIA letter]. In German testing, bioresonance identified no correct allergen in volunteers with confirmed prick-test allergies [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003]. The BICOM Australia system's register entry was later cancelled [source: TGA].
"Nosodes" made with bioresonance sold with COVID-19 claims, Switzerland, 2020. A shop's employee claimed the products could heal COVID-19 patients; after press inquiry the seller said they could not [source: Blick 2020].
Infant death, Australia. A consumer-protection site reports that in 2003 an Australian naturopath who used a MORA device was convicted of manslaughter after an infant died following his claim to have cured the child's heart defect [source: Quackwatch] [uncertain: secondary, unverified].

How it caused harm

False reassurance and delayed or abandoned treatment. The core mechanism: a device "finding" or "clearing" disease leads people to skip, delay or stop effective diagnosis and treatment. Regulators repeatedly ruled that ads discouraged essential treatment [source: ASA guidance; ASA Grant ruling]. In the infant case reported above, a claimed cure of a heart defect preceded death [source: Quackwatch] [uncertain: secondary, unverified].
Allergy danger. People who believe an allergy has been "erased" may stop avoiding allergens and give up emergency medication that can be life-saving; those at risk of anaphylaxis are most endangered [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003; ASCIA letter].
Discouraged vaccination and public-health harm. Presenting a device as a vaccine alternative risked leaving individuals and the population less protected [source: ASA Grant ruling].
Harmful accompanying regimens. Bioresonance has been sold inside packages with oral mixtures and enemas that an oncologist said could harm cancer patients [source: ConsumerAffairs; Washington AG].
Financial loss and lost hope. The Washington Attorney General described vulnerable people "desperately seeking a cure" losing money and hope [source: Washington AG]. Swiss insurers' reimbursements are estimated in the millions of francs [source: Blick 2020].
False diagnoses. Unsupported diagnoses (allergies, intolerances, conditions) can lead to unnecessary diets, products and worry [source: ASA guidance] [synthesis for the psychological consequences].
Device cautions. The method's providers themselves advise avoiding treatment with a pacemaker and caution in epilepsy, pregnancy and severe mental illness [source: Helsana].
Who is most at risk: people with cancer or other serious illness, people with severe allergy and parents of allergic children, people with infections during outbreaks, people with health anxiety or multiple unexplained symptoms, and those with limited money [source: Washington AG; ASCIA letter; ASA guidance] [synthesis for the last two groups].

Recognising it today

Phrases and rationales: devices that "read frequencies" from cells; "harmonic" and "disharmonic" oscillations; inverting and returning the body's own "information"; "finding hidden causes"; "gentle, no side effects"; "regulatory reactions" and "initial worsening"; "detox"; allergy and intolerance "testing" [source: Helsana; Bicom UK page].
Borrowed authority: CE marks, device classes or register listings presented as proof that it works; the ASA states that a CE mark is not evidence of efficacy, and the Australian listing was as a "biofeedback" device [source: ASA guidance; TGA register entry].
Related and rebranded devices: MORA, BICOM and Vega devices, and other electrodermal or "scanner" systems that regulators have acted against [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003; ASCIA letter; Quackwatch]; home-use "resonators"; remedies or "nosodes" said to be made with bioresonance [source: ASA Grant ruling; Blick 2020].
Red flags in a colleague's or service's practice: claims to diagnose or treat cancer, infections, allergies or mental disorders (addiction, depression, insomnia) with the device [source: ASA guidance]; advice to stop medicines, avoid doctors or skip vaccination; testimonials as evidence; prepaid packages and product sales; device "scans" offered inside psychotherapy [synthesis].
How legitimate biofeedback differs: clinical biofeedback signals a real, measured physiological state (heart rate, muscle tension) so the person can learn voluntary control, the definition the FDA applies; devices that only claim to read and correct "frequencies" do not meet it [source: Quackwatch, describing FDA's biofeedback regulation].

What to do instead and how to help those harmed

Safer alternatives: medical assessment for physical symptoms; allergist assessment with validated testing (such as skin-prick testing, the comparison used in the German studies) for suspected allergy [source: Rheinisches Ärzteblatt 2003]; evidence-based psychological treatment for stress, anxiety, insomnia and addiction; clinical biofeedback delivered as such where indicated [synthesis].
Assessment of affected clients [synthesis]: what was done, over how long and at what cost; current medical status and whether care is now in place; grief, regret, self-blame and anger ("I should have known"); shame towards doctors or family; trust in all helpers, including you; financial strain; for bereaved relatives, complicated grief and family conflict about the choices made.
Treatment considerations [synthesis]: validate that the method was marketed persuasively and that seeking hope is human; work on self-blame and regret with compassion-focused and grief approaches; rebuild a working relationship with medical care step by step; address health anxiety where present (Domain II); support practical redress (complaints, refunds) as the client chooses.
Ethical duties [synthesis]: stay within competence; do not give medical advice; avoid conflicts of interest; obtain consent for sharing; keep accurate records; use supervision.
Reporting and legal duties: advertising and consumer regulators (ASA, Trading Standards; TGA; FTC and state Attorneys General) and device regulators (MHRA; TGA; FDA) as in 4.11 [source: ASA guidance; Nightingale Collaboration; TGA; ConsumerAffairs; Quackwatch]; professional boards where the practitioner is a licensed health professional [source: Quackwatch]; safeguarding services where a child or adult at risk is deprived of medical care, emergency allergy treatment, vaccination or adequate nutrition [synthesis].

Sources

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