When I worked in the pharmaceutical industry, the placebo effect was frequently dismissed as ‘all in the mind’ or ‘psychosomatic’. It wasn’t a real improvement, it was believed, merely that people ‘think’ they’re feeling better. This was conventional wisdom at that time and is still a widely held belief today. When a mother kisses a […]
belief
Visualising Illness into Wellness
For several years now, I have been writing about, and teaching, a visualisation strategy of imagining illness turning into wellness. People often ask me how it works. I believe there’s a few things that contribute so I thought I’d briefly sketch out some of them in this blog. 1) Impact on the immune system There’s […]
Does a placebo work if you know it’s a placebo?
The answer to that question is Yes! That’s according to new research led by Ted Kaptchuk, from the Program for Placebo Studies at Beth Israel Medical Center in Boston. It involved 97 patients who had chronic back pain. First, they were given a 15-minute explanation of the placebo effect and how it worked. Then they […]
How to use visualisation to boost your self-love
Lots of people use visualisation. The most popular way is to visualise what you want. Some people picture their ideal house, their ideal car, or a perfect partner who ticks all the boxes, for instance. The idea with this kind of visualisation is to picture what you want, the end result. It’s also useful to […]
Is expensive Nurofen better than cheap Ibuprofen?
Now, not being a marketing person I’m really not in favour of creating different versions of the same thing and charging more for them. But given the recent news headlines, the question many people have is, ‘Is Nurofen better than Ibuprofen?’… even though they are the same thing. I know people who swear that Ibuprofen […]
My Visit from the ‘Other Side’
Have you ever had one of those dreams that felt so real that it was more than a dream? I had one a few weeks ago, shortly before I got up. It was a strange dream. I was with two men. I seemed to be in some kind of military service. We were in a […]
5 Reasons Why You Should Visualize
We’ve all heard of visualization. Many people visualize daily, either to improve their health or their life situation. Some people try it from time to time. My personal experience of visualization is that it is highly powerful for a few different reasons. And it’s good to know why! Maybe that’s just my science training, where […]
Is it the thing, or your belief in the thing?
What would happen if you were to eat something unhealthy but believe it was good for you … or something healthy but believe it was bad for you? It seems that what we believe matters more than we think. Take the large US study that examined the connection between stress and health, for instance. Over […]
The Amazing Power of the Placebo
(Repost) Nearly everyone has experienced a placebo effect! The fact that you take a medicine tells me that on some level you must believe in it or expect it to work, or you believe in the doctor who prescribed it, or even in the improvement you’ve heard about in other people. This belief, or expectation, […]
Having a little faith
I love to imagine that we live in a magical world. Aside from the dark lord element of the Harry Potter story, I think many of us would love to live in a world where magic was happening all around us and that we could use it. I have always enjoyed science fiction and fantasy […]