Renowned physician and scientist Lissa Rankin, in her TED talk, talked about what she has learned over the years of research on the placebo effect.
She seriously believes that our thoughts affect our physiology. And that with the help of the power of thought alone, we are able to recover from any disease. Rankin found concrete evidence that our bodies have their own innate self-care and repair system.
She conducted a study with 3,500 people diagnosed with an incurable disease: cancer , HIV , cardiovascular disease , etc. All of them had nothing to lose. All of them mentally already said goodbye to life.
Lissa started giving them placebo pills. Only the volunteers did not know this: they thought they were being given a new , ultra-effective drug for their disease. And many of them managed to recover!
In this lecture, she talks about Mr. Wright , who, with the help of a placebo pill, cut the size of his cancerous tumor in half!
It only decreased because he himself believed that it should decrease!
Can people heal themselves with the help of consciousness? Here is a video that proves they can:
And here are the main thoughts from her 18-minute lecture.
Can the mind heal the body? And if so , is there any evidence that could convince skeptical doctors like me?
I researched placebo for the last years of my scientific career. And now I am sure that , before me , studies over the past 50 years have proven that the mind can really heal the body .
The placebo effect is a thorn in the side of medical practice. This is an unpleasant truth that can deprive doctors of the opportunity to produce more and more new drugs , to try more and more new methods of treatment.
But I think placebo efficacy is good news. For patients , not for doctors , of course.
Because this is iron proof that , , is hidden inside each body . Perhaps God gave it to us !
If you find it hard to believe , you can study one of the 3500 stories of how people themselves , without medical help , got rid of "incurable" diseases. We are talking about medical facts , not beautiful journalistic stories.
Did the fourth stage of cancer disappear without treatment? HIV-positive patients become HIV-negative ? Heart , kidney failure , diabetes , hypertension , thyroid disease , autoimmune disease - it all disappeared!
An excellent example from the medical literature is the case of Mr. Wright , studied in 1957.
He had an advanced form of lymphosarcoma. The patient's affairs were not going very well , he had little time left. He had orange-sized tumors in his armpits , on his neck , in his chest and abdomen. The liver and spleen were enlarged , 2 liters of turbid liquid were accumulated in the lungs every day. They needed to be drained so he could breathe.
But Mr. Wright did not lose hope. He learned about the wonderful drug Krebiozen and begged his doctor: "Please give me Krebiozen and everything will be fine." But this medicine could not be prescribed under the research protocol by a doctor who knows that the patient has less than three months to live.
His attending physician, Dr. West, couldn't do it. But Mr. Wright was persistent and did not give up. He continued to beg for medicine until the doctor agreed to prescribe Krebiozen.
He scheduled a dose for Friday next week. Hoping Mr. Wright doesn't make it to Monday . But by the appointed hour, he was on his feet and even walked around the ward. I had to give him medicine.
And after 10 days, Wright's tumors had halved their original size! They melt like snowballs in a hot oven! A couple more weeks passed after the start of taking Krebiosen, they completely disappeared.
Wright danced with joy like a madman and believed that Krebiozen was a miraculous medicine that cured him.
He believed in it for two whole months. Until the full medical report on Krebiosen came out , which stated that the therapeutic effect of this drug was not proven.
Mr. Wright became depressed and the cancer returned. Dr. West decided to cheat and explained to his patient: “That Krebiozen was not cleaned well enough. It was of poor quality. But now we have ultra-pure , concentrated Krebiozen. And that's what you need!"
Wright was then given an injection of pure distilled water. And his tumors were gone again , and the fluid from his lungs was gone!
The patient began to have fun again. All two months until the Medical Association of America screwed things up by issuing a nationwide report that definitely proved that Krebiozen was useless.
Two days after Wright heard the news he died . He died despite the fact that a week before his death he himself controlled his own light aircraft!
Here is another well-known medical case that looks like a fairy tale.
Three girls were born. The birth was attended by a midwife , on Friday the 13th. And she began to assert that all children born on this day are subject to spoilage.
“The first,” she said, “will die before her 16th birthday. The second is under 21. The third - up to 23 years.
And , as it turned out later , the first girl died the day before her 16th birthday , the second - before the age of 21. And the third , knowing what happened to the previous two , the day before her 23rd birthday, she went to the hospital with hyperventilation syndrome and asked the doctors: “Will I survive?”. She was found dead that same night.
These two cases from the medical literature are excellent examples of the placebo effect and its opposite, the nocebo.
When Mr. Wright was cured with distilled water, this is a good example of the placebo effect. You are offered an inert therapy - and it somehow works , although no one can explain it.
The nocebo effect is the opposite. These three girls who were "jinxed" are a prime example of this. When the mind believes that something bad can happen , it becomes a reality.
Medical publications , journals , the New English Journal of Medicine , the Journal of the Medical Association of America are all full of evidence of the placebo effect.
When people are told they are being given an effective drug , but are given saline injections or regular sugar pills instead , it is often even more effective than actual surgery.
In 18-80% of cases, people recover!
And it's not just that they think they feel better. They actually feel better. It's measurable. With the help of modern devices, we can observe what happens in the bodies of patients who have taken a placebo. Their ulcers heal , the symptoms of intestinal inflammation decrease , the bronchioles expand , and the cells begin to look different under a microscope.
That is happening is easy to confirm!
I love Rogaine's research. There's a group of bald guys , you give them a placebo , and they start growing hair!
Or the opposite effect. You give them a placebo , you call it chemo , and people vomit! Their hair is falling out! This is really happening!
But is it really just the power of positive thinking that leads to these results? No , according to Harvard scientist Ted Kaptchuk.
He argues that the care and concern for patients on the part of healthcare professionals influence even more than positive thinking. In other words , any sick person can recover only if not only he himself believes in the victory over the disease , but also his relatives and his doctor ( let him lie rather than tell the bitter truth). Research also proves this.
What should be a “first aid kit of self-healing”?
To be able to heal ourselves , to be healthy and to function at an optimal level , we need more than just a good diet or exercise. It’s not enough to just get enough sleep , take your vitamins, and see your doctor regularly. This is all good and important , but even more we need a healthy relationship. a healthy work environment , the opportunity to lead a creative life , a healthy spiritual and sexual life.
Internal wick.
In order to be a normal , healthy person you need what I call your "inner wick". This is your inner compass , which always knows in which direction you should move. You must know what you live for and what you should expect in the end.
Wide range of communication.
In addition , your relationships are critical to your health. People with strong social circles are half as likely to suffer from heart disease compared to those who are single.
Married couples are twice as likely to live a long life as unmarried people .
Healing your loneliness is the most important preventive measure you can take for your good health.
This is more effective than quitting smoking or starting to exercise.
Spiritual life.
She matters too. Parishioners of churches live on average 14 years longer than those who do not go to them.
Job.
And she's important. In Japan, people often die on the job. This is called karoshi syndrome. People who don't take vacations are three times more likely to suffer from heart disease.
Your attitude to life.
Happy people live 7-10 years longer than unhappy people. An optimist is 77% less likely to develop heart disease than a pessimist .
How it works? What happens in the brain that changes the body?
The brain communicates with body cells through hormones and neurotransmitters. The brain defines negative thoughts and beliefs as a threat.
You are lonely , pessimistic , something is wrong at work , problematic relationships ... And now , your amygdala is already screaming: “Threat! Threat!". The hypothalamus turns on , then the pituitary gland , which , in turn , communicates with the adrenal glands , which begin to splash out stress hormones - cortisol , noradernaline , adrenaline. Harvard scientist Walter Kenneth calls this the "stress response."
This turns on your sympathetic nervous system , which puts the body into a "fight or flight" state. It protects you when you run from a lion or a tiger.
, in the event of a threat, the same quick stress reaction occurs , which should be turned off when the danger has passed.
Fortunately there is a counterweight. It was described by Herbert Benson of Harvard University. When the danger is gone , the brain fills the body with healing hormones - oxytocin , dopamine , nitric oxide , endorphins. They fill the body and cleanse every cell. And the amazing thing is that this natural self-healing mechanism only kicks in when the nervous system is relaxed.
In a stressful situation, the body has no time for this: it needs to fight or run , and not heal.
When you think about it , you ask yourself: how can I change this balance? One report claims that every day we are faced with approximately 50 stressful situations.
If you are single , depressed , dissatisfied with your job, or have a bad relationship with your partner , this number at least doubles.
So , when you take a pill without knowing that it is a placebo , your body starts the process of relaxation. You are convinced that a new medicine will help you , a positive attitude is right there , and you are properly taken care of by a medical professional ... This relaxes the nervous system. That's when the miraculous self-healing mechanism kicks in.
Research shows that there are several effective ways to relax and get it going:
— Meditation;
— Creative expression of oneself;
- Massage;
- Yoga or tai chi;
- Walk with friends;
- Doing what you love
- Animal play.
In general , all you need to heal yourself is just to relax. Really good to relax. Do you have the courage to accept this truth that your body already knows? Nature can be better than medicine! And this , as you already know , there is evidence! Did you enjoy this lecture? Please share with your friends!
Save so you don't lose