If the placebo effect works by tricking the brain, why does it need to be tricked if it’s apparently able to solve the issue on its own?
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Placebos are essentially like when you teach a kid how to ride a bike by running with them and then taking your hands off the bike when they aren’t looking. It’s not the bike riding that’s hard, it’s the confidence to just trust that it’ll work.
Most people don’t know what their own capabilities are, and they generally don’t believe in themselves. People are full of doubt. The brain is capable of doing all the same stuff on its own. Hypnotherapy has been doing the same kind of placebo work for decades.
A placebo tricks you into believing you can do something you are already capable of, but you might not let yourself do it because of self doubt. Essentially a placebo just removes that doubt by tricking you into thinking it’s already happening. So do other things like flow states and hypnosis.
Placebos aren’t magical, but they can do some pretty miraculous stuff. With that said, not everyone responds to placebos as strongly. It’s a spectrum.
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