Re:MDMA-assisted couples therapy investigated in pilot trial
by stx on Wednesday December 09, 2020 @07:04PM
(#25367442)
I drink decaf coffee sometimes and still feel the same boost as drinking caffeinated even though I know is has much less caffeine. I guess its mostly in my head. Although decaf does have some caffeine.
Re:MDMA-assisted couples therapy investigated in pilot trial
by jonplackett on Wednesday December 09, 2020 @07:20PM
(#25367643)
This is all about previous association - your body reacts to the thing because it has worked before.
The same happens when you take a paracetamol, you always feel better as soon as you've taken it, but it's because previously it did really work.
A similar thing happens with cursing - you can put up with more pain while shouting swear words than normal words, it is believed that is because you associate all those swear words with previously painful/traumatic times in your life and you're kind of drawing on those for extra strength.
The brain is strange and marvellous.
I strongly suggest with little evidence that if you took 10 people who had previously taken MDMA and gave them placebos at least 9 would know it if not all 10. A single digit percentage of the control who don't know they got a placebo probably renders it pretty useless.
The BBC did a doco [1] on MDMA as a symptom mitigator for parkinson's disease with a stuntman who had it bad but liked to party at music festivals and saw it completely alleivated the symptoms. They did the two trials thing with him, take a pill (once mdma, another time placebo) and try to perform specific tasks in a gym and grade how well he could do it. The cameras got him saying something like this to the boffins in white coats: "I know this is the real thing because I can do it all easily and THE MUSIC ISN'T LOUD ENOUGH!!!"
[1]https://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2000/ecstasyagony.shtm...