Placebo

I watched the Horizon documentary on the BBC the other night on Placebos.  Did you see it? If not I thoroughly recommend you watch it. It was just incredible to see how the human brain and body worked together to heal even with no medical intervention. I find the human body the most fascinating thing.  It’s incredible that even with all our technology and research, what we know about the human body is a drop in the ocean.

I’ve done a bit of research on the brain and it’s function over the last couple of years and I wanted to share with you something that I find incredibly helpful for finding balance and health in my life.  I hope it helps you too…

Right in the deepest part of your brain, right at the very core of it is a little something the size of a walnut, yip, a walnut.  It’s called your Limbic System, don’t worry I’m not going to get too technical on you here…

This system is our survival system.  In short, it is our emotional part of our brain. It regulates our emotional wellbeing; memories, motivation, feelings of attachment to others, feelings of pleasure and trauma and it stores memories.  It is here in this system that all of our daily events and thoughts get put in folders; positive or negative. When our limbic system is healthy it is chilled out, it shows very little activity and functions well. This will usually mean, we have a good balance of positive experiences in our life, we have a good ‘bank’ of happy memories, we think positively about situations, we are well connected with ourselves and feel well connected with others. We are generally content and ‘balanced’. On the other hand, an unhealthy limbic system is over active, and when it is over active, it can cause a whole host of problems.  Because the limbic system also regulates sleep, appetite, thirst, behaviour, body temperature, hormone secretion, blood pressure, heart rate, breathing… you can imagine the symptoms that could be caused in the human body should the limbic system become unbalanced.

Every get heart palpitations? Shortness of breath? Feel depressed? So angry you don’t feel like eating? Ever feel hot and bothered? Wake up at 4am for no reason? Maybe you are suffering from an over active limbic system…

An overactive limbic system has a knock on effect to other parts of the brain. 

If the limbic system is overactive messages get ‘locked into’ this part of the brain, meaning that messages literally cannot get out of the limbic system to the next sphere of the brain. Let me try and explain...

 

 

Look at this picture and find the Limbic System.  Right, now look at the Cerebral Cortex (last technical term I promise).  This Cerebral cortex is responsible for logistical thinking, problem solving, planning and rational thought.  If the Limbic system is overactive, messages literally cannot get out into the cerebral cortex.  Meaning when we are emotional we physically cannot make logical thoughts. This makes sense, we have all been in that place where we have been so angry or so upset that we “can’t think straight”.

 

But rather than just one off events, this process can be happening continually. Lack motivation? Have continuous negative thoughts? Have had trauma in your life? Feel unloved? Unsafe? Lonely? This will affect your logical thinking.

What’s this got to do with the documentary? Well, I always thought a placebo was just a psychological thing.  People believe they have been healed so they are. But what this documentary showed was that the brain activity actually changed while taking placebo treatment, even when the patents knew they were taking a placebo! So why?  Why when the patients knew they were not receiving treatment that had a direct impact on their health, did their body show healing?

Well, I’m no neuroscientist but I have a theory.  Each patient involved in the study was given care and attention, their symptoms were listened to, they were being cared for, they were given time, attention and the support of someone else. All issues associated with the limbic system. I believe their limbic system was at peace, balanced and the rest of the brain and body followed suit.

When we are safe and loved, we function as we should. Safety and love is at the heart of humans needs.  When we lack these things, our bodies and brains start giving us warning signs. Perhaps love really is the answer.

So, why not, stop giving yourself a hard time and tell the negative voice to “go jump” today. Congratulate yourself, that despite everything that has happened to you, you are still here fighting.  Surround yourself with people who you honestly love and who genuinely love you.  Be yourself entirely, even if means been vulnerable and losing face. Take lots of deep breaths, chill out and let your body follow suit.

 

Love you.