Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1492048
USING RESEARCH AS AN EXPECTANCY It was a jarring and loaded question. Honestly, I had no idea if she would ever be in less pain or if massage would help her manage the pain. But here's what I did know: Research suggests moderate pressure can reduce pain caused by certain conditions. 10 So, I said yes and brief ly explained the research. Her face lit up, and that's when I finally felt a therapeutic connection. I shared Shari's response with Guevarra and he agreed the research I relayed to Shari may have served as an expectancy that promoted a belief that the massage might help. Not wanting to overpromise, I also explained to Shari that there's usually no magic bullet to pain relief and that pain management is not a straight line. There will be ups and downs. Unintentionally, I had stumbled into a category called placebo extenders—a way to lengthen the effect of a placebo. EXTENDING A PLACEBO EFFECT Guevarra explains that a placebo stops working when a person stops believing the placebo will work. 11 By telling Shari to expect ups and downs, she would accept times when the pain was higher as part of a normal process, and, hopefully, would not lose faith in the treatment. As I worked on Shari, I located her pain areas. Using a scale from 1 to 10, I applied pressure and we worked at 4 pressure to reduce the pain to 2 pressure. Shari experienced a reduction in pain while she was on the table and after she got off the table. After she was dressed, I grabbed a massage textbook and showed her the muscles I massaged. The point was not to go on about my massage approach. It was to connect massage with medical knowledge and anatomy, and further demonstrate L i s te n to T h e A B M P Po d c a s t a t a b m p.co m /p o d c a s t s o r w h e reve r yo u a cce s s yo u r favo r i te p o d c a s t s 47 Negative feelings around placebos prevent most people from seeing the value of a positive placebo effect.