Are you planning to try energy healing or acupuncture but afraid to do it so? Maybe, the new book by Melanie Warner might help you leap. The book, titled The Magic Feather Effect: The Science of Alternative Medicine and the Surprising Power of Belief, navigate alternative medicine with an open mind and strong bias for the scientific method.
At the first few pages of the book, Warner informs her readers that her goal is not to review all options, but to explore those that have the best potential to be of actual use. Among alternative medicine, she considers energy medicine, chiropractic, acupuncture, and even faith healing, providing scientific studies and historical background. She also explores the nuances of the placebo effect, the South China Morning Post reported.
Going to chapters with interviews, most of them aren't obvious candidates for alternative healing. For instance, Ian has been suffering from fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP), a very rare condition that turns the tissue into bone. The genetic mutation is said to be progressive and incurable, but when she worked with an energy healer named Gloria, Ian reportedly lists 18 positive "body changes" from her treatment.
Another one is Joe Pinella; he was caught in a road accident that broke his neck and left him a quadriplegic for several years. But, he reportedly made a complete recovery after following the advice of a qigong master. Warner listens to their stories, and she looked into their medical files to discover more, without minimizing the benefits they obtained.
Perhaps, one of the biggest questions is that do alternative medicines work? According to Warner, the answer is yes. However, it's important to note that they work for a specific set of identified health problems - and mostly for symptoms rather than the disease itself. While they can't cure cancer, they can be a big help in minimizing chronic pain or depression that accompany cancer.
Meanwhile, Henry Beecher's 1955 study of soldiers in World War II titled The Powerful Placebo revealed that 83 percent of civilian trauma victims asked for pain relief as soon as they reached the hospital, while only 32 percent of soldiers did. The findings indicate that soldiers think the hospital is a ticketed safety, while civilians believe the hospital was the beginning of a disaster.
Warner noted that the successes of conventional medicine are likely due to the placebo effect - a beneficial effect produced by a placebo drug or treatment. The effect cannot be attributed to the properties of the placebo itself, but rather, it is actually due to the patient's belief in that treatment.
Does that mean the pain is all in mind? The answer is, not quite. But, our brain likely interprets our condition and dispatches pain as a signal for our body to make an action. Warner said that we could control how we experience pain, and as cognitive behavior therapists usually say: "Pain is unavoidable, but suffering is optional."
