The Nocebo Effect

The opposite of the placebo effect, the nocebo effect occurs when a person’s expectations influence a situation in a negative way. For example, many clients seeking manual therapy come to a therapist with a diagnosis of osteoarthritis and degenerative disc disease.

These conditions are part of the normal aging process and may or may not be actual pain generators. However, clients often connect the pain they feel to the diagnosis and believe the pain means their condition is worsening. As a result of these beliefs clients may actually experience more pain and loss of function.

Research suggests that health care providers must think carefully about how they describe procedures and pathologies to patients and clients. Patients in one study had significantly less pain from a procedure when physicians said, “Most patients tolerate this procedure well” instead of “You’ll experience some pain and burning with this test.”

Manual therapists avoid words or graphic images that trigger fear. Instead, we want to focus on proactive steps to address pain generators.
Massage Therapists, bodyworkers, physical therapists, and athletic coaches read the blog, “Crick in the Neck: From Pathology to Pain” and watch the demonstration video showing an OA decompression technique. Then explore a treasure trove of MAT resources without subscription fees.

erikdalton.com/blog

References
Pfingsten M, Leibing E, Harter W, Kröner-Herwig B, Hempel D, Kronshage U, Hildebrandt J. Fear-avoidance behavior and anticipation of pain in patients with chronic low back pain: a randomized controlled study. Pain Med. 2001

Colloca L, Miller FG. The nocebo effect and its relevance for clinical practice. Psychosom Med. 2011.

Benedetti, F., Lanotte, M., Lopiano, L., Colloca L. When words are painful: Unraveling the mechanisms of the nocebo effect. Neuroscience, Volume 147, Issue 2, 2007.

#massageforneckpain #neckcricks #MATforneckpain #massagetools #bodyworktechniques #manualtherapystrategies #daltonmyoskeletal #erikdalton #myoskeletalalignmenttechniques #thematway #daltontechniquetuesday #techniquetuesday #myoskeletaltraining