Write your search in the input below and press enter.
Esc to close.

The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich

Peak Performance:
Not Just for Sports, for Life

  • Products
    • Toolkits
    • Audio
    • Videos
    • Books
    • Apps
  • Services
  • Chalk Talk
    • Recent
    • Athletes
    • Coaching
    • Sports Parenting
    • Sports Administrators
    • Life
    • Administrators
  • About Dr. Stankovich
  • Testimonials
  • Contact
  • Products
    • Toolkits
    • Audio
    • Books
    • Videos
    • Apps
  • Services
  • Chalk Talk
  • About Dr. Stankovich
  • Testimonials
  • Contact

Hello. Sign In

My Account
  • Login
  • Register
0
The Sports Doc Chalk Talk
Subscribe
The Sports Doc Chalk Talk with Dr. Chris Stankovich
  • Recent
  • Athletes
  • Coaching
  • Sports Parenting
  • Life
  • Administrators
Home / Blog / How Psychiatric Drugs “Work” and the Power of Placebos

How Psychiatric Drugs “Work” and the Power of Placebos

By: Dr. Chris Stankovich | @DrStankovich | Aug 23, 2012

No Comments

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4Xb29geVwE[/youtube]

Earlier this week I posted a video by Dr. Peter Breggin where he discussed “chemical imbalances” in the brain, and how this message is more hype and marketing than it is good science.  Today Dr. Breggin discusses how psychiatric drugs “work,” something that millions of current patients of psychiatric drugs should be very interested in learning.

While Dr. Breggin offers the biology of why these drugs supposedly “work,” another important point not discussed on this video that should be noted is the placebo effect. Over the years, many people I know who have used psychiatric drugs have sworn to me how much better they have felt while using a particular drug, always attributing the positive change to the drug, while completely oblivious to how the placebo effect might have played into the change.  Placebo effects happen all the time, and they are regularly seen in patients who begin using a psychiatric drug because the patient desperately wants to see positive change. What this means is that the first good thing that happens after the patient begins using (i.e. spending a pleasant day with a friend) is immediately linked to the drug.  While it is true the drug may have helped caused the change (although this is unlikely), the more accurate reason why the change occurred probably has more to do with these two things:

A) The patient is looking for the positive effects of the drugs, and therefore “sees” those changes while minimizing or ignoring the negative aspects of the day, and

B) Extraneous variables caused the change – for example, that pleasant day with a friend might have been that way because it was a really nice, sunny day (which usually makes us all a little happier!).

The reality is that it’s very, very difficult to establish cause-effect changes in social and behavioral science, mostly because there are countless competing reasons and factors that simply cannot be controlled when measuring change (we call these extraneous variables).  In the example I provided above, the patient who had a great day with a friend on a nice summer day might not have had that same experience on a cold, icy day – even if he was using an anti-depressant medication!

The placebo effect immediately creates positive expectations, which is actually a good thing in many ways.  The problem, however, is that it often muddies research results since it is almost impossible to control for when examining the efficacy of various drugs.   Interestingly, placebos have largely been right on par with anti-depressants when measuring efficacy rates, meaning that when patients do not know they are taking a sugar pill they regularly report the same positive feelings (and sometimes even more) when compared to taking the real medications.  It’s just too bad we can’t ethically offer people harmless placebo pills, because if we could we might see a lot more people feeling happier – and without any side effects!

www.drstankovich.com

breggin, depression, medicine, peter, placebo, psychiatric

  • Author
  • Comments
  • Details
Get to Know the Author

Dr. Chris Stankovich

Dr. Stankovich has written/co-written five books, including Positive Transitions for Student Athletes, The ParentsPlaybook, Mind of Steel.

Latest Blog Posts

  • June 5, 2023 What is Happening to Recreation Youth Sports in America?
  • May 23, 2023 Breaking Down the Stages of Youth Sports
  • May 16, 2023 Mental Health Tips to Help Kids Avoid Sport Burnout
  • May 10, 2023 Watch for these Issues with Kids Playing Multiple Sports During Same Season
  • May 4, 2023 Understanding the Importance of a Balanced Athletic Identity for Kids

Comments are closed.

PREVIOUS POST

3 Tips to Help Never “Choke” in Sports Again

NEXT POST

Little League World Series Promotes Sportsmanship

Category

Habit Change , Life , Mental Disorders , Stress

Tags

breggin, depression, medicine, peter, placebo, psychiatric

  • Recent Posts
  • Most Read
  • What is Happening to Recreation Youth Sports in America?
  • Breaking Down the Stages of Youth Sports
  • Mental Health Tips to Help Kids Avoid Sport Burnout
  • Watch for these Issues with Kids Playing Multiple Sports During Same Season
  • Understanding the Importance of a Balanced Athletic Identity for Kids
  • Morning Sports Practice Before School is Becoming the Norm, but is this Healthy for Kids?
  • Nature or Nurture? Exploring the Psychology of Sport Success
  • 3 Important Tips for Today's Multi-Sport, Youth Sport Athlete
  • Breaking Down the Stages of Youth Sports
  • Understanding Intelligence: Putting Knowledge into ACTION!
  • The Sports Doc on TV

    Catch Dr. Stankovich’s tv, radio, and print interviews and columns here!

    Dr. Chris Stankovich Watch Videos
  • Sport Performance Assessment

    Dr. Chris Stankovich Quickly and accurately test your level of mental toughness in just a few minutes using the Sport Performance Assessment.

    (SPA), an easy-to-use sport psychology system specially designed to help you REACH YOUR FULL ATHLETIC POTENTIAL.

    learn more
  • SportsSuccess360

    Life strategies for performance and character development for coaches, parents, and student athletes competing in youth and interscholastic sports.

    Life Strategies learn more
  • Contact Dr. Stankovich

    1395 Grandview Avenue Suite 6, Columbus OH 43212

    (614) 561-4482
    Media & General Inquiries
    information@drstankovich.com
    Sales & Product Support
    sales@drstankovich.com
  • About Dr. Stankovich

    • Media
    • Blog
    • Testimonials
  • Products

    • Toolkits
    • Videos
    • Books
    • Audio
    • iPhone Apps
  • Services

    • Athlete Performance Training
    • Parent Community Forum
    • Coach Education & Development
    • Athletic Crisis Response and Intervention
    • Drug & Alcohol Assessment
    • Life Success Programs
    • Counseling & Consulting Services
  • Blog
  • YouTube
  • twitter
  • facebook

All rights reserved © 2023 Advanced Human Performance Systems™

↓ ↓