Smoke screens

Thomas Stephan

The Expectation Effect is a theory in psychology. David Robson, a science journalist, wrote the book “The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Change Your World”, in which he spoke about an experiment conducted at the University of Leeds, Maastricht University, and Wageningen University and published in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology in 2023. So, a proper experiment.

In it, about 80 people sensitive to gluten, of whom about half were given bread that didn’t have gluten but were told it had gluten, were studied. We will focus on this group because the other groups were told the truth.

The people who believed they were eating gluten after a few minutes started having full-blown symptoms of gluten intolerance, bloating, upset stomach, nausea, etc., when the bread, in fact, had zero gluten.

The brain only reinforced what they believed and sent the response to the rest of their body.

This concept of belief and how it shapes our realities has been spoken about in different fields—religions, philosophy, metaphysics, etc.—in different shapes and forms: manifestations, vision boarding, etc., but all pointing to the same fundamental thing.

Have met people who, when asked how they are, respond with “I’m blessed and highly favoured” or “I’m strong,” even though they are bodily ill?

Do we chalk it up to delusion or toxic positivity?

The cynic in me used to find it cringeworthy and really weird. But I have evolved from that version of me. I believe whatever works for anyone and helps them cope with the battering of life, as long as it hurts no one. And what is there to lose? And science, religion etc has irrefutably proved the power of belief to shape our realities even down to our physiology.

So, no, it’s not delusion.

A combination of doing all that is within your control to move yourself forward and focusing on your lane while believing that things will work out has never hurt anybody.

Now, you would catch me occasionally replying to a “How are you?” question with “I’m blessed and highly favoured” these days.

Is it hurting my coolness cred? I have no idea, but I also don’t care because who decides these things anyway?

Because what other options do we have? What other ways do we wage the mental wars? What other ways do we fight the weapons of adulthood and life, constantly trying to have one up on us?

So, what is real? What experiences in our lives have we manufactured based on what we believe? If we can use the same force of belief to create suffering for ourselves, what if we flipped it?

Our brain isn’t as smart because it seems not to be able to differentiate what is real and what is “simulated.” We just program it and, as an atomic bomb would, it commits to whatever you program or whatever errand you have sent it on.

Let’s speak of things that are not, as though they were.

Keep going,

Ije