You Are the Placebo: Making Your Mind Matter Paperback – September 8, 2015

I read two of Dr. Dispenza's other books, "Evolve Your Brain" and "Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself" and I loved them both, so I had to buy his newest book, too. It's true what some reviewers noted, the book does repeat a lot of information found in his previous books, but I didn't mind it much because it served as a reminder for me, and there was plenty of new material, so it wasn't just rehashed material. Still those of you who have read his other books, be prepared for some repeated material. Another thing is that he cites the fire-walkers and strychnine swallowing ministers as people who are using an altered state of mind to accomplish something amazing. I read that it's nothing so amazing, there's a trick to it, and I think the strychnine-swallowing ministers are phonies - there is no proof to prove they actually drank strychnine, it's likely just a show, sleight of hand. Sometimes these books cite "miracles" which I doubt, even though I do believe extraordinary miraculous events occur frequently, and I do believe the stories of healing during his workshops noted in his book. Overall, the book provides much hope, and I really enjoyed it. I dogeared many pages to reread later, and plan to implement this in my life. I'll update my review in the future if I'm able to make any astounding changes in my body. So far I haven't done the "meditations" enough times to say (I've only done them twice so far). As for meditations, they are not. The scripts are hypnosis scripts, including an induction into the hypnotic state, after which the positive suggestions for self-transformation are introduced. It's absolutely, 100% hypnosis. He is basically introducing you to the meditative state (which is extremely hard to achieve, personally I suck at it) via hypnosis. Using hypnosis to help you get to the meditative state. Which is an interesting idea, as meditation is quite difficult and can be frustrating, as it's very tricky to do for any extended period of time (more on that in a moment - for anyone who isn't already familiar with meditation). Anyway, to clarify my point, Dr. Dispenza has a hypnotherapy diploma from the same college of Hypnotherapy that I do, HMI, which is located in Tarzania, California. It's a reputable, accredited college of Hypnotherapy, and Dr. Dispenza is trained as a hypnotherapist. I read this in his own account so I know it to be true. The script he uses is definitely hypnosis, (although there are many forms and styles of hypnosis). I don't say this as a criticism at all. Hypnosis is extremely useful in healing, and self-transformation. I just don't understand why it's called "meditation". Hypnosis and meditation are very similar in some ways, but in hypnosis, we do an induction to get the client into a state of relaxation (as Dispenza explains, the altered brain wave state) and then we introduce suggestions specific to the change the person wishes to accomplish. In meditation, you must clear your mind of ANY thoughts and attempt to keep thoughts of any kind at bay, to find the "gap" between the thoughts. It's very difficult NOT to think, as our brains are used to thinking constantly. The hypnotic state is not as difficult to get into, if you know self-hypnosis or are working with a hypnotist or using a recorded hypnosis. But meditation and hypnosis are not the same. Also, meditation has become very accepted in the mainstream, even hospitals will tell people meditation is good for you - hundreds of studies, including clinical studies, have been done on the benefits of meditation. Hypnosis remains somewhat on the fringe, despite some studies showing remarkable benefits from hypnosis, it is NOT as accepted as meditation, and when it IS used in healthcare settings, they often use silly terms such as "guided visualization" or "guided meditation" to keep from frightening people from the word "hypnosis" which is PRECISELY what it is. This is because many people still see hypnosis as "mind control" or "making someone get on stage and quack like a duck" it is still seen by many as frightening, suspicious, fake, or ridiculous. Hypnosis is none of those things. In the hands of a competent practitioner, hypnosis is an extraordinary tool for healing, changing habits, and improved mental and emotional health. It's great that Dr. Dispenza is using hypnosis to help people reach the meditative state, access the quantum field, and heal their minds and bodies. I don't understand why he doesn't call a spade a spade though, and call it what it is: hypnosis. The only thing I can think is that it's perhaps to avoid turning some people off or garnering ridicule. Readers can either buy his hypnosis recording online for a small fee, or they can record the script he includes in the book. He graciously provides the reader the option to record their own version and not purchase his - which is more than many authors do these days, they usually try to make you buy their add-ons and don't provide free options as Dr. Dispenza has done. Personally I prefer recording my own, as I did with his other book, as I'm familiar with recording hypnosis recordings for my clients. I purchased his recording on the last book, but ended up recording it myself anyway as I preferred my recording over his (simply a matter of personal preference, not saying that mine was better than his). Any reader can use his script to record their own free copy of his hypnosis session. All in all, Dr. Dispenza's work is very encouraging and it would be great to see the medical world begin to use people's minds to heal themselves. It's extraordinary that so little research has been done into something as important as the "placebo effect" and I thank Dr. Dispenza for taking it upon himself to do this. It's very clever, and the potential, if this can be mastered, is extraordinary.

"You Are the Placebo" by Dr. Joe Dispenza is a powerful book that challenges conventional thinking about healing and the mind-body connection. Dr. Dispenza presents compelling scientific evidence, real-life case studies, and practical techniques to demonstrate how our thoughts and beliefs can influence our health.What I love most about this book is its balance between science and practicality. The first part dives into the history and neuroscience behind the placebo effect, while the second part provides actionable steps, including meditation, to help rewire limiting beliefs. The stories of individuals overcoming serious illnesses through mindset shifts are truly inspiring.If you're interested in neuroscience, personal transformation, or simply unlocking your mind’s potential, this book is a must-read. It left me with a new perspective on the power of belief and the ability we all have to create change in our lives. Highly recommend!

I watched and listened intently to an Internet Documentary Series titled Broken Brain 2. Why was that important? It explains how this book by Dr. Dispenza came to be in my possession. There was a physician featured on the presentation and unfortunately I did not write her name down to give her credit, who said, “I will not see a new patient until the patient reads You Are the Placebo.” Think about that for just a moment. Doctors earn a living by seeing a patient and then being paid by the patient and/or the patient’s health insurance company. What better motivation to read a book for me who will probably never be a patient of the doctor making the recommendation, especially since I can’t remember her name.I purchased the book with some reservations. Whenever I have read a book written by a medical doctor I am usually overwhelmed with all the medical terms used and then followed by an in depth discussion as to what the terms mean, etc. I bought the book anyway as should you.It would be my estimate that about 5% of the book contains medical terms I cannot pronounce nor that I will ever remember; nor do I have need to. But for the remaining 95% of the book, all I can say is WOW!First a disclaimer. To some the contents of this book will be beyond what they have come to believe and frankly that is what part of the book describes. For others like me, I have always felt that the brain was more than capable of self-healing the body but until now, I do not know if anyone was sure as to how to tap into the ability. I was fascinated by Dr. Dispenza’s personal story about his bike and SUV accident and how he recovered. To put it into perspective and hopefully without getting too personal, I am experiencing severe pain in my left hip and thigh and the pain suddenly and magically appeared immediately following major back surgery; the pain is not near where the actual back repair was performed. The surgeon performing the surgery doesn’t seem to know what to do to relieve the pain. So I began researching pain that involved taking A Great Course (company name) course on Pain Management as well as reading several books and articles on pain and pain management. I felt I need to “manage” the pain because a cure didn’t seem like it was going to appear in my life. Would the contents of this book apply to me and relieve me of the pain I was experiencing? Still even more important to me, would this book validate my belief that the brain could actually heal the body if someone were to show me how to tap into that ability?Only time will tell if my personal physical pain is relieved because I happened to read this book. If it does I will certainly revised my comments regarding the book.As you read Dispenza’s book you quickly learn of stories of people who have used the power described in the book both consciously and subconsciously to change what the brain and the body has heretofore been trained to believe. Once you believe something to be true, it takes a great will power and attitude change to redefine that belief or like in my case it takes the need to find relief for my personal pain to find an alternative to what doctors have been unsuccessfully doing to relieve my pain. In my judgment I felt, “heck what have I got to lose by trying it?” I do feel, however, that I would have a “leg up” on others that read the book because of this review, but who do not as yet believe as I do that the brain can heal the body. Being able to open the brain to a new thought is critical as Dr. Dispenza points out before someone can actually believe in something new to the old ways of thinking. By “old ways of thinking” I mean yours and my old ways of thinking, not old ways meaning something old because of passing time.There would be no point in telling you what is in the book because I could never do it justice. What I can tell you is that I truly believe that everyone could benefit from reading it and I do mean everyone. Why do I say this? Because as I read it, I envisioned real estate agents who were stuck in a place and who didn’t seem capable of making the changes they need to make to make a difference. So just about everyone could benefit whether they have a chronic illness or not. Still, if you are extremely skeptical, I doubt the book would be of much value even in the face of facts, logic and common sense.After I was about half way through the book, I purchased a downloadable MP3 file created by Dr. Dispenza. Again, WOW! Not sure I have ever paid such close attention to any MP3 or CD like his Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself Book Meditations. Best $6.00 I have spent in some time if ever!Who should read the book? Everyone!Would I read it again? Sections of the book, absolutely!Would I refer the books to my friends and family? Absolutely, already haveWould I buy the book as a gift? Probably but not if I thought the receiver of the book had a closed mind to such knowledge as it would then serve no purpose.