Subliminal Tapes and the Placebo Effect

I am living, breathing proof that subliminal tapes work and work well. My law school performance, memory, productivity, self confidence, diet and exercise - all these areas of my life have substantially and significantly improved as a result of my use of subliminal tapes.

Like most people, I was initially skeptical about their effectiveness, but now I'm a true believer. However, when I talk with people about my experiences, I often hear the objection that improvements from subliminal programming are mostly a result of the placebo effect, meaning that is the belief in the efficacy of the program, rather than the program itself, which is producing improvement.

The skeptics are not groundless in their doubts. Studies exist that show that 20% of subliminal tape subjects exhibited improvement despite the fact that the tapes they were given contained no subliminal suggestions. There are also studies that have successfully caused listeners to experience the "wrong" improvement by mislabeling the tapes

Differentiating the Placebo Effect
An intelligent consumer may want to know: "How can I tell the placebo effect from true subliminal re-programming?" The short answer is that you probably can't. The more important answer is: Since subliminal re-programming is all about re-programming beliefs anyway - albeit subconscious ones - why is this differentiation critical? Quite simply, it probably isn't.

There is no argument that the placebo effect can accelerate and amplify the effects of subliminal programming. With subliminal tapes - or any other product or treatment - the overall effect is always a combination of the placebo effect and the actual effect. Belief always plays a part in results. Therefore, it is probably relatively unimportant to try to determine how much a subject's beliefs contribute to the efficacy of subliminal re-programming.

In my own experience, when I use a new title, I often see a change after only a few days of listening. This is probably a placebo effect, which is not a bad thing; I am simply getting a little advance benefit due to my own suggestibility. The effect of the tapes may well be made stronger by my own belief that I am using a powerful product that will eventually change my subconscious programming - and that's fine with me!

However, early results aren't always a reliable marker for the placebo effect. While many subliminal programs can take about a month to become fully effective, there are titles that work in as little as a day. The "Stop Procrastination" title from Midwest Research of Michigan is a good example of a very fast acting title. When I lend this title to my friends - even those who maintain that subliminal programs don't work - some are affected on their very first listen, and most are put into high gear within a few days. I almost always hear stories of amazing surges of motivation and activity from users of this program within a few days of use -and it's certainly not all placebo effect.

Results from Reprogramming
So what to conclude? The line is fuzzy between placebo effects and true re-programming. Many times the two are so intertwined that you won't be able to tell the difference . . . and placebo effects are also "real." However, there are three types of effects that I attribute largely to re-programming with little if any placebo influence. The first is when the listener experiences results that are unexpected. The second telltale sign of true subliminal re-programming is changes that the listener is not aware of, but others see and comment on. The third is when things start to change in the listener's life, but they are not aware of doing anything different.

An example of this is my own experience with a "Self Confidence" title. After a few weeks of daily listening, my friends started to notice changes in me that I at first denied. After some observation, I realized that my friends were right, but for some reason I did not see the differences myself. The changes definitely reflected an increase in self-confidence. This is how a powerful subliminal tape works. You often don't notice the changes yourself because your own frame of reference shifted and you don't think you are any different.

The Bottom Line
The real issue here is this: Do subliminal tapes really work, and if so, do some work better than others? The answer is: Yes and Yes!

How can you determine if a program is effective? Although individual experience can be highly variable and hard to quantify, it is possible to know beyond a shadow of a doubt whether the tapes are working or not. And here's the simple test: Are the programs producing changes in your life?

There is no doubt in my mind that listening to scientifically created subliminal tapes can produce powerful results. The most effective subliminal products I have encountered are the programs made by Midwest Research of Michigan. Since they re-encoded their library in the early 1990s, each title contains over 85,000 suggestions, which the subconscious is easily capable of hearing and understanding.

For this reason, among others, I use and recommend the SCWL line from Midwest Research. Their industrial-strength subliminal programming has over 25 years of research behind it, and their products come with a 90 day "no questions asked" return policy on all tapes. For more information about these tapes and titles, visit www.socalsubliminals.com, and experience the results for yourself.