The Placebo Effect

"GOOD thots, GOOD feeling, DO good!!" -Prof Muhaya

Alhamdulillah, all praises to ALLAH...

Last weekend, unexpectedly,  I got invitation to join Nice (National Ibnu Sina Conference and Community Engagement, fuuuh, that's mouthful!!) from Tirah and Dilah. Was there to replace my senior who couldn't come at the very last minute. Nampaknye, rezeki sy laa tuh, hehehe. Nice aka fiqh medicine was organized by Papisma. Sgt beeeest and informative. I think the highlight of the program were talk from Prof Muhaya and the visit to HUSM and Papisma Stroke Centre (which was actually the homes of bed-ridden patients). The visit really brought us to the reality of the world; mcm mne nk apply your knowledge as a muslim doc, to teach the patients how perform wudhu' and solat in extreme conditions (like bile ade colostomy/urine back, kene splint/plaster, burn etc). Tp sy rase sungguh jakun dpan patients, huhuhuhu...perlu improve sgt2 communication skill nie!

Ye, lupa lak. Back to the title....yes, the placebo effect. What the heck is that? Bunyik mcm peee je. It's a term used to explain that a patient's health can be healed/improved by the patient's faith. Placebo (a Latin word means "I shall please") is a pharmacological inert/non-reative subs (mcm vitamin/fake surgery) that can produce the same effect as the active ones (real meds laa).

The mechanism is argue-able. From what I read and understand, when people felt like they've being treated, it somehow stimulates the brain to activate the analgesic system and release endogenous opiods (ala2 painkiller laa tuh). So, even without the medication, the psychological effect causes the body to release more and more natural painkillers and with Allah's will, the patient is healed. Wallahu'Alam. Lebey krg mcm tu laa.

Anway, talking about placebo effect, I recalled an exam question last year from At-Tibb fil Islam paper (yeke name nie, alaaa yg Ust Kasyfun ajar tuh).

The question was less and more like this : How to relate the healing by ruqyah using Quranic verses medically? Alaaa, tetiba cam blank camne nk explain tyme tuh, wakaka.  

The fact is, doctors mostly treat patients physically. Klau ade infection prescribe antibiotics, klau headache ke ape prescribe painkiller, klau luka/patah, balut or splint kan. It's all the treatment for the 'outside'. You see, human has two different and important elements; physically and spiritually (duuuh, sume org tau laaa, hu3). What ruqyah does is too heal the patient spiritually, and in my opinion, it all goes back to the placebo effect.

Love to share the following hadiths. ::taken from here::

A group of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) set out on a journey and traveled until they came near one of the Arab tribes. They asked them for hospitality but they were refused. Then the leader of that tribe was stung, and his people tried everything to cure him but nothing helped. Then some of them said, “Why don’t you go to those people who are staying (nearby)? Maybe one of them has something.” So they went to them and said, “O people, our leader has been stung and we have tried everything and nothing helped him. Do you have anything?” One of them said, “Yes, by Allah. I will perform ruqyah for him, but by Allah we asked you for hospitality and you did not give us anything, so we will not perform ruqyah for you unless you give us something in return.” So they agreed on a flock of sheep, then he started to blow on him and recite Al-hamdu Lillahi Rabb il-`Alameen (Surah AL-Fatiha laa niii). Then he recovered quickly from his complaint and started walking, and he was completely cured. After that they took the flock of sheep, and some of the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Let us share it out.” The one who had performed ruqyah said, “Do not do anything until we come to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and tell him what happened, and we will wait and see what he tells us to do.” So they came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and told him what had happened. He said, “How did you know that it is a ruqyah?” Then he said, “You did the right thing. Share them out, and give me a share.” And the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled ;D (Al-Bukhari and Muslim). 

The du`aa’s that have been narrated in the Sunnah include the following: 

Muslim narrated from `Uthman ibn Abil-`As that he complained to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) about pain that he had felt in his body from the time he had become Muslim. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him, “Put your hand on the part of your body where you feel pain and say ‘Bismillah (in the name of Allah) three times, then say seven times, A`udhu bi `izzat-illah wa qudratihi min sharri ma ajid wa uhadhir (I seek refuge in the glory and power of Allah from the evil of what I feel and worry about).”

And mama always loves to recite this du'a whenever we got sick/fall down/luka or anything...

::taken from here::

Ayesha (R.A.) stated that when anyone among them had an illness, Prophet Mohammad (SAW.) used to rub the area of the pain reciting the following dua:

أَذْهِبِ الْبَأْسَ رَبَّ النَّاسِ وَاشْفِ أَنْتَ الشَّافِي لَا شِفَاءَ إِلَّا شِفَاؤُكَ شِفَاءٌ لَا يُغَادِرُ سَقَمَاً

"O Lord of the people, remove this pain and cure it, You are the one who cures and there is no one besides You who can cure, grant such a cure that no illness remains".

Allahu'Alam.