Energy healing and the placebo effect. An anthropological perspective on the placebo effect.

The paper deals with a classical anthropological issue, the working mechanisms of rituals and the relation between healing rituals and the placebo effect. The point of departure of the paper is MUS (medically unexplained symptoms) patients' experiences of Danish healing rituals. The aim of the paper is to develop an understanding of how bodily experienced images of body and self work to transform the patient during a healing ritual. It is argued that a bodily founded symbolic re-editing of body- and self-image is an essential skill in healing rituals. In conclusion, it is argued that the placebo is nothing but the effectiveness of bodily experienced symbols.