PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Harvard anaesthesiologist Dr. Henry Beecher coined the phrase the "placebo effect," after he discovered that injections of a saline solution helped wounded soldiers in World War II overcome pain once the morphine ran out.   Now, a group of Oregon scientists are following in Beecher's footsteps as they begin mapping what they call the "expectancy effect" -- the impact on health of a person's expectations of getting well.   Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine has been awarded a three-year, $2.4 million grant from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine to study the phenomenon.   Just as Beecher discovered that up to 35 percent of a therapeutic response to any medical treatment could be the result of belief, Oregon researchers hope to show that a patient's expectation of getting well can have a positive affect on their health outcome.   The study's goal is to develop models that can be used to study cognitive and physiological changes that contribute to the expectancy effect.   The models could range from "perceived self-efficacy" -- the belief that a person can influence his or her own health -- to hormonal activity and genetic changes that effect the brain's neurotransmitter systems, said Dr. Barry Oken, director of the Oregon Center for  Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Neurological Disorders at OHSU.   The researchers also hope to improve the design of clinical trials by learning how individual differences contribute to changes in their responses to medical treatments.  The expectancy effect is related to the placebo effect, in which a patient reports a positive response to an inactive medical treatment, such as a sugar pill, as if it were an active medical treatment.   But the expectancy effect is broader than the placebo effect and includes all processes and influences that may affect the brain's anticipation of a response.   "We're not talking about patient-physician interaction, which, to some people, is considered part of placebo effect -- the contact, the handholding, the bedside manners," Oken said. "We're really thinking about people's hope or expectation that they're going to get better."   For example, one recent study showed that Parkinson's disease patients who were administered a placebo experienced changes in brain chemistry similar to those caused by symptom-treating drugs levodopa and apomorphine.   Reference: http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news9/1107762116208501.xml&storylist=orlocal   How does the "expectancy effect" influence your resilience? When you are working under pressure, if, in your mind, you are expecting that your workload will never end, or that problems will take forever to resolve, then you are weakening your body's resilience and, very likely, reducing your body's resistance to illness.   When you focus on the negative things happening around you, your body actually produces cortisol which makes you feel 'stressed' and can weaken your immune system.   Not only does being pessimistic and complaining about problems make you feel miserable, tired and unenthusiastic - it also drains the people around you!  That includes your team mates, colleagues, clients and customers! What can you do about it? Create a 'positive expectancy' about yourself and life.  Expect that you will be able to manage, that you will be able to handle whatever life throws at you, that no matter how challenging a problem is that you will be able to deal with it.   With a 'positive expectancy' you create more energy in your body, your mind can focus for longer, and you have a positive influence on other people.   Can you remember watching a movie when you got a frightened your body jumped?  Your body experienced that fright as if you were actually IN the movie.  Your body experiences whatever your mind perceives to be real. If you focus on your hardships, then you body will become drained and 'stressed'.  However, if you focus on what is possible and EXPECT that you are going to handle the situation well, then your body will become energized and empowered to make it happen. You decide whether you will feel tense and drained or energized and empowered by the decisions you make each moment of each day.   How do I do that? S.P.I.N. your pressure instead of becoming a P.I.T.A.   A negative expectancy is created by being:   P - Pessimistic I - Instigating blame T - Turning on yourself (doubt) A - Accumulating worry    A positive expectancy is created by being:   S - Solution focused P - Perspective on your situation I - Internally confident N - Never lose hope (optimistic) You may not decide what happens to you in your day, but only you decides what happens in your head (what you think about). Michael Licenblat B.Sc.(Psych) is a Resilience Expert who helps people in business bounce back fast from pressure, stress and burnout in their work and life. He is a professional speaker, coach and author of three books.   To download your free special report on the ‘Seven ways to prevent yourself becoming Over-Worked, Stressed-Out, and Run-Down’, visit: http://www.BounceBackFast.com Please Note: You are welcome to use my articles in your ezine, newsletter, journal, publication, etc., on the condition that you do not change the content or the article, and that you include my contact name and website details (as written in the table/box above).