Wired Magazine: The Painful Truth About Long Covid

What is this mind called 'Alan' that 'believes'? Science has no minds that believe. Plenty of scientists go around presuming it does but, no Siree, there ain't no such scientific thing. Or is the body Alan that believes? The whole thing is a mirage.

The Cartesian pastiche that denies that it is Cartesian is every bit as absurd as an old man's hairstyle. What are the neurons doing (remember that this is all supposed to be based on spanking new neuroscience).

Some years ago I concluded that there is no way to have insight into the thoughts of people who unlike you and I can hold absurd self-contradictory beliefs.
This has been a big part of the shift in recent years. It used to be that if people said things like this, they couldn't hide behind, and almost no one would grant them, that they actually believe it. Because it doesn't matter if someone believes the Earth is flat. It isn't. Of course the big problem here is that someone talking about flat Earth would mostly get dismissed because scientists disagree, know that it's false.

But here the problem is unresolved, there are no real experts, only authorities. Mostly by choice, but still. So the arguments are all forms of logical fallacies hiding behind the appeal to authority fallacy. Some decades ago, most physicians paid no attention to this stuff. Alternative medicine was fully independent of scientific medicine. No longer, now they strongly overlap, and that completely breaks relying on experts. The beams have crossed, and the giant marshmallow monster is rampaging around.

I don't think it's caused by the thing that started roughly 10 years ago. The one I won't mention because of politics. I think instead it was a consequence of that natural shift. It just turns out that medicine is not only not immune to this, for historical and institutional reasons, it's especially susceptible to it, while for the most part absolutely certain it is completely beyond falling for it.

Humans love magic. In the end this is what it's all about. This is healing magic. It's completely mediocre healing magic, but it's too alluring to ignore. It's also way too convenient for the privatization of problems and the socialization of losses they incur.
 


“Engage critics: you immediately insulted me and told me I must have not done my research even though I have been writing on this topic for years.Meanwhile, your article doesn’t even mention huge trials into the very things that your article alleges that “we can’t talk about.”

I was very pleased she picked up on this point. It will make it harder for Wired to ignore, although they likely still will.
 
One very notable thing here is that like everyone involved in this debate at a distance, and I include psychobehavioral ideologues in this, is that they can simply walk away once they get bored. Even in the midst of things, they have their evenings and week-ends, they can and do simply tune it all out. Levinovitz said he's walking away from this debate. He's bored with it. Even though he has an upcoming book on this very topic, and will obviously be talking about it a lot.

We can't. We are stuck in the prison they help perpetuate. To them, none of this really matters. It's not any more real to them than a video game is. They can simply shut it off.

Also, although in the last 1-2 years of Long Covid there were a lot of boasts and testimonies about which supplements made them recover, the vast majority of recovery reports in the last 2 years have become what is the usual standard: didn't do anything different, some day things just got better, and kept on being a bit better, without changing anything. Lots of relapses, too. It's all over the place. All of which nullifies all the healing magic anecdotes, but because it's so easy to walk away from it, they can also simply ignore it.

 
the vast majority of recovery reports in the last 2 years have become what is the usual standard: didn't do anything different, some day things just got better, and kept on being a bit better, without changing anything.
This kind of stories are really interesting! They should be highlighted more. They are good arguments for why recovery stories are bad arguments.

I think these recovery stories are very persuasive for many people. For outsiders it's hard to spot why they are so misleading. They keep being brought up.

If I had the mental energy I would start a thread to catalogue and discuss the underlying causes for recovery stories... but I don't. :(
 
If I had the mental energy I would start a thread to catalogue and discuss the underlying causes for recovery stories... but I don't.
We could just start up a thread of 'natural' or 'unexplained' recovery stories and add posts there organically as people come across them? (If a thread like this doesn't already exist.)

@kacheston's bmj rapid response is maybe another one for the list.
 
MindbodyCure Programs List. (You can read the list without paying)

'Heal with Liz' (Liz Carson) sells a Guide to the various Braintraining/Mindbody' CFS' cure programs for $27

'CFS Recovery Programs Guide

An Independent Analysis of Lifestyle & Nervous System-Based Programs for ME/CFS, Long COVID, and Related Chronic Conditions

The guide is now an interactive, searchable website, where we’ll keep adding new information.'

Updated Reviews of 34 Programs


Our guide factors authentic feedback from real people who did these programs.

https://healwithliz.com/programs-guide/
 
We could just start up a thread of 'natural' or 'unexplained' recovery stories and add posts there organically as people come across them? (If a thread like this doesn't already exist.)

I started a thread. Feel free to contribute. :)

 
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