I was wondering what you all think about CDs with subliminal messages? I have a CD by Kelly Howell called weight loss.

The first track is 30 minutes and has relaxing music with piano. The second track has very calm music with Theta waves. Both tracks have subliminal messages which is they have messages recorded so low you don't hear them consciously but they say that your mind will still hear them.

I've been listening everyday for about a month now. I don't really know if it helps me or not but I figure it's worth a try.

I have some CDs with subliminal messages for relaxation and various things, not weight loss. They do relax me, not sure if subliminal messages per se are effective but they do seem beneficial.

Re weight loss, who knows? Even if they only relax you because of the music and the time out and make you feel positive, then that would seem, in my opinion, to be worthwhile.

In my opinion, if you think it helps, then it helps. It'd possibly be different with each person.

I can tell you definitively that subliminal messages do not influence behavior. This is related to my research area and I know that a lot of research has been done and NONE of it suggests that subliminal messages are effective. However, I'll describe one representative experiment that was conducted awhile ago, in which research participants were provided a tape containing subliminal messages.

Half of the participants were provided with tapes labeled one thing (e.g., "weight loss") and the other half were provided with tapes labeled something else (e.g., "stop smoking"). The experimenters manipulated the actual content of the tapes, so that half receiving the tape labeled "weight loss" actually received weight loss messages, and the other half received stop smoking messages (and the same matching/not matching manipulation was repeated for the tape labeled "stop smoking").

As it turns out, there was no change in behavior as a result of the type of actual messages on the tapes. The only thing that mattered was the label, so if the tape was labeled "weight loss" some people lost (minimal amounts of) weight, regardless of whether the tape actually contained weight loss or stop smoking messages. It's basically a placebo effect.

Sorry for the bad news! But I agree, if the tape relaxes you and you've already paid for it, you might as well keep using it!

Thats to bad Amy. I really wanted to believe they worked! I'll proably keep listening just because I like the music.

If subliminal messages really worked everyone would probably be listening.

But that is the beauty of placebos. If you BELIEVE they work then it just might! The mind is a powerful thing. Still, I know that Amy is right in that the subliminal message itself is useless and I don't think the placebo effect will have a big enough impact to help you lose much weight. The bottom line will ALWAYS be calories in versus calories out. I still agree with Amarantha. If you find the time you set aside to listen to the tapes relaxing and positive then taking that time for yourself certainly can't hurt. Of course, a nice walk can be just as therapeutic and it burns calories to boot!

I think jawsmom makes a good point about placebos: "If you BELIEVE they work ..."

In weight loss, belief is very powerful. In my opinion, it's THE most important factor in success. You need to BELIEVE you can lose the weight and you need to BELIEVE in yourself and your judgement. There's nothing wrong with making an agreement with yourself to believe that the subliminal messages will help you do the things that you need to do to lose the weight.

At the end of the day, it all comes down to what YOU believe and doing what helps YOU.

It comes from inside YOU ... and if you find a way to make those tapes work for ya, then by gosh, they'll work.

Well, Gotta post on this one folks--- 1st Big question (please pardon my spelling ahead of time) is the subliminal messages that we are speaking of, the same type that was used in the 70's-early 80's? The type that was pulled because it caused such a stink in advertising because the consumers felt they were being manipulated to purchase products--even though they couldn't actually hear it. They must have thought it worked. I actually think they can't do that anymore (I could be wrong). 2nd Big question are we talking about those self-hypnosis tapes/CD's? Well I guess in truth it really doesn't matter. As far as I'm concerned you do not even have to believe. Some people are just naturally more subjective or is it suggestive, I forget which, than others. I am deffinetly a skeptic by nature and I really try not to be a pessimist, lets just say I'll usually pick things apart before I try it, so I never get around to trying it (talk myself out of it). I write really nice run-on sentences though.

Valerie Joy,
This is to you espescially and anyone else who wants to read it. I know one "NO" can negate a thousand "YESES" but it doesn't make it true. What is true for one may not be true for another. There will always one so called expert saying something works and another saying it doesn't. On this point, I will tell you my experience. The short version. I bought a Hypnosis CD for $16.95 to stop smoking because I sure wouldnt pay $200+ to sit with a bunch of other people to find out it didn't work. Good attitude allready right? Well, I read the book that came with it said yeah right, set it aside and forgot about it for awhile. Guess I wasn't really serious. Really I just was kind of mulling over the idea. I smoked 2-2 & half packs a day. I had been smoking since I was sixteen. So I really didn't think I could quit. I NEVER did without. I did not go anywhere I could not smoke. Even my friends that smoked said I smoked too much. Things started to come up in life as they usually do--and I started to evaluate myself and where I was headed. Well, I found the CD but no book, I thought OH Great, now I don't even have that to give me the tips. Just another reason to fail. I listened to the CD that night w/ headphones---fell asleep. Woke up about 3 a.m. and thought man I know this isn't going to work for sure now. So I listened to it again. Fell asleep again. I had smoked for 20 years. I quit on 8/22/04. I havn't had a cig in over a YEAR and almost 2months!!!! I am now classified as a NON-SMOKER!!! Did I even believe it would work?? Heck No. Am I glad it did? Heck Yea! The only thing I wish*****my stop smoking--said in an hour. I got a weight lose one after that but you do it in weeks---to bad its not an hour. I think I'll go find that CD now that Im thinking about it............

Good Luck
Follow Your Heart and seek the Truth in Yourself not others.......

Thanks for the reply Brania,

The cd I have has spoken messages on it that you can't hear. They say your subconscious mind hears the messages and responds. I haven't been listening to the cd that much anymore. I guess I stopped believing it would work.