Modulating factors on the effect
fatigue, OLP
The strength of the IP’s effect varied based on different factors: Most importantly, daily fluctuations in sleep, stress levels, and fatigue, or even simply the time of day sometimes made pill intakes more difficult and, as a consequence, the pill effect less strong.“This [strength of the effect] actually depended on the day. I think when […] I had a stressful day or so, then it was difficult for me to sit down and concentrate […]. Yes, so I just think that it depends very much on the day.” (IP; Subject 12)“It depended a little bit on how I had the space, how I took my time and how much I could focus. And if, for example, I left the house and was doing something and then: ‘Oh well, I still have to take the pill!’ then I took it and then it [the effect] came much less strongly, but if you are almost meditative, or you really take time to experience the ritual completely, then it has a much stronger effect.” (IP; Subject 19)OLP participants reported that the exam proximity changed the experience of effects (see also "As the exam was approaching, you became more nervous and you needed something that would help you [..] so it was really like that, the need increased and the effect also went up." (OLP; Subject 2).On the other hand (and similar to IP participants who reported the need for a refresher appointment as the effect diminished after the treatment session) some OLP participants reported a decrease in effect due to an increase in skepticism, which in turn negatively impacted motivation:"Well, at first I believed in it, in the beginning, let’s say the first week, I was kind of motivated to do it,… it’s just that afterward, I believed in it less, I became more and more skeptical, I thought about it more, yes." (OLP; Subject 5)