Where intention meets action.

Protocols designed to increase the expectation effect, the brain’s ability to activate real physiological change based on what we believe is about to happen.

How to Use These Protocols

These protocols are designed to help you create intentional, repeatable cues that guide your brain toward a specific effect. Each one combines a capsule with breathwork, language, and ritual — because expectation is most powerful when it's paired with action. This is where belief becomes biology.

What you’ll find below are examples to help you get started: protocols for calm, focus, relief, and more. But your brain is unique and so is your routine. We invite you to adapt these or create your own. Your protocol can be as structured or as intuitive as you like. What matters most is consistency, intention, and the belief that change is already beginning.

  • Calm.

    What to expect: Muscles unclench. Breathing slows. A return to center. You’ll likely notice your heart rate softening within minutes, even before you consciously relax.

    Signal Statement: “This pill is my physical cue to my brain that it’s safe to slow down. I am letting go. My nervous system is shifting into calm.”

    Protocol:
    - Signal Statement
    - Take 1 capsule with warm tea or water
    - Place one hand on your chest and one on your belly
    - Do 4–4–8 breath: Inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 8 (3x)

    Science: Studies show that placebos can reduce anxiety by triggering the same biological systems as calming medications. including GABAergic and parasympathetic pathways. Slow, intentional breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, the part of the body that tells your brain it’s safe to relax. This reduces cortisol, slows heart rate, and helps shift your body out of fight-or-flight mode.

  • Focus.

    What to expect: A narrowing of attention. Less mental clutter. More access to working memory. Within minutes, you’ll find yourself entering “the zone” not from force, but from flow.

    Signal Statement: “This pill is my physical cue to my brain that it’s time to engage. I am focused. My attention is clear and steady.”

    Protocol:
    - Signal Statement
    - Take 1 capsule with cold water
    - Sit down and start a 25-minute deep work timer
    - Practice Box Breathing: 4 in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold (2 mins)

    Science: The expectation of enhanced focus increases dopamine in the prefrontal cortex — improving attention, working memory, and motivation. Placebo studies show that participants who believe they’ve taken a cognitive enhancer perform better on memory and reaction time tasks. Paired with protocols and environmental cues, this belief primes the brain to enter a more goal-oriented, efficient state.

  • Relief.

    What to Expect: Your awareness of the pain might soften, shift, or feel less charged. That’s your endogenous opioid system at work — triggered by your belief that relief is possible.

    Signal Statement: ”This pill is my physical cue to my body to expect relief. I am softening. My body is already releasing tension.”

    Action:
    - Signal Statement
    - Take 1 capsule in stillness
    - Do 5 rounds of slow breath: Inhale 5, exhale 8
    - As you breathe, direct attention to the sensation with curiosity, not resistance

    Science: Placebos trigger the release of endogenous opioids and reduce activity in brain regions that process pain, such as the insula and thalamus. These effects are strongest when supported by ritual, breath, and the expectation that relief is coming. Even without active ingredients, this shift in perception can lead to real, physical ease.