Isn't that description completely incomprehensible? It seems to be saying (in a roundabout way) that each participant was part of all 3 groups, with them taking

Isn't that description completely incomprehensible? It seems to be saying (in a roundabout way) that each participant was part of all 3 groups, with them taking the drug, placebo and nothing for a third of the year. There's a reason studies don't do this, it adds a great deal of complexity and room for error. It's also not at all clear what symptoms the participants are rating. Are they symptoms of their underlying condition, common side effects of the drug, or side effects they had experienced previously?