| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| ralphyde |
Posted - 01/12/2006 : 18:02:29
There's a website I found recently called www.RemedyFind.com which attempts to rank remedies for various diseases and disorders by effectiveness. For Back Pain, Dr. Sarno's methods are ranked second only to exercises. Out of 15 posts currently out there, 11 rank Sarno very highly, while 4 rank it as useless. One of the responders made a very insightful post about this which might be useful to those with doubts about TMS:
quote:
ctk99 (1) [ellington - United States]
9/27/2005 11:03:36 PM
Dr. Sarno is dead-on
First let me say I am a doctor, and yes, there are some cases, such as tumors, etc. where a physical obstruction can lead to pain (but they are far fewer than most doctors will admit). However, for most of the other cases, I believe Dr. Sarno is dead-on.
Dr. Sarno's wisdom saved my back after 7 years of torturous pain, and since studying his theories, I have treated many patients in severe pain successfully. After reading the 'negative' reviews of Dr. Sarno's work, I am reminded of the frustration I face in my office on a daily basis: many people refuse to accept Dr. Sarno's diagnosis, and unfortunately understanding is exactly what is needed for recovery.
Notice that the people who wrote 'negative' reviews made it very clear that either 1) they were SURE that a physical obstruction was causing their pain, or 2) that they believe Dr. Sarno is saying the pain is 'all in their head.' Both are false (1 is very rarely true, but 99% of the time is false).
Herniated discs are rarely a cause of pain, and this was proven in the New England Journal of Medicine study circa 1996.
Dr. Sarno is not trying to say the pain is 'in someone's head.'
Rather, he is saying that the pain created in the body is related to emotional factors. THE PAIN IS VERY REAL and often excruciating (I have treated patients who couldn't get out of bed for days, and people in so much pain their skin couldn't be touched). The 'problem' with Dr. Sarno's treatment is that it requires the patient to take responsibility for getting better, and unfortunately there are, and always will be, patients who just want someone to do it all for them.
The knowledge in these books is priceless, and in a perfect world this would be taught in all medical schools (hopefully in the future it will be). If you have any type of pain that won't go away, or any of the other problems Dr. Sarno lists, do yourself a favor and give his books a chance. Most of you won't be disappointed.
The back pain section is here:
http://www.remedyfind.com/hc-backpain.asp
If others want to post their own experience here, it might give more notice to Dr. Sarno among people looking for remedies.
Thanks, Tunza and Sam, for posting your experience here. 
Ralph |
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| n/a |
Posted - 01/16/2006 : 16:03:59
Actually, Exercise: Stretching / Range of motion that ranks as number 1 is a partial validation of what Dr. Sarno is saying. It is in effect sending a message tothe brain that you do not believe that there is anything serioulsy wrong with you. Dr. Sarno writes in Healing Back Pain: "It should be noted, parenthetically, that the advice to resume normal physical activity, including the most vigorous, has been given to a very large number of patients over the past seventeen years. I cannot recall one person who has subsequently said that this advice caused him or her to have further back trouble." (page 80)
Dr. Sarno further states that "Perhaps the most important (but most difficult) thing that patients must do is to resume all physical activity, including the most vigorous. This means overcming the fear of bending, lifting, jogging, playing tennis or any other sport, and a hundred other common physical things." (page 79)
The downside, however, is that TMS treatment does not include any kind of physical treatment, such as stretches etc., as it presupposes a structural cause of the pain.
In "Healing Back Pain" Dr. Sarno answers the question about why he stopped using physical therapy as part of his treatment program by writing:
"This was touched on before but it bears repeating. As has just been said, any physical treatment can be a placebo, including physical therapy, and we strive to avoid this because the result is temporary. But there is another, more subtle reason. If I am trying to get people to stop thinking psychologically about their pain, am I not contradicting my own therapeutic strategy if I prescribe physical therapy?" (HBP page 92-93)
Resume all normal activity is the best medicine for those with TMS. |
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