All Forums  TMSHelp  TMSHelp General Forum  Don't give into the pain (Sopher)

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Screensize: 640 x 480 800 x 600 1024 x 768 1280 x 1024 UserName: Password: Format Mode: Basic  Help  Prompt  Format: Font Andale Mono Arial Arial Black Book Antiqua Century Gothic Comic Sans MS Courier New Georgia Impact Lucida Console Script MT Bold Stencil Tahoma Times New Roman Trebuchet MS Verdana   Size 1 2 3 4 5 6   Color Black Red Yellow Pink Green Orange Purple Blue Beige Brown Teal Navy Maroon LimeGreen Message: * HTML is OFF * Forum Code is ON Smilies [quote][i]Originally posted by shawnsmith[/i] [br]This is what Dr. Sopher writes in TDM (the last chapter) On the flip side, it is important not to be discouraged if symptoms arise during the course of an activity. It simply means that more mental work must be done. It is easy for fear and its compatriot, doubt, to creep in. “Maybe it isn’t TMS, maybe I do have a physical problem” are common thoughts. The best advice is to simply acknowledge this fear as part of the old conditioning, of the brain’s strategy to have you believe there is a physical problem. A common question I hear daily is, “What should I do when I have pain, especially a lot of pain?” Here people acknowledge that it can be very difficult to ignore it and carry on. First, you must talk to your brain and remind yourself that you are physically fine! Tell your brain that you are on to its game, that you know about the reservoir of rage. Like Dorothy discovering the Wizard of Oz behind the curtain, you won’t be fooled! The pain is not because you’ve done something that you are incapable of or that you are so feeble or fragile. Try to pay it as little attention as possible; the goal is for it to distract you and keep your attention and focus on pain, rather than on what may be in the unconscious. Many become obsessed with their pain—they must learn to shift their focus (this is the re-programming, or reconditioning process). Try not to give in! Try to remain active, doing the activities that you enjoy. What about medication? As medication is a physical modality, it cannot fix the problem. This fact is essential to assimilate. As I’ve stated earlier, use of medications can, in some circumstances, exacerbate the problem. Having said this, I do believe there are certain occasions when use of over-the-counter pain medications may be done without adding fuel to the fire. It is acceptable to take medications like acetaminophen, aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen if you tell yourself, “This is not fixing the problem. This may take the edge off or ease some of my discomfort while I continue to do battle with my brain.” Again, remember that frequent use of even these medications can worsen the situation, but used appropriately may be acceptable. For reasons that are not entirely clear to both Dr. Sarno and myself, there is great variability in the time required for symptom resolution. This gets back to the notion of doubt. If someone states they truly believe that TMS is the problem, that they have been doing the mental homework and yet are distressed that their symptoms persist, they may question whether they have TMS. This has the elements of a catch-22. If you begin to doubt there is a psychological cause, that there could be a physical cause, then the work is undone and the brain’s strategy of creating a physical distraction will triumph. This is part of what I refer to as The Calendar Phenomenon. By this time, everyone may know of someone whose symptoms vanished immediately after reading the book or shortly after seeing a physician trained in TMS treatment. So, an expectation is created in their mind that their symptoms should recede soon after incorporating this philosophy. They look at the calendar and become upset as days and weeks go by. This is where I tell people to look back at their personalities. The calendar phenomenon is another manifestation of perfectionist tendencies – it is self-imposed pressure to succeed and succeed quickly. If they can recognize this aspect of their personality and add it to their “list” of sources of stress, relief will be on the way. Fear, doubt, the calendar phenomenon and the failure to think accurately are examples of some of the internal obstacles to healing. Several external obstacles bear mention. #1 You have read this book and become convinced that this approach makes sense. When you mention it to your physician, he/she either dismisses it out of hand or nods indulgently, and advises a traditional regimen including medication, physical therapy, etc. #2 You have read this book and become convinced that this approach makes sense. When you mention it to your friends, family and/or co-workers, they look at you as if you have lost your mind. They, too, may nod indulgently and then recommend a physician, practitioner, medication, herb, etc. #3 You have read this book and become convinced that this approach makes sense. When you pick up a magazine and read an article discussing symptoms like yours, there is no mention of TMS as a possible cause. Or maybe, just maybe, there is a brief mention of Dr. Sarno’s work with TMS, but other quoted sources dismiss it out of hand. As you trust the members of the media to do their homework and provide accurate, complete information, you begin to wonder whether TMS is for real. These scenarios occur every day. They may contribute to the conditioning that allows the pain to persist. ************* Sarno-ize it! ************* [/quote]   Check here to include your profile signature.