| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Shamrock |
Posted - 09/17/2008 : 13:01:24
I've searched a bit on this, but I'd like responses to my particular case.
After 1-1/2 months of back pain (about 3 weeks doing TMS work), my symptoms are constant, painful tightness in lower right back (and sometimes upper back and/or back of leg). Not debilitating, but nagging and exhausting.
So... part of me wants to jump on my road bike and ride, and go back to the gym for some light lifting. Another part of me is saying to be patient and wait for the pain to subside (with more TMS work) and then gradually get back to working out.
I know it's "just pain," but I fear if it gets worse at this point, it will just set me back.
Can pushing through exercise help to speed recovery? Opinions? Experiences?
- Shamrock
|
| 8 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| swmr1 |
Posted - 09/18/2008 : 12:17:48
quote:
That said, I will keep pushing through with the exercise -- gently, but progressively.
And HAVE FUN DOING IT!!! Let yourself really enjoy the process. Live "in the now" just for a bit. It's not easy for me to do all the time but I really enjoy forgetting my fears and just moving my body. I think it puts me in a "virtuous circle" (rather than a vicious one) where doing what I want makes me feel better, which makes me more confident, which alleviates any pain, which makes me feel stronger and able to do more. Best wishes!!! |
| Shamrock |
Posted - 09/18/2008 : 11:35:54
Thanks swimmer. I am a HUGE catastrophizer. I think that's what kept my original back pain episode around so long back in 2005 (SLOWLY faded until about mid-2007.) I was obsessed with the pain to the point of isolating myself from activities and other people (narcissistic injury big time). And fear gripped me greatly.
It was no help, back then, that my PT had me doing the same simple stretches for 3 months even though they were doing nothing for the pain. I felt like a broken, old man at 34 years of age.
That said, I will keep pushing through with the exercise -- gently, but progressively. |
| swmr1 |
Posted - 09/18/2008 : 10:58:49
Shamrock--
I should add one thing to my previous post. I have had to learn (and am still learning) to not "catastrophize" into the future. I have had to just go for it and wait until I have a true injury before I start limiting activities and obsessing. A twinge in your shoulder is nothing that should stop you. Don't get all freaked out now. Wait until you have a real injury to freak out! That has worked wonders for me. It requires faith in your body and also permission from yourself to be wrong. If you're wrong could be injured BUT you WILL recover (part of my TMS pain is fearing a future of being injured). Accept that the worst that can happen is you'd be sidelined for a bit. Once you accept that, the future isn't as scary. If you fear injury you will experience more anxiety and probably more pain. It stinks to be sidelined from activities for awhile but it sucks even more to obsessively sideline yourself out of fear before you even have reason to... |
| Mely |
Posted - 09/18/2008 : 08:08:22
I just got a heart rate monitor which tracks my heart rate/progress and shows how many calories I've burned. I used it last night for the first time and it was a good distraction from the pain as I was excited about using it and the stats it tracked. |
| Shamrock |
Posted - 09/18/2008 : 08:06:10
Thanks for all the encouragement.
I went for a vigorous warm-up walk yesterday and did some light weights at home. I felt good afterwards (no increase in the pain.)
This morning when I woke up, the back wasn't any worse than before, and I noticed some shoulder pain that I started getting a month before the back pain. I would only get the shoulder pain after exercise (like bench press or military press).
So now my brain is thinking, hummm, maybe the back pain is TMS and the shoulder stuff is tendonitis. Now I know that shoulder tendonitis can be TMS, but in my case it goes away when I stop working out the shoulder.
I'm thinking to continue the exercise, but take it easy on the shoulder.
Thoughts? Experiences?
Thanks.
- S |
| mala |
Posted - 09/17/2008 : 18:21:48
quote:
Can pushing through exercise help to speed recovery? Opinions? Experiences?
Sometimes that is exactly what is needed to push thru to the next stage of your recovery. Why don't you start off by doing a little instead of a lot. Ride your bike a bit one day, rest a day, do some very light lifting, rest, bike again and slowly build it up.
It will be natural to experience some soreness and maybe an increase in the pain but by doing this you are telling your brain that you are not scared. Your brain needs to know that in order to give up it's strategy of holding you hostage to the pain.
Don't overdo it. Build up your confidence first.
Good Luck & Good Health
Mala |
| Dave |
Posted - 09/17/2008 : 14:55:46
I would say absolutely push through, if you are able to do it, and you are 100% committed to the fact that the pain has an emotional origin.
I often did leg presses in the gym, despite lower back pain, while thinking to myself: "Take that, TMS! I'm not afraid of your pain. Bring it on!"
Resuming normal physical activity is crucial to recovery. |
| swmr1 |
Posted - 09/17/2008 : 13:52:45
Hi Shamrock--
In my experience (piriformis issues from 1999-2006), exercise made all the difference. Challenging my pain was/is critical to my recovery. The more I limited my activities, the more irritated, frustrated, and depressed I got. Then I'd get really ticked when it didn't go away even after limiting my activities. I finally found Sarno right as I was ready to say to hell with it all. I knew my problems were very related to my emotional state. I decided to try going back to my regular exercise routine. If I felt any pain it was no worse than the pain I felt not exercising. In fact, I found that I'd often feel much better after exercise. It's been a year and a half since I started back and I haven't battled my symptoms more than once or twice since. I've trained and competed in two masters swim meets and I'm currently training for a marathon. Nothing like challenging the pain to give you confidence that your body is tougher than you think, IMHO. |
|
|
