| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Shamrock |
Posted - 10/06/2008 : 13:12:36
Just sharing on where I'm at.
Diagnosed with TMS by Dr. Gwozdz in NJ on 9/15. Been doing TMS work (daily reading and journaling and reviewing daily reminders and list of emotional stuff throughout the day) for about 4 weeks. I'm also back to some working out (cycling).
There's a part of me that's still doubting the diagnosis (saying, "yeah, he just diagnosed me because I went to him to check me for TMS.")
I thought that I was getting a touch better a few weeks ago, but last week was worse (increasing pain and more pain in another area.)
I'm getting frustrated and have some physical/structual thoughts creeping into my mind. Plus some friends are saying, "Well, if this doesn't work, I have a great chiro..."
I guess I'm asking for a reality check (I know I can catastrophize, and that I can give negative attributions which leads to trust issues.)
I am going back to Dr. G at the end of the week.
- Shamrock |
| 10 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| JohnD |
Posted - 10/09/2008 : 17:10:27
I see this undertone of "doubt is bad" and I don't think that helps anyone.
Honor your doubt. If you become a scientist and investigate your doubt completely, by taking note of your pain patterns and what types of things they coincide with...then it will eventually lead you to the right course of action for yourself. For example, I sprain my ankle and my ankle hurts all day long because it is a physical problem. Every time I take a step it hurts. I know its physical. I have back pain that I think is TMS but I have doubt...so I honor my doubt and I start investigating further, knowing that I am an adult who may need more information before I foreclose on TMS. So I note that my back hurts upon getting up in the morning, and it hurts when I lean over the sink to brush my teeth, and then I get further into my day and realized I picked up my 2 year old child 10 minutes ago and there wasn't pain. I get scared now that I could have hurt myself more by the way I bent over but I also take note that it doesn't make sense that I didn't get pain doing that activity if in fact I have a herniated disc in L5. I start to feel afraid but my back starts to feel better. I gain some confidence in the TMS diagnosis. I keep doing this for 3 more days and find 10 different instances where things I did painfree didn't coincide with my disc herniation diagnosis and now I am becoming more confident in the TMS diagnosis. Now I can really start to believe it based on my own experiences, not just by swallowing some TMS protocol about what I have to do to get better. Wait, now I can actually follow that same protocol but it has a deeper meaning for me and it starts to work even better than ever and within 3 months I'm completely pain free. |
| skizzik |
Posted - 10/08/2008 : 12:06:14
I'm peronally glad I asked for the Dr. To give me exceptions.
I recovered from back pain in '03 From reading HBP after being skeptical to do so. It felt so good to read a book that finally made sense of what I was going thru. I did'nt do the mantra on page 82, I did'nt talk to my brain, I did'nt journal. The book simply made sense, and I realized I was'nt in pain anymore at some point. Still had fear for a long time. But at some point I became a serious weigtlifter.
Now, I had no doubt that it was tms. I went from crippled to in better physical condition then ever in my whole life. I used to look down on others w/ back pain, just read Sarno dummy, and believe.
Well it struck hard after a little build up during the most stressful time in my life after a workout in feb 06'. My mri is similar to 03', same herniations. One a bit bigger, one a bit smaller. But this time I threw myself into journaling, intensive writing programs, therapy, too many mind/body books to count. I swore off any doubt, believed the tms diagnosis soley, thrown myself back into the weights several times, golf, put my kids on my shoulders, do house work, carry ladders, climb utility poles for going on 2 Years. And for 2 years I beat myself up for not believing enough, not eliminating all doubt, my brain was so tired trying to get a modicum of relief. Even mental relief to know that I'm headed in the right direction and relief that will come at some point, any point. And I went thru a phase where I'm trying too hard, slow down, ease back into life. Still nothing.
And then of course, "What if Schubiner's wrong"? "What if he just assumes tms for all his patients?" "I should go see Sarno, but he wont see anyone outside the tri state area." It would be nice if everyone could go see the man himself "Sarno". For he has conviction from what I hear, and he is the pinnacle of tms doc's, but not everyone here has the luxury to see him even if they have the money. He only sees local patients. (But he'll see you if you're famous, or have "dr." In your title.)
And then I honestly discussed my fear w/ Schubiner, even the fear he wasn'nt Sarno, and he gracefully gave me examples of people who were upset that he turned away when he told them it was'nt tms and they need medical treatment elsewhwere. Now my diagnosis became a little more real. Like something I could bite into and cling too. I was'nt simply diagnosed w/ tms just because I made a long drive to see him, he actually turns people away and is not just a tms turnstile.
To me Shamrock seemed to express the same fear.
I feel I got a modicum of mental relief that day. I would call Shubiner quite often, or want to call him with urgency. And after I listened to his examples I see now that I havent had the urge to contact him since. Even in dire pain. Why? Perhaps it had to make more sense then just rah rah it's tms, just get on w/ life. Just take him for his word. I did that for too long now.
I'm personally glad I asked him. And I still feel it's a good idea Shamrock does too.
Having said all that I'm still in pain and people who have posted here in this thread are not so I cant say theyre wrong to have the rah rah point of view or to dissuade Shamrock from asking, perhaps that is the way to go and I'm wrong, but that is just the way I feel at this point.
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| winnieboo |
Posted - 10/07/2008 : 13:54:15
Just to parrot what lori said, doubt and fear will keep you in pain. It's true that lately the board has been full of doubt and second guessing, with so many members asking to commisserate about their aches and pains...
You can look at your situation as a wager: what have you got to lose? If you bet on the TMS diagnosis and do the work or program or whatever you chose to term it, what's the worst that can happen? You'll likely improve, not to mention save time and money on unnecessary treatments. Great that your friends have a chiro, they probably have acupuncturists, PTs and surgeons. We could all chose those options too.
We are choosing to pursue the TMS diagnosis and "work" as a path to a pain-free life. We chose the diagnosis and accept it or don't. If a medical doctor has cleared you, and Sarno or another TMS doctor has diagnosed TMS, then you will either reject it all, or chose to go forward with the TMS plan and resist the fear and doubt and do so every day. Make it a religion for now. No one can do it for you. It will get easier with time and improvement.
Remember that no TMS doctor or TMS shrink can even say to you that you don't have something structural that's amiss. We all have MRIs or C-Scans or other multiple tests to "prove" that we do.
The point is that your structural problem is not the source of your pain. We all, at some point, have had to put aside our MRI reports and the many frightening chats we've had with doctors or well-meaning friends and relatives.
The body heals. And you can rid yourself of the pain. I have a dozen issues; the worst is my neck. It doesn't bother me until I'm tense. For most of my life I was a master at covering up or denying that I was tense. That's what we aim to get in in touch with, whether it's the stomach, or headaches, or the spine, or knee or some other ailment that's chronically bothering you. What's causing the tension and the conflict? What powerful emotions are generating literal physical pain? That is what's happening in a case of TMS.
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| LuvtoSew |
Posted - 10/07/2008 : 13:08:22
I believe the best tms book I read was "Pain Free for Life " by
Dr. Brady. He had lots of pain himself. I got it from the library.
If you haven't read that one you might want too. He calls it AOS I believe. |
| mizlorinj |
Posted - 10/07/2008 : 12:28:17
Wow. Well, doubt is going to keep you in pain. I really don't see how asking for the exceptions is going to help, but do what you feel you need to do.
I did not doubt at all when Dr. Sarno told me I had TMS. I believed and I am 100% healed of TMS. And my TMS did not let me go to work, or even get out of bed. So yes, I had it very bad.
In general (not singling anyone out here) doubt seems to be quite a hangup on this Board. Doubt that the diagnosis is correct, doubt it is "all TMS", etc. Makes me certain most ppl have not taken the time to explore mind/body books because this information is not new and it is out there. Many docs other than Dr. Sarno show how ailments have emotional roots. And for those who come back with "mine was structural", yeah, most of us can show a structural abnormality. That doesn't make our ailment or pain any less "real".
As you know, only YOU hold the power to change your thinking.
As you've seen from some recent posts, to ELIMINATE ALL DOUBT is a key factor to healing. I'd think with all the mind/body articles, stress causing 95% of ailments, etc. you guys would have more faith than you do. Just because it is not mainstream yet doesn't make it any less true.
Best wishes and I sincerely hope you find what you need.
-Lori |
| skizzik |
Posted - 10/07/2008 : 09:50:52
Hi sham,
I have the same natural feelings you have and I saw tms dr. Schubiner 8 Mos ago. Anyways, I had him assure me it was tms a few times via phone since. Still, nothing.
I did find it helpful however about two weeks ago to ask him if he ever turns people away who think/hope they have tms. And he gave me some examples. It was good there was no hesitation in his voice when he told people they needed special treatment. I think this was more re-assuring then simply "you have tms."
Perhaps when you see him ask him what symptoms you would've had that would have negated the tms diagnosis. Ask him for examples of patients he sent elsewere and why.
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| mizlorinj |
Posted - 10/06/2008 : 17:37:01
Sham, don't fret. A lot of us can't come up with the event that triggered the bout!
-L |
| mk6283 |
Posted - 10/06/2008 : 17:36:32
Shamrock, you are very lucky. You're TMS manifestation is still BACK PAIN! It is so clear to me that chronic back pain is almost always TMS that I don't think I can ever have a backache again. The evidence in support of it is so tremendous -- tens of thousands of patients have recovered from back pain using Dr. Sarno's methods (myself included) -- that its sometimes hard for me to even consider other diagnoses in the setting of such a complaint. In the absence of any neurologic manifestations or findings, it is almost impossible for your chronic pain to be attributed to anything else. TMS gets tricky when the equivalents start to surface for which the evidence isn't as extensive (though still often just as true). If Dr. Gwozdz gave your back pain a diagnosis of TMS, I'd probably bet my life on it being the right diagnosis (and I don't even know him). So at this point your options are to either BELIEVE THE TRUTH (because without full belief the pursuit of a cure will be difficult) or you can go see that chiropractor. I hope you choose the former. Good luck!
Best,
MK |
| Shamrock |
Posted - 10/06/2008 : 15:22:59
Yeah, I do like Dr G. Very personable and generous with his time. I think the problem lies within me. Trust issues and catastrophizing -- so I have a hard time believing stuff will work out.
I really do wish I could just nail the issue that started my TMS rolling this time. I've done lots of listing and journaling (and I'm pretty well aware of my issues.) Part of me feels it wasn't one thing, but a culmination of stuff.
Well, I'll see when I go to Dr. G later this week.
- S |
| mizlorinj |
Posted - 10/06/2008 : 14:48:55
Friend of mine went to Dr G last week and loved him. She said he asked her a lot of questions and gave her A LOT of food for thought. Connected some things in her mind she had never connected AND found the event that started her pain. And yes, she has TMS.
Sorry to hear you are having doubts. Only you can resolve that part. I don't think he'd diagnose you with TMS if you didn't have it! Belief in the diagnosis is a key part to healing.
Best wishes,
-L |
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