| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Zarplod |
Posted - 03/09/2009 : 12:16:19
Hello all, I am new to the forum and have a quick question about TMS treatment.
Dr. Sarno states often that you cannot access the unconscious, nor will the feelings in the unconscious come flooding out, except in very rare cases. He also states that conscious feelings of anger are not the same as the anger (or rage) that is present in the unconscious (I would have to assume that is true for all other feelings in the unconscous, i.e. guilt, fear, shame, etc.) Why then is it important to, as Dr. Sarno suggests, write about our conscious feelings or make lists of those things that bother us in our conscious state?
In other words, if I am angry about my job, or mother-in-law, or feeling anxious or whatever, what good does it do to focus on these if it's the UNconcsious stuff that the conscious mind is trying to suppress from coming to the surface? I have no objections to looking at my conscious feelings and behavior, I just don't see how that is helping with the suppression of unconscious issues which seems to be the central premise of TMS.
Any clarification will be appreciated.
Thanks,
Mike
PS - I am one of those people who experienced an almost immediate response to reading one of Sarno's books. I have since experienced some pain showing up in different areas and TMS equivalents, but my work seems to be progressing well. |
| 3 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Dave |
Posted - 03/10/2009 : 15:48:00
I think this is really splitting hairs. In my opinion the talk of 'unconsious feelings' is really metaphorical. We really have no clue how the unconscious parts of our brain operate, so all we can do is put it into terms we can understand.
By definition, the 'unconscious rage' Dr. Sarno talks about cannot be felt. These emotions are felt by the child inside of us. This 'rage' threatens to overflow and the brain induces TMS symptoms as a defense mechanism to prevent us from feeling the rage.
The conscious feelings we are aware of are, by Sarno's definition, not the same as the unconscious ones that cannot be felt. However, the conscious feelings contribute to the pool of unconscious rage by putting undue pressure on ourselves and making the child inside us 'angry'. By trying to feel these 'bad' feelings we send a signal to the brain that the distraction mechanism is not going to work.
To me, this is all just a convenient way of explaining the syndrome in terms we can understand and relate to. I believe the actual mechanisms of TMS go beyond the current realm of human understanding. |
| scottjmurray |
Posted - 03/09/2009 : 13:53:34
I'm one that tends to disagree with Sarno on this aspect. I believe that subconscious feelings can come flooding out, as this was the basis of my own recovery. If these feelings weren't subconscious, I don't know where else they could've come from, and they sure were "volcanic" in nature like Sarno describes them to be.
I don't like Sarno's journaling approach anymore. I recommend doing emotional release work ala John Lee and Ellie Van Winkle.
~*~
author of tms-recovery . com |
| mizlorinj |
Posted - 03/09/2009 : 13:45:30
Because you need to get the feelings out so they don't get buried. I was really ticked about something that happened yesterday; I spent some time writing out how annoyed I was, came to terms with the situation (couldn't do anything about it anyway) and felt very relieved afterward. It's why some ppl go to therapy--they feel better after "unloading."
I can tell you after all the journaling I've done, and still do, things have come back to my mind that I hadn't thought about in 25 years. So I do believe as we delayer what's conscious, things from unconscious can start to rise. I'm all for it--get that stuff out of me.
It's like a recent link to an article about journaling--the person felt better after writing stuff out. It's its own form of therapy. Many professionals agree with this too.
Dr. Sarno draws a beaker that is overflowing. When the beaker starts to bubble over is when you get pain (or other forms of TMS), and it's time to address what's in that beaker: 1/3 everyday pressures, 1/3 childhood issues, 1/3 personality (ppl pleaser, perfectionist, etc) issues.
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