| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| emama |
Posted - 04/22/2009 : 17:40:43
i am on the other side of recovering from the back pain of tms. i am one of those folks who needed to get a diagnosis from a tms specialist md and see a psychologist familiar w/ tms to really accept that there was nothing physical causing the back pain.
it's getting significantly better day by day as i work through some significant emotional issues and i'm nearly off tylenol and able to walk, stand, shower, sit, dress etc.
however, i am not to the point yet of moving in my old, free way, 100% free of pain, and not thinking about my movements, and i think the next phase of my healing is getting over the fear and timidity of another spasm if i don't move w/ care.
does anyone have suggestions for how to make steady progress in overcoming the fear of movement? all through my 20's i could put my palms on the ground in front of me, bending at my waist. since my first round of back pain 5 years ago though, i find i think consciously about how to move every time i put on my socks. the tms md i saw suggested it was a matter of re-conditioning my now involuntary behavior.
thanks. |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Jorgen_C |
Posted - 05/08/2009 : 13:39:35
My worst TMS is in my left shoulder, a pain that lingered from an injury 5 years back (well, now I doubt that it actually was a real physical injury...). Anyway, some stupid physical therapist told me that something in my shoulder was unfixable, and since then I've been terrified of using my shoulder. Even watching people on TV lift stuff over their heads made me cringe.
For me it feels true what Hillbilly said above, that some have to train dormant pathways in our brain to get back full movement.
I'm supplementing Sarno dogma with some yoga-mash-up called intu-flow (silly name, but works wonders). Through those movements I've reprogammed my brain not to fear shoulder movement any more.
The beginner and intermediate movements are for free on youtube. Do the beginner program every morning for a few weeks and see if you have the same uplifting experience as me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsMPqP7hxRk
The movements start in part 3. In the beginning it takes a lot of time, but after a few weeks it goes really fast. |
| sarita |
Posted - 05/06/2009 : 01:13:42
emama,
it may be a very good idea to get fred amir's book.
i am currently reading it and... |
| emama |
Posted - 05/05/2009 : 21:07:30
aaaaghh - i can't believe i'm typing this but the last 2-3 days i've actually had an increase in the pain - no more equivalents just the good old fashioned regular pain, weakness, tingling etc in the back, butt, leg.
at about 2 weeks since the day i got the tms diagnosis, i felt so great this last saturday when i woke up that i went for a 2 mile walk pushing my daughter's stroller then spent 3 hours in the afternoon at ikea (exhausting on all levels). by evening i was fried and sunday the pain just increased. by monday it was still increasing and today i took some tylenol for the first time and cried.
did i 'overdo it' on saturday? is this a normal part of the process of healing from tms - an interruption of an otherwise steady and gradual reduction of pain? is it common to have 2 steps forward, 1 step back?
i am definitely in need of encouragement since i know i need to keep faith that both the emotional work and the testing of physical activity is how i will improve. help!
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| Hillbilly |
Posted - 04/29/2009 : 07:57:41
Sorry, emama, I should've clarified that I don't believe in Alexander Technique being a "physical pain treatment," as its practitioners advertise, but a movement re-education system. Again, this all depends on how the mind perceives it. If you believe you are treating your pain, you are looking for one of the movements that releases those muscles that are hurting so badly, and the expectation has a built-in frustration when it doesn't happen, keeping you in the grasp of despair.
Specifically, I knew i had to build a tolerance for the pain and stop seeing it as some sort of external demon, but rather a part of me, a part I didn't like, but that I had to acknowledge was getting worse when I fed it despairing thoughts.
I couldn't raise my arm above my shoulder laterally. I could do it in the front, but not to the side. The muscles used in that specific movement were too inhibited (weak, trigger-pointed, SMA-infested, oxygen-starved or whatever you think), and I couldn't perform the movement. I remember vividly attempting to reshelf a gallon of milk one morning, and when I went to do it, my shoulder started shaking, I had to bring it down and use the other arm. Then I was blinded with anger and panic.
But very quickly, I gathered myself and decided to start forcing my shoulder to comply with my wishes. I would watch a clock tick as I held my arm out for 10 shaking seconds, then 15, then 20, 30 growing to two minutes, which I considered normal. Then I went to doing this lying on my stomach and working the back of the shoulder and the shoulder retractors. Had the same issues, but wouldn't take no from them.
Your muscles are yours, and they operate at the bidding of your will. If they don't comply, you have to somehow relink the neural pathways to contract and relax, contract and relax, and when you aren't using them you have to teach them to completely relax like a rag doll, zero tension. I don't believe Dr. Sarno's approach is the only way back to health. I have proven that true in my own experience. But nuggets of wisdom can be found there.
My mother-in-law was nearly crippled with sciatica and foot drop right before Easter last year. PT did nothing, cortisone shots did nothing, reading Sarno did nothing. She taught herself how to move again with the aid of Esther Gokhale's movement re-education in a few weeks. Today she is flying around without regard for her back or butt.
Sarno used to agree with me that any intervention could be curative if it allowed people to move past the fear of the pain. His first book said as much. Since then, however, his approach has become far more dogmatic and cultish, and his cure rates have fallen. These are unpleasant facts to the Church of Sarno's disciples, but facts nevertheless. Apparently, ecumenism doesn't sell books as well as dogma. Take a look at the NYT bestsellers list for evidence of that.
If you want self-improvement of any sort, from fitness to education, you just have to do what is necessary to get there. Look at everything through this simple lens and see how their is mental resistance to certain things. People who give up on weight loss or exercise programs do it because they don't want to suffer the discomfort of doing without their favorite foods or the agony of certain exercises, or they fear their racing heart and shortness of breath, or any of a million other things. This resistance is a conditioned recoiling response to imagined discomfort, emotional or physical, the key barrier to healing and what we want in life.
I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.
Ralph Waldo Emerson |
| HilaryN |
Posted - 04/29/2009 : 03:54:49
Hi emama,
There's some advice here about how to approach activities which you associate with pain:
http://tmswiki.wetpaint.com/page/How+to+ignore+crippling+pain
Hilary N |
| emama |
Posted - 04/29/2009 : 00:16:29
thanks for the additional comments.
Hillbilly - i'm interested in your comment about retraining movement. i've done a good deal of alexandar over the years (my sister is a trained practitioner) and lately i've been shying away from it. in part because of sarno's recommendation that you discontinue any form of physical treatment so that the mind doesn't become confused with what the ailment is about.
but also in part because i recently realized that for the 15 or so years i've know about the alexander technique, through its basic principles of awareness of use (of the body) i programmed my brain to believe that my back was weak and my posture was slumped, that i had the wrong curves and insufficient muscles in my legs and abdominals and that i had tight, tension-filled muscles in the shoulders and mid-back - all of which were preventing me from good use and therefore contributing to my back problems and pain.
however, i'd be eager to hear a more positive and helpful take on how to put alexander into a good perspective so that i can use it in my healing process.
have you (or others) had success employing alexander technique principles in retraining movement once the tms pain resolves? can you provide some specifics?
thanks much
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| Matt2364 |
Posted - 04/28/2009 : 20:52:03
This may not be a viable option for you, but I personally experienced the most progress when I would run every morning. I found that days when I would run would be much better pain wise to the days when I did not. I would think really hard about something physical that you can do that you do not experience pain doing. Even try things that you are pretty sure would cause pain and maybe they will not.
I have been terrified of running for years because all of the doctors listed running as the number one thing not to do. Once I read the first book I headed off on my first run and it was terrifying at first, I walked 4-5 blocks before I mustered up the courage to run. It took me 2-3 times before I began to even feel a little bit comfortable with it, but after a few weeks I go out running without evening giving my back a second thought. Sitting in class or studying is a different story, once I master those I am golden. I found that it really helps to find something more strenuous then normal tasks and work at it until you do not have pain and are not afraid of the task. Now that I can run without fear or pain, I can always reference this fact when I am having severe back pain as I am putting on my shoes or something similar. Once I realize that something as strenuous as running does not cause pain it is easy to will away pain from less strenuous activities because it simply does not rationally make any sense. Now, running my not be something that is beneficial to you, but I would find something that scares you and stick with it until you are not afraid of it. I would also recommend reading some of Sarno's books before and after your run or whatever and doing some journaling before and after. Tell yourself what to expect and what is going to happen, you will be pain free while running, etc.
Just a thought, it seemed to help me. Good luck and let us know how it goes. |
| Hillbilly |
Posted - 04/28/2009 : 20:23:06
I personally see great merit in some of the retraining methods like Hanna Somatics, Feldenkrais, Alexander, and especially the new kid on the block, Esther Gokhale. Contrary to popular opinion on this forum and in Dr. Sarno's office, retraining movement is no different from retraining thought. The change has to take place in the brain, as it has become conditioned through reacting to the pain. The unconscious tension-holding patterns that limit muscle activity and keep you fearful are imprinted on your brain. That's why people can recognize you by your posture when they see you standing back-on after they haven't seen you in years.
Movement is absolutely essential to health, and there are programs we run in our head each time we sit, stand, walk, bend, etc. These are no different than the conditioned thoughts. The change must happen in the brain. It happens to some by reading Sarno's book, supplanting the idea "I am not damaged" for the tape that says "I am damaged." If you want to learn a new dance step you think looks cool or how to throw a ball after an elbow injury, the information is imparted first to the brain to retrain the neural impulses. Learning is learning.
I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.
Ralph Waldo Emerson |
| DrewMartin |
Posted - 04/27/2009 : 23:38:05
Hi Emama,
Congratulations on your progress!
It sounds we are on a similar road. I have just recently recovered from back and sciatic pain. The Sarno program worked for me - some residual numbness and a limp due to muscle weakness, but that's it.
Now, I am starting to contemplate the future, returning to skiing, biking, etc. It's a great feeling. Taking walks is OK, but now I am going to start with swimming, then move to yoga and some weight training. After that goes well (thinking positive) I will start with sports and full activity.
Personally, I am so weak from lying down for 6 weeks I wanted to build basic strength and fitness before doing anything else.
I also have some mental fear around this however, as I had two previous TMS attacks that were came on after physical exertion.
My understanding is that, as long as you deeply and truly believe that TMS is the problem, then physical activity will not trigger a relapse. This is Sarno's 100% rule - you have to believe the TMS diagnosis.
There are threads on this forum that talk about doing a daily affirmation before sleep that says the pain was caused by your psyche, that you are healthy and strong. It's almost like TMS awareness becomes a life long undertaking.
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| sarita |
Posted - 04/27/2009 : 16:03:54
hey emama,
right on the first page of the divided mind, sarno describes a case just like you. about the fear of movement.
you will get better and better.
when you fear movements, say to that little nasty thing which does it (the uncoscious): shut up, leave, you had too much power for WEIGH too long. thats part of my personal mantra. everyone discovers whats right for them.
discover your own.
best of luck. and bravo for your progress so far!!! |
| scd1833 |
Posted - 04/26/2009 : 19:20:21
those temporary aches and pains in your knees ankles etc. are actually a sign that the theory is working and the pain moves around to further distract you. keep walking, don't fear the pain, or give any power to the fear. |
| emama |
Posted - 04/24/2009 : 14:26:16
thanks for that suggestion - it's right on track for me - walking has definitely been a good measure of my headway in the past. i am maybe a few days too early though, i've taken walks the last few days and am noticing i'm moving oddly out of fear from the pain and am noticing temporary aches in knees, feet, hips that are sign i'm not ready yet. maybe i'll try wearing an ipod and listen to my favorite radio programs to get my mind off the body.
i liked the idea of waving my arms around while walking - very helpful. i just reread sarno on fear and guess i hadn't really understood before that he says it's an equivalent to the pain so that even when the pain is long gone the fear of movement can linger. i wonder if i actually have some real loss of flexibility since i've basically spent the last 5 years not doing certain movements out of fear (like bending at the waist to touch my shoes).
that will be my goal - being able to sit on the floor and lean forward and grab my toes the way i used to.
thanks
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| scd1833 |
Posted - 04/22/2009 : 20:20:33
I suggest going for some long walks, swing your arms and forget about all the things you've heard about protecting your back, it's all BS! your back is strong, your body is resilient. when I first discovered tms I was an electric motor mechanic with low back pain, so I lifted the motors bending over, with my back, NOT my legs (the "wrong" way) and looked at it as a way to get over the fear of hurting myself again (it didn't hurt to lift "wrong")
don't fear, you're on your way.
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself"-FDR |
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