| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Plantweed |
Posted - 09/16/2009 : 09:35:32
I went back and ready every one of your posts (yes, I'm obsessive like everyone else here...it can be a positive trait if used correctly!), and I just wanted to thank you for sharing your story and insight. Your posts really clicked with me. Have been struggling with the Sarno method for a good two or three years, with pain coming and going. You made me realize, and give hope, that I don't have to worry about being a walking nerve ending, constantly battling with myself over what to feel, digging around in the subconscious inner-child murk for feelings that may or may not be there. I don't need it. By simply realizing my pain is nothing more than a different kind of panic attack (I had a couple of those) and that I can consciously control it, I've turned a corner and I'm finally coming off a rough summer of bad LBP, confused emotions, and general funk. I feel like my old self again, and while still in pain, I don't mind it so much. If I bend or twist a certain way and get a sharp pain, instead of freezing with panic like I always did, I laugh a little to myself and purposely do the exact same move again. Guess what? I doesn't hurt any worse, and usually hurts less. Working on confronting the conditioned pain. It's so dopey...I can ride a 500-lb motorcycle but I'm scared to mow the lawn or put on socks on the edge of the bed?
While you are somewhat at odds with the Sarno canon, I think at the root you are using the same method, just in a different way, and pared down.
Your posts gave me the power I needed and a path to go down. Just wanted to publicly acknowledge that. Thanks a million! |
| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| miche |
Posted - 09/18/2009 : 11:16:46
Not talking about the fact that I am in pain is a constant struggle , how to answer " How are you ? "
I have come to realise that if I pretend I am fine people will have expectations of me that I cannot meet, I feel like I have to explain why I cannot fill the constant role of caregiver that was always expected of me , otherwise people will think I am purposely letting them down and will think less of me.
I know that statement alone means I am seriously messed up but I don't know how else to explain it. |
| winnieboo |
Posted - 09/18/2009 : 10:34:11
Being that I seem to be in dire straits again, I took a page from Plantweed's book and went back through your posts as well, Hillbilly. They seriously calmed me down. It's taken me a long time to understand myself and my anxiety and somatization, etc., but you have a lot of wisdom, so thank you for sharing it.
And Plantweed, my husband has recently been barking at me: "stop talking about your health all the time!" (affectionately, if that's possible). I've often thought that telling someone will make me feel better, but it actually just makes whatever I'm feeling seem more real. I do better when I'm able to focus on something else. |
| Plantweed |
Posted - 09/18/2009 : 07:05:49
I have a more specific question: Do y'all think it's good to stop talking to your spouse about how your back feels? Does it make it harder to ignore when you bring it up, or if someone asks how it is, instead of brushing them off you're honest about the pain? I'm getting the feeling I should stop even mentioning it. It becomes like a daily pain thermometer, which probably gives it power. Did I answer my own question?  |
| Hillbilly |
Posted - 09/17/2009 : 09:04:51
Thanks, PW and hundreth, although I can't claim license to my postings. They were the result of digesting the thoughts of the wise on this and other topics over the years during and since the period of self-induced suffering I experienced.
"One original thought is worth a thousand mindless quotings."
This from my favorite ancient philosopher, Diogenes of Sinope. Compare this to the Emerson "quotation about quotations" on my sig. Why are we so afraid to challenge thought, refine theories and test them to make them stand up against honest criticism? I believe that where TMS is concerned, the doctor has conditioned thought in such a way in his approach that deviation from the prescribed treatment plan is looked upon as self-sabotage, certain failure, and more fear is the result more often than not.
I guess the end of all this is really just recognizing and accepting realities within us that are perhaps not flattering, and rather than straining to keep them hidden, learning to laugh about them, understand that they are not uncommon, and getting on with life.
I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.
Ralph Waldo Emerson |
| hundreth |
Posted - 09/16/2009 : 16:02:24
The dude seriously saved my ass as well. I still have symptoms myself and have a hard time abolishing them. The fact that I understand why these problems occur from a scientific standpoint has made the difference for me. I no longer go insane trying to understand my condition, I can now focus on forgetting about it, which is a contradiction I need to figure out how to get around.
In any event, there aren't many people on this planet who have been able to make the connection between chronic pain and stress who are also aware of theories ranging from TMS to trigger point therapy to fixing bad posture.
We all went through the crazy phase of researching our symptoms like mad. This man found all the same solutions we did, tried them all, and came out the other side using what seems to be the most rational approach.
I salute you. |
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