| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Taoist Pilgrim |
Posted - 05/31/2010 : 14:36:39
Just a general query really. I know one of, if not the hardest thing, to accept with TMS is the concept that our pain is emotional or mind based rather than physical or structural in origin but this is of course much harder if we suffer from a mental disorder such as health anxiety or hypochondria.
I understand that many people who probably have TMS live in crippling pain and search high and low for a physical cure for what they believe is a physical problem but is it easier for them to take the required leap of faith than somebody who is convinced that every ache. pain or bodily sensation is a sign of a serious undiagnosed illness or disease?
Many of my symptoms do fit totally with a psychosomatic/TMS presentation and on one level I totally see how in all probability my symptoms are not originating from a physical illness but due to my extreme hypochondria I just seem totally unable to accept the diagnosis.
So, to the point, is it really going to be possible to accept the TMS diagnosis and allow myself to recover all the time I have this hypochondria? I know Sarno talks about hypochondria and states this is a TMS equivilant, rather interestingly this makes me wonder why I therefore require a pain syndrome if I already have the hypochondria? I understand the importance of actually accepting and understanding Sarno's thesis, I can do the understanding knowledge is power part no worries but my hypochondria just totally gets in the way of the accepting. I have tried various medications and talking therapy for my hypochondria but to no real improvement as I feel I will always have the hypochondria as long as the symptoms remain and of course, the symptoms will always remain if I don't accept that I am fundamentally well. Oh the joy!
I would be grateful for any thoughts on this especially from any forum members who have suffered from TMS alongside hypochondria.
Thanks for taking the time to read.
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| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| art |
Posted - 02/04/2011 : 09:18:06
"I cannot tell you what your reason is I’m afraid, that is the key to recovery, finding out your reason and addressing it directly and not falling for the smoke and mirrors (TMS) that hypochondria constantly fools you with."
I'd only quibble with this notion that there's some key specific to each individual, and absent such a key recovery won't happen...
I'm of the school (and it's a pretty big school these days) that reasons are not as important as actions and behaviors (including thoughts) in the present day.
Especially in the case of OCD, we're talking generally about a neurological tic. Meds do work in concert with appropriate therapy.
JUst to be clear, this is not to say everyone needs meds, or even that everyone needs therapy, or that hypochondria is always OCD.
But OCD is called the "doubter's disease" for a reason. No matter how many times an OCD person checks the stove, or is reassured by a physician, or rattles a doorknob to be sure it's locked, doubts remain. . |
| skizzik |
Posted - 02/04/2011 : 06:50:22
I posted here on this thread last night and it got deleted, weird.
Anyways, I feel all the "let go" stuff can only happen when you feel good about life. And I'm not talkin about "positive thinking, rah, rah stuff."
And for that, I reccoment the books "the Secret" and "the Power" by Rhonda Byrne  |
| Taoist Pilgrim |
Posted - 02/04/2011 : 06:04:55
Jena
I cannot belittle your situation and would not underestimate it for a split second as I suffered with hypochondria/health anxiety/somatisation for well over 3 years and know full well how all encompassing and consuming it is. It was, without a doubt, the worst experience of my life(at the time).
Getting onto the subject of recovery, seeing it as an experience was a huge part of the recovery process. For 3 years I allowed myself to become a helpless victim who was being controlled by my symptoms and aches and pains…it was my choice to dwell on them and ultimately overcatastrophise them and it is only with hindsight that I realise that I did this for a reason…I cannot tell you what your reason is I’m afraid, that is the key to recovery, finding out your reason and addressing it directly and not falling for the smoke and mirrors (TMS) that hypochondria constantly fools you with.
When I look back say 6 months I do not recognise the person I was….well, that is not totally true, I recognise the person but the thoughts and behaviours seem alien to me, this is why I no longer visit forums such as these on anything like a regular basis as the mindset etc that I thought I fitted so well no longer seems to make any sense to me…in short, you are in a club and all clubs have rules and behaviours that must be adhered to, once you adopt these rules and behaviours they start to appear logical and the norm….yes, you start to belong.
I do think there comes a point where you have to take that leap of faith and trust in your bodies ability to be well at this moment in time…there are no guarantees for the future and you certainly cannot control it so you have to ALLOW yourself to put aside you being the one and only custodian and guardian of your health…your body will do quite nicely on it’s own thank you very much.
Once you start to accept and recover I guarantee you will be totally gob smacked just how tuned in to your body you have become and how you have over estimated all these aches, pains and ailments…once they lose the false importance you have placed on them they can literally melt away before your eyes, I will always remain amazed as to the effect the mind can have on our body and more importantly our perception of our health and body.
There are no easy answers I’m afraid but that is the point. For whatever reason this is where you are at this point of your life and I can say with 100% conviction that YOUR reason is where recovery is found…all the anxiety, hypochondria, aches, pains and cogitation are but the tip of the iceberg and all the while you chuck everything at this element you are missing the bigger picture.
I think it was somebody on here who quoted something along the lines of…
“Whatever your symptoms are, carry them with you as they will not lie to you”
…well, this is it in a nutshell…your symptoms are not lying to you but you are merely not listening to them properly, seriously, embrace them and allow yourself to walk with them fear free and you will be amazed at the what happens.
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| Jena |
Posted - 02/04/2011 : 05:27:02
How do I recover? Also, how'd you recover? |
| art |
Posted - 02/04/2011 : 05:11:42
Jena,
The extreme hypochondria you describe is a form of OCD and should be treated as such in my opinion...usually by a combination of anti-depressants and therapy.
It's a terribly painful way to live and my heart goes out to you. But you can recover!
A. |
| Taoist Pilgrim |
Posted - 02/04/2011 : 01:35:00
Being the OP who asked the original question, the simple answer is it was the hypochondria.
Fully recovered and living my life hand in hand with the aches and pains that are part of our everyday experience.
Make of that what you will... |
| Jena |
Posted - 02/03/2011 : 22:22:41
I am 25 years old and suffer VERY bad from hypochondria. I always ALWAYS think I have cancer, autoimmune diseases, going to go blind, deaf, heart attacks, heart disease, brain aneurysms, MS, Lupus, Sarcoidosis, Lymphoma, Sjogrens, ALS, and the list goes on. I have symptoms of some of these diseases however my tests come up negative. I cry everyday. I talk to a therapist. I obsess over cures that the government wont let out. I have OCD. I know so much about diseases now I could have been a doctor or scientist. I thought we could talk. PLease message me or email me. I feel so alone because hypochondria is one of the worst things you can have. Constantly thinking ur dieing is horrible. |
| art |
Posted - 09/08/2010 : 11:13:10
hs,
The fear never goes away completely in my experience. Try to take the long view, understand your history and how that relates to current situation....
What helps me is that many mainstream sports docs (that is, non-tms espousing types) are now believing that it's frequently best to run through tendonitis anyway.....So, you see, you're covered from a couple of angles now... |
| hsb |
Posted - 09/04/2010 : 16:10:59
hi
sorry about the lump. glad you are getting that taken care of.
my hamstring is getting worse. i have had a history of hamstring issues in the past and of course they took months to heal. i do believe it is from the biking. i ran this morning and things are worse. i am planning on taking a bike ride tomorrow morning. i just cannot believe that i started biking in june to cross train because of achilles and now i'm "injured" from it. i know there is the possibility of saddle issues, positioning, etc. but darn it, it's not running. i am not even over the achilles stuff.
i will challenge this but alas the fear is back. |
| wrldtrv |
Posted - 09/02/2010 : 20:19:43
Hsb,
It's good to hear you are making progress on your achilles. You're right; the hamstring is a scary area, but probably not scarier than the achilles.
Yes, it does seem to be one thing after another and I don't think it is any accident. For me anyway, I seem to strongly require a physical symptom at nearly all times in order to to distract me from where my life is at 56. I understand the pattern, but it is very, very exhausting!
This week I will effortlessly put in probably more miles than ever (50 plus). Meanwhile, none of the usual chronic things, eg hamstring, pf... Instead, a few days ago I discovered a lump in my testicle and had an ultrasound that fortunately found it to be a benign and very common spermatacele (cyst), which is quite harmless. Doesn't matter. Hearing that good news didn't make me feel much better because the thought of the lump there made me squeamish and paranoid and I wanted it gone. Now, I can't keep my attention off the area and think it feels a little sore, but I can't be sure. Oh well, and next month a PSA and probably another urology visit (earlier in the year a high PSA, a biopsy--completely normal)...I wanted to leave it at that, but of course, they want you to stay on the treadmill awhile longer. The thought of an unending string of symptoms for the next 30 or 40 yrs sounds very exhausting indeed! |
| hsb |
Posted - 09/02/2010 : 13:32:01
hi art-
i did not take spin class last night, figured i wouldn't irritate hammie. yes you're right the enemies keep popping up. had the hamstring thing before and it's scary. but i did run this morning. and i will try to bike this weekend. god it's always something to stress about - wrld you talked about this.
thanks |
| art |
Posted - 09/02/2010 : 10:57:04
hs,
You have to find a way to understand and accept that you're always going to get the "next thing." It's the nature of the beast. Running through this supposedly chronic condition of yours is a great victory, but it's only a single battle in the larger war against TMS.
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| hsb |
Posted - 09/01/2010 : 13:17:27
Hi Art and Wrld.
So i have been running a bit more. i would say the achilles pain is more low grade now. it's definitely there but i am running through for sure. i think somewhat better but not nearly 100%.
i have been biking alot more these days. i am not a big biker - too uncomfortable. it bothers my neck and back and i was fitted for the bike.
i have been riding some pretty steep hills and last saturday i tried to stay in the big chain ring (harder to pedal). guess what - yesterday my hamstring started bothering me. i do NOT think it is from the running. i have had hamstring issues in the past (a couple of times) and they stink (art you should know that). those lasted a long time as per my usual. TMS panic is starting to set in. always does at the beginning of something. i know you guys can relate. i am going to go to a spin class tonight and see what transpires.
my brain is saying, "here we go again". |
| art |
Posted - 08/19/2010 : 10:37:01
hs,
That it's not worse is fantastic. You've rested it for months and months. Keep running! I have pain much of the time, but it only bothers me the extent I pay attention to it.
Happy for you/ You've come a long way.
A> |
| wrldtrv |
Posted - 08/18/2010 : 20:07:46
Hi Art & HSB,
Better to be staying in the game (activity) in some way. That's its own success.
I'm doing pretty well. The pf I've had on/off since March no longer intimidates me and I no longer even bother icing it. I can go for days at a time with no symptoms and then it pops up for a few hours or day and disappears again. I did a very hilly trail run today; my goal was to keep running (no walking) until I reached top, which I did. I reached almost 100 degrees this afternoon, but was only in the 80's when I ran. I love it.
Meanwhile, the back "injury" is pretty much gone too, but, like the pf, symptoms pop up randomly. I'm no longer worried about it. |
| hsb |
Posted - 08/18/2010 : 12:39:11
hi art-
i'm still here!!! thanks for checking up.
i am still running albeit with the achilles pain. i would have to say it hasn't gotten worse but not better. is that good or bad??? who knows? i still have my thoughts about this tendonosis being a "forever" thing as the doctors and info says. i also still think about taking tons and tons of time off but i have sort of done that already but really don't want to do that.
so i plod along in pain. it's not like it's excruciating, but not all that fun. as i have written in the past - i love running and this pain makes it not so much fun. i am somewhat calmer now because i am trying not to catastrophize, perhaps it is more "resignation". one day i hope the pain will just disappear as it has in the past.
glad you are still out there running art. and wrld - 20 milers - i'm jealous!!! |
| art |
Posted - 08/18/2010 : 09:08:05
It's been a rotten summer all things considered. I'm running, but speed seems to make the hammie worse, so I'm basically just limping along..
Wonder how HSB is doing??? |
| wrldtrv |
Posted - 08/17/2010 : 20:12:20
Glad to hear it, Art. Keep up the good work! |
| art |
Posted - 08/13/2010 : 11:54:56
i decided to skip it when I went out for a successful run. So far so good, except for a few scary twinges like today. Ran anyway.
It's a dog's life :>) |
| wrldtrv |
Posted - 08/12/2010 : 19:21:07
Art--Maybe I missed it, but did you get your mri results? |
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