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jvalentine18
4 Posts |
 Posted - 03/06/2007 : 18:12:29
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I posted a topic a few days ago about my 10-month old iliotibial band syndrome (a common running injury.) I am starting to believe that is has to be TMS because of several things:
1. i began running while recovering from anorexia. For me, there was no in-between, healing process that occured for my eating disorder, rather i just kind of got into running to relieve the anxiety i felt as i knew i had to gain weight. My anorexia (like all eating disorders) was a way for my mind to distract me from REAL issues regarding my childhood, family, social life, etc.
2. The day of my "injury" i thought to myself "now i can't work out! oh no! what am i going to do!!!" I was in a panic, so i went to the gym and lifted weights in pain. I used this to explain to doctors that lifting weights while "injured" just made me more "injured", but now i see that it is just another component to my compulsive personality and need to overdo things.
3. Shortly after accepting the diagnosis of iliotibial band syndrome, i began doing extensive research on the "injury" and seeing many doctors who made me feel weaker. 3 rounds of physical therapy, and i am still in pain (at times)
4. A few weeks of feeling in a deep depression from not being able to run (which was my one passion, my "drug"/addiction) i started to go in the opposite direction of anorexia, and i started to binge-eat. Currently, i still do this. I've tried to examine all the possible reasons why i do this and my brain thinks that now that i can't run i'm destined to be a fat failure (rediculous). My binge-eating is really just a coverup for the fact that my passion for running was taken away and now i feel lost, lonely, insecure, and i feel like i have no identity without either an eating disorder or the label of "runner".
5. I have dysfunctional relationships with almost every member of my family originating from childhood. Now that i have just begun to explore this in therapy (starting before my "injury") my brain wants an easier way to deal with the pain, alas, TMS!
So now...how do i ignore everything i've read about treating iliotibial band syndrome and ignore my physical abnormalities of the hips and knee? |
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armchairlinguist
USA
1397 Posts |
Posted - 03/06/2007 : 18:37:22
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jvalentine, have you read any books or other material dealing with TMS? Usually they have suggestions about what to do. Sarno is where to start if you haven't read the recent ones yet, and there's Sopher, Schechter, and Amir after that, if you want!
It is mostly a matter of consistently sending yourself the message that the pain is harmless (verbally, mentally), refocusing on the psychological when the pain attempts to distract you, and resuming normal activity gradually. Journaling (one of the most common ways of "focusing on the psychological") and self-talk techniques can be found all over the board -- try a few searches.
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Wherever you go, there you are. |
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carbar
USA
227 Posts |
Posted - 03/06/2007 : 20:46:07
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Sounds like you've got a healthy understanding of what TMS is and how your injury is manifesting itself. I believe there is a clear link between the thinking that leads to eating disorder and to TMS related pain. (I dealt with my injury losses by binge eating, too, and I feel called to this habit when I'm stressed now.)
I definitely recommend starting with Mindbody Perscription by John Sarno to get on track with dealing with TMS. This book is easy to read, you can probly consume it in a few hours. Then, it's great to go back and reread and follow Sarno's advice. The other books ACL mentions have lots of rec's from people on the board. The Rapid Recovery from Pain book (that's Amir) right has lots of prompts for journalling and a really good formula for "retraining" the brain.
Good luck and welcome to the board!
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whitris
USA
26 Posts |
Posted - 03/06/2007 : 21:18:12
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| I had Ill. band syndrome. I think it is possible to get that injury for real...one day I ran hard with new shoes, biked hard and went dancing and the next day I needed crutches. BUT it never totally healed and I had to just about give up running. Now, 17 years later, I am completely convinced it was TMS. After realizing that I went for a run and felt no pain. There is definitely the memory of pain there, but that is all. I play tennis hard and always did...hiking and skiing is OK except when I start to worry about my ITB. So, I think you are on the right track. I was transferring anger/worry/fear to my ITB injury and it hurt on cue. |
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change of thought
