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stefan
56 Posts |
 Posted - 03/04/2009 : 13:04:38
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Just wanted to share my story. Do any of you have had similar experiences?
I have an ongoing love/hate relationship with my coffee. There are times you better not get in the way between me and my cup of joe. And there are definitely times when I say, Ahaa I've been duped again!!! Here's what I mean.
Too much of a coincidence. I can tell you about scores of times I have come down with real sicknesses because of over-indulging in coffee.
I have observed this phenomenon even before reading any of Dr. Sarno's books. Granted, I attributed it to physical interaction instead of psychological.
For example, I would have arthritic pain in my thumb, it would last until I ceased drinking coffee. I had another incident with foot pain, same thing.
There was that one time I got chicken pox, for the second time in my life. I was about 25 yrs old. 4 to 6 cups of coffee every day.
Then the not-so-common cold. Several times a year.
Also the sinus infections and the seasonal allergies that last through all seasons. The more coffee the worse the symptoms.
The dandruff. More coffee equals more symptoms.
Pimples, deep under the skin, the kind that turn red and shiny without being able to come through. Nothing like that happens when I stay off caffeine.
When I indulge in large amounts of coffee/caffeinated drinks my hair falls out. When I stop, my hairdresser says: "Oh you have new growth, are you doing anything different"? Huh, huh.
I love to work out but when I drink coffee regularly my workout suffers. I bench press less, etc.
I can usually tell when symptoms are coming on and with years of experience I can manipulate the outcome somewhat. Sort of like coming really close to the edge of a cliff and choosing to jump or turn around and go the other way.
Especially since I've read Sarno's books I can keep things at bay, I can fight symptoms much longer but eventually I do get wore down.
I remember an article in the Time magazine about scientists using insects and spiders for studies, (more humane than larger animals, I guess). The scientists would observe a spider spinning its web, they would destroy the web and watch it rebuild it. They would sometimes spray different substances on the spider and see what happens. The Time magazine had one picture of a normal spiderweb and another of one spun after the spider was sprayed with caffeine. The latter had missing strands, it was incomplete. (I thought it should be the same only spun much faster)
There are a lot of posts on this forum about caffeine in the discussions and I do appreciate the input though usually they are just a sidepoint. There are also many studies done about the benefits and dangers of too much caffeine.
Caffeine is a drug, though drugs have an effect on the physical their main effect is the mental. The realm of TMS.
Just like the spider in the Time magazine, otherwise normal, now doing what it thinks is the normal yet missing the mark, is our psyche like a drugged delusional individual, incoherent, mumbling and raging?
Even in my conscious I am more irritated, impatient, I tend to be more OCD-like. I get tired easier and others around me find me less agreeable and harder to get along with.
There are some people who have a sensitivity to caffeine and once they are past their tolerable limit, one can induce panic attacks in them.
Wow, you're still reading?
Anyhow, what do you think, how does it relate to TMS???
Thanks.
Ars Longa Vita Brevis |
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tcherie
72 Posts |
Posted - 03/04/2009 : 14:01:10
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The most coffee I would drink would be two a day. One in the morning and one in the evening if I was working past 5:30. I got off coffee about three years ago, when I had to have it or I would develop a headache. I didn't like anything controlling me like that. So I just stopped, endured a three day headache and have been off ever since.
Now how it relates to TMS. Looking back I was probably started to suffer from fatigue which is why I needed the coffee. I still get tired sometimes during the work day, but I work through it.
Your coffee intake seems unusually high. Are you sure you are not dealing with some type of fatigue which is a manifestation of TMS? Are you willing to cut back on coffee? It seems like based on what you posted in the long run you do much better when you are not on it. |
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positivevibes
204 Posts |
Posted - 03/04/2009 : 16:14:29
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I'm a woman. Typically I didn't used to drink a lot of coffee. Maybe one or two cups of something with caffeine per day. About 10 years ago my family and I went to Hawaii and I really enjoyed this chocolate macadamia nut coffee that I made every morning. I brought it home and drank it every day. Then my breasts began hurting and started feeling lumpy. The pain was so bad, I couldn't even hug my kids. I wound up going to several specialists, scared that something terrible was wrong. Turns out, I had fibrocystic breast "disease" (it's not really a disease, its just a condition). It's totally benign, but is often made much worse by....CAFFEINE!
So, I totally cut caffeine out of my diet, and after one month of being caffeine-free, my breasts did not hurt anymore and everything went back to normal. I later found out that several of my female relatives have the same problem.
In addition, I have found that as I've gotten older (I'm 48), my tolerance for caffeine has been reduced. I can't have any caffeine after 3 p.m. or it keeps me up at night. And if I have more than one cup of something caffeinated per day, I become extremely anxious. This is probably because of my thyroid problem.
But in a nutshell, I will tell you that I treat caffeine like a drug. Because it IS a drug. It's a stimulant. Think about it. Think about how, every time you drink regular coffee, tea, cola, or eat large amounts of dark chocolate, you're giving your body "speed."
My body is 99% caffeine free. I drink decaf and herbal teas. I only "use" caffeine if I feel I need a bit of an energy boost if I am very tired....and I use it very sparingly.
As to how it relates to TMS....well, the caffeine is wiring your nervous system, so draw your own conclusions. Do some research on how caffeine affects the body. |
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LuvtoSew
USA
327 Posts |
Posted - 03/04/2009 : 16:45:29
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| my breasts hurt before my period too and it was related to the coffee, which by the way caffeine leeches magnesium out of your system which also caused me cramps. |
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stefan
56 Posts |
Posted - 03/04/2009 : 20:53:01
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LuvtoSew, thank you for taking the time to read my lengthy story and I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and the affirmation of what I know deep down inside but need to hear it from someone else.
Hi tcherie! Thanks for your encouragement. You're right, I hate to have anyone or anything controlling me either. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. Lately I drink about 2 cups, very strong though. If I have any more I get instant TMS symptoms, some very weird. I will cut back though, maybe even do without. I know there are a lot of people out there who enjoy coffee and it doesn't seem to be affecting them the way it does me, more power to them. Unfortunately I just need to remember I'm one of those it does have a negative effect on.
Positivevibes, thank you for sharing your experience. I guess I'm one of those people who over-analyze everything and I just need to know how stuff works. For example, my experimenting with the cause and effect of caffeine. It's almost an obsession. OK, it is an obsession. :) I appreciated seeing your words in writing, that who cares HOW this drug works and its effect on the mind/psyche, what's important is that it is messing with my nervous system in a negative way and there is no way I can win in the end. Like you, winning for me is being 99% caffeine free. Thank you.
It would be nice to have everything figured out like a simple diagram of a motor. But our brains/hearts are much more complicated and we may never know exactly how they work, but thankfully we have stumbled onto something that most people are either unwilling or unable to admit or comprehend.
Ars Longa Vita Brevis |
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justme
63 Posts |
Posted - 03/05/2009 : 08:51:14
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I cut caffeine out a long time ago. Here is why (I theorize). Caffeine affects the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system is very closely tied in with the way that Sarno explains the evolution of TMS symtoms.
Ironically the thing that helps me most with any TMS symptom I get is klonopin. That's because klonopin has a dampening affect on the autonomic nervous system. Caffeine, I believe, has the exact oppposite affect. |
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stefan
56 Posts |
Posted - 03/06/2009 : 22:59:29
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justme, do you mean as in any TMS symptom? Even physical, not just mental symptoms?
The reason I ask is that when I'm all nerved up and stressed out from caffeine, I'll always be short of breath. For example, like I can't finish a sentence without running out of air. Understandably my mind is causing a symptom that is very physical.
Or worse yet, I'll get these arthritic symptoms in my hand and for example my thumb will swell and stay that way until I quit drinking coffee and a couple of days later the swelling and pain are completely gone.
Ars Longa Vita Brevis |
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vicky
5 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2009 : 03:33:30
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Hi - I just wanted to share my experience, that for many years I was attributing my strange and changing symptoms to what I had eaten or drunk, giving up different things, doing the anti candida diet etc. and for me I had to see it was, and still can be, a really strong distraction from my emotions. I had books galore and read countless forums, looking for what the cause could be. I can still get into the mindset very easily, and recently gave up dairy again for a month, thinking I would feel 'better', and of course I did feel great at first, but then the symptoms creep back, and show themselves to be nothing to do with that at all. So I am back to focussing on the psychological, and believing - knowing! - that my body is strong and resilient, and is capable of dealing with anything 'normal' that I eat or drink.
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Peg
USA
284 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2009 : 10:46:19
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Well said Vicky, I agree.
That said, if one feels jittery after too much coffee or soda, it makes sense to cut down.
Anything in moderation.
Best,
Peg
In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual. Galileo Galilei |
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vicky
5 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2009 : 11:11:29
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Of course, I suppose its all about balance, and trying to move away from obsessing.
And by the way, Peg, I always find your posts very inspiring, thanks.
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tcherie
72 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2009 : 12:59:28
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I personally think the classic combination to feeling good is diet, exercise, and attitude/stress reduction.
While TMS is focused alot on emotions. I do think other health factors can be affected by diet and exercise. Dealing with emotions only helps the things that are related to emotions. Some things in our life may be affected by all three.
I have also been following an anti-candida diet. The diet helped me get over some things before I discovered TMS. Doing the TMS work is helping me get over the things that diet and exercise just do not address alone. |
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Peg
USA
284 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2009 : 17:22:17
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Thanks for the kind words Vicky. You're so right balance is the key.
tcherie makes a good point as well about nutrition and exercise. I don't like the D word. You know what the first three letters spell?
I admit, I'm guilty of thinking about the emotional realm so much that I forget to make time for activity. I just think that exercise is best when it is something you enjoy.
It doesn't help when you're snowed in. I know, I know, that's just an excuse.
Best,
Peg
In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual. Galileo Galilei |
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stefan
56 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2009 : 07:27:07
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I agree with all of you about being balanced, after all we are one unit, the mind can affect the body and the body can affect the mind.
In other words if our emotional state is unbalanced, our minds can be the cause of physical symptoms including illness, so in the same vain if we're imbalanced in physical ways let's say for argument's sake only eating junk food we have to expect that our minds will eventually be affected in a negative way as well.
There was a good movie done a few years back, "Supersize me" I believe, where in the extras there was a segment where they visited a school where all the rejects were sent, the low achievers, low grades, unruly children. One of the things decided was to change the meals to a more healthy homestyle type, no doubt there were other contributing factors but after several months the grades went up and the school was safer, the children better behaved.
Just to re-iterate my point in starting this thread is that it seems to me, and I'm a firm believer in psychosomatic effect, that drugs somehow amplify what's going on in the psyche and it is harder at least for me to resist the effects.
Ars Longa Vita Brevis |
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Caffeine/Coffee a Bullhorn for TMS?
