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Albert
USA
210 Posts |
 Posted - 01/06/2005 : 17:16:42
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How do I convince myself it's psychological?
-I've been telling myself that it isn't physical because 1) if it was physical, the pain wouldn't move around like it does, 2) I have pain where no physical abnormalities can be found, and 3) if it were due to physical problems, parts of my body that hurt before, wouldn't feel so good and normal now.
-I've been telling myself it's psychological because 1) if it isn't physical, what else could it be, 2) things such as blushing, stuttering, increased heart rate and hyperventalating have an emotional cause, so why not my pain, and 3) the mind and body are one, therefore it is possible that the unconscious mind and autonomic mind are connected together.
Yet I still have doubts. Perhaps I'm rushing things. After all, I've been at this for just a little more than a week. Feels like much longer, the way I've been fanatical about it. I cancelled my remaining physical therapy appointments. It is hard to see the point in them now, except the exercises give me new ways to test myself, to redo the limited movement conditioning thing. |
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Dave
USA
1864 Posts |
Posted - 01/06/2005 : 18:06:36
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Do not go overboard trying to "convince" yourself. Re-read Dr. Sarno's book over and over and the concepts will slowly sink in. It will take weeks or months before your stubborn unconscious gives in. Take a long-term view, or else you will get frustrated with day-to-day variability of symptoms and lack of apparent progress.
TMS is mostly dependent on your personality and makeup. Dr. Sarno's diagnosis is based less on his physical examination than on his psychological interview. If you fit the "goodist" or "perfectionist" mold then chances are your pain is TMS. |
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jeffrey
Canada
13 Posts |
Posted - 01/06/2005 : 18:10:24
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hey albert,
we are in the exact same boat right now. i am suffering from the same pains you are. i am just really comprehending this as well. I only started yesterday. but i do think i have convinced myself already that this is physiological. it doesn't take time. just do what the book says. yesterday i said screw it all and i went and played hockey. can you believe it? i was so happy too. it was painful but i know the pain wasn't coming from the activity. it didn't go away but it really eased up and by back is feeling very reasonable today. doesn't look like the hockey injured it. just take the plunge, it will change your life.
jeff |
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jeffrey
Canada
13 Posts |
Posted - 01/06/2005 : 18:13:20
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| whoops. i guess what i say contradicts what dave is saying. i guess it depends on a lot of things. the only thing i am saying is that time is not an issue when dealing with this. |
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Baseball65
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 09:04:02
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Hi Albert.
I don't think we convince ourselves...the world we see and the stuff around us does all the convincing.It's like an intuitive axiom,not unlike others we all know,but can't explain.
I'm not entirely sure that convincing yourself would be a GOOD thing either....because if you COULD convince yourself,you could UNconvince yourself.The subconscious,as Sarno points out in HBP,is lumbering and slow....and that's a good thing! Otherwise we would be very unstable animals.....
The same part of you that is taking a while to be convinced will be the same part of you that never again believes in the structural mythology.
I was convinced after one reading....and than had doubts,and re-read and was convinced...and than had doubts,and so on,and so on.....until a month later,the symptoms faded.
One more thing...on that string about the bed....Beds don't cause backpain,unless you have subconsciouly repressed anger against beds.I have slept on the FLOOR and had a good nights sleep since reading the book.......and so did millions of other peasants before the last century.Backpain had been a boondoggle for the mattress industry!
I guess I was lucky....except for right before I went to sleep,I never had any pain when I slept...otherwise I would have had to uncondition that as well.
You've come quite a long way in the week or so you've been doing this!
-out
Baseball65 |
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Dave
USA
1864 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 09:40:23
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quote:
Originally posted by jeffrey
whoops. i guess what i say contradicts what dave is saying. i guess it depends on a lot of things. the only thing i am saying is that time is not an issue when dealing with this.
No, it doesn't. Your attitude is great. "Take the plunge."
Our intellect can be a barrier. Don't overthink TMS. Just follow the rules: repudiate the structural diagnosis, shift your thoughts to your emotions when you are aware of the pain, and resume physical activity. You will be "convinced" when it starts working, which could be a few days, a few weeks, or a few months. |
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Albert
USA
210 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 09:58:12
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Thank you all.
I have had some progress. Examples:
-I dropped a dime on the floor this morning. A couple of weeks ago I would had left it there. This morning part of my mind said no, but I picked it up anyway without problem. When part of my mind has been telling me not to do things, I've been doing them anyway.
-Taking a shower was a problem, because my last really bad back spasms started there. But I'm almost back to normal when it comes to showering.
-My chair at work supposedly used to be the source of pain, but I've been doing fine with it. The same is true of my car seat.
-I still feel stiffness when I stand up, but when my mind tells me to do so only when absolutely necessary, I disobey it and tell it I'm going to keep getting up until it decides (my mind) to quit it's game.
-For over 2 months I was getting just 3-4 hours of sleep a night. This is because I'd wake up with pain and figured that I'd better get up before it gets really bad. Now I'm staying in bed despite the pain and it doesn't get worse. It seems to be feeling a little bit better each day. This morning I had a little stiffness, but no spasms or jolting pains.
-I have had some success with telling the pain to stop (I'll yell at it, question it etc.)
I still have some work to do. I don't know how long it will take. But I do seem to be getting better. A part of my mind is saying "Ah, you would have gotten better anyway." But it can't say that about my understanding, and it can't say that about my attemps to overcome old barriers. |
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Albert
USA
210 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 10:04:18
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I never been officially diagnosed with TMS. I don't know what else it could be. Going by how the symptons manifest, I seem to have it. I am definitely a "goodist." The "perfectionist" part isn't as obvious, but I do see some signs of it.
quote:
Originally posted by Dave
TMS is mostly dependent on your personality and makeup. Dr. Sarno's diagnosis is based less on his physical examination than on his psychological interview. If you fit the "goodist" or "perfectionist" mold then chances are your pain is TMS.
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Albert
USA
210 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 10:05:45
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I also have a number of tender spots in my lower back area. I haven't checked the rest of my body.
[quote]Originally posted by Albert
I never been officially diagnosed with TMS. I don't know what else it could be. Going by how the symptons manifest, I seem to have it. I am definitely a "goodist." The "perfectionist" part isn't as obvious, but I do see some signs of it.
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Dave
USA
1864 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 11:35:38
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Don't worry about the diagnosis, just do the work. You're doing all the right things. Treat the pain with disdain, fight your conditioning.
If I was a gambler I'd bet you had TMS. You have nothing to lose by giving yourself over to the diagnosis. If your personality fits the traits described in the book, I am sure Dr. Sarno would diagnose you with TMS despite the physical manifestations. |
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Stryder
686 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2005 : 23:11:40
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Dave as usual has hit the TMS on the head.
Keep the faith. Don't fight the pain, don't try to figure it out. Let it hurt, accept it, do the TMS work faithfully and you WILL over time unlearn the what you need to unlearn.
Take care, -Stryder |
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How do I convince myself it's psychological?
