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km118
USA
15 Posts |
 Posted - 08/27/2012 : 20:34:44
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I am 17 years old, and have been riddled with pain starting in my buttocks when i was 13, and over the last 4 years has traveled down my leg causing severe pain. (Please don' laugh me off because I'm young- I know this. However I deal with chronic pain daily that has negatively affected EVERY area of my life. I need your help). The past few months the pain has crept up my back and into my shoulder. Please note that this is on my right side only. My pain was dull & annoying for several years, but the past year has been chronic and severe. I was extremely active before the pain became severe, participating in varsity soccer and cross country and running year round. I won't bore you with my medical history but trust that I have had several MRIs, X-RAY's, nerve tests, and seen just about every specialist in the book. NOTHING has worked, at all.
I picked up Dr.Sarno's book Healing Back Pain two days ago and I'm nearly positive that I have TMS, I see myself on every page. I have cancelled all my upcoming doctor's and physical therapy appointments, and began journaling about my past and my anger & anxiety to truly commit to curing this syndrome. I have a few questions I am hoping to find help answering.
1) I have not had any significant change in the pain level- is this normal?
2)Is it possible to have TMS at such a young age? I am so sure that I have it because nothing shows up on any of my medical tests, and no treatment helps me. But in Dr.Sarno's book I only read about middle aged patients.
3) Where do I go from here? Do I seek professional help? How do I conquer this syndrome?
4) Before today I had not excercised for 11 months. I ran today(gosh I am out of shape), and I felt pain but just kept telling myself that it is my subconcious trying to reject the activity. Any advice on how to get active again, or is it too soon to be doing this type of activity when I haven't experienced pain relief yet?
5) Is it possible for TMS to only affect one side of my body? The right side is the only side I have symptoms on. But trust me, these symptoms are chronic and so horrible.
Thank you! Any help would be awesome! |
Edited by - km118 on 08/27/2012 20:41:14 |
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drh7900
USA
194 Posts |
Posted - 08/28/2012 : 09:39:16
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Km118 - I am overjoyed to see someone so young here. Why? Because it means that you have an opportunity to avoid going through your 20s and 30s etc with all that chronic pain that has plagued you for the last 4 years. I was injured when I was 19...and if I knew then what I knew now, I would have had a much different life, so far (that might be both good and bad! lol). Here I am, getting ready to turn 33, and I've just discovered Sarno and his work about 4 months ago.
I don't think anyone here would laugh you off because of your age. Everyone who frequents these forums knows pain...they know chronic and severe debilitating pain and would mostly likely not wish it on their worst enemy. You're likely to find sympathetic (and empathetic) people here.
So - first off - congrats on discovering Sarno's work at such a young age. If you've already finished HBP, I would strongly suggest picking up "The Great Pain Deception" by Steven Ray Ozanich (SteveO on this forum). It's a bit longer than HBP, but it details how SteveO overcame MANY chronic and severe symptoms after being miserable for nearly 3 decades. A lot of people here have said that SteveO's book filled in the gaps where HBP left them with question marks.
Now to get to your questions:
1) No change in pain level in 2 days normal? Absolutely normal. The stories that chronicle people who had immediate relief or relief within just 1 to 6 weeks...they're not the norm around here. If you've ruled out serious medical conditions, TMS is likely your answer (especially with the "I see myself on every page" statement...most of us have said that exact sentence). Trust me when I tell you it's going to take time and the more you try to rush it, the longer it will take. Don't track it...just don't.
2) Possible to have TMS at such a young age? Absolutely yes. There's no doubt about that. I can't remember which book it was in, but one of the books I read (Mindbody Prescription, perhaps?) it is discussed that the "Growing Pains" that are experienced by many children and adolescents are a form of TMS. So don't doubt the possibility that it's TMS because of your age.
3) Where do you go from here? That's what most of us ask ourselves probably every day lol. What you do next is up to you. Some people prefer to see a TMS specialist (therapist or MD) to get a definitive ruling on TMS and get professional advice from them on how to move forward. Some of us read more books and try to implement methods and techniques we find that have helped others. It's really a matter of what you're comfortable with and how "patient" you can be. Remember this, though...you don't "conquer" TMS...you assimilate it. It's a part of you...it's a part of who you are...it's your personality. It's your brain trying to protect you. Just don't let it distract you from your emotions as it has in the past.
4)Any advice on how to get active again or is it too soon...? Again, that's up to you. Sarno does warn against getting too active too quickly because of the negative impact it can have on your confidence in the TMS diagnosis. You need to believe it's TMS to be able to recover...you have to get that fully consciously and get it to start to seep in to you subconscious. Your subconscious mind won't believe it if you don't believe it. But the subconscious mind also takes longer to change thought processes because it's not quite as immediately accessible as the conscious mind. You can start slow and build confidence. Go out and walk. When you feel the pain, accept it as a part of your mind-body connection and attempt to take your focus off the pain and on to your emotions. And remember, it's ok to feel your emotions...you HAVE to feel your emotions to get past them.
5)Possible for TMS to only affect one side of the body? Absolutely. For many of us, that's the case. I have low-back pain with sciatic pain in my buttock and left leg. Almost exclusively there. In years past, I've had occurrences on the right side, but not as common as the left. I don't think I've had ANY pain in my right side since discovering TMS. For many the pain stays in one place for a long time. People complain of a shoulder and arm pain...face pain...foot pain...etc. It is usually that one place that the brain has tricked you into believing there's a problem there and so there it stays. When it starts moving around...that's a signature TMS move (but that doesn't necessarily mean it happens that way for everyone).
Take heart...it's still very early and you are in a prime position to free yourself of pain so that the rest of your life is awesome. Thanks for joining us here!
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Dustin |
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Ace1
USA
1040 Posts |
Posted - 08/28/2012 : 11:08:54
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| None of the following is meant to be taken personally, but more stated bluntly to help you. To have pain at such a young age usually implies a very hard childhood with parents or care-takers with multiple medical problems. Is this true for you? In my practice I almost always see this with someone so young. If so, see how you were raised with a intense mannerism, and the way you may have learned to be this way bc it was unconsciously picked up by you as a child. In some cases if your esteem is low, the intense personality develops as to "protect" yourself from being hurt again. Regardless, you need to realize that this intensity is silly and helps nothing, but only makes you ill. Try to be aware of all your reactions in daily life and change them to be more peaceful. Try when your doing something to always be into what your doing, instead of going through the motions, just to get done tinking of only the goal, in otherwords be patient and in the present. Use affirmations like - I forgive and let go easily. and I'm calm relaxed patient and confident as needed and before and after sleep. Dont worry or give your sxs attension. Just go about your buisness normally (dont do anything more or less than you normally would), look at them as a messenger. You dont shoot the messenger. He just hangs around to see that your better, before going back to give the good news that everything is fixed. If restricted, increase to normal activity slowly as your body will allow (just like jim campabello in MBP). Remember the idea is to be gentle to yourself. Good luck |
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tennis tom
USA
4749 Posts |
Posted - 08/29/2012 : 09:44:25
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Hi KM118,
You've gotten some good answers, and you are very intelligent and on the right track. Cancelling your treatment appointments is a strong step in the right TMS direction since your tests show there is nothing structurally wrong with you. You are showing the gremlin that YOU are taking charge of your mindbody well being.
I copied from the wiki the following test for non-adults like yourself of life stressors that create TMS symptoms. See which ones were concurrent with the onset of your TMS symptoms.
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TAKE THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale
Non-adults
A modified scale has also been developed for non-adults. Similar to the adult scale, stress points for life events in the past year are added and compared to the rough estimate of how stress affects health.
Life Event Life Change Units
Death of parent 100
Unplanned pregnancy/abortion 100
Getting married 95
Divorce of parents 90
Acquiring a visible deformity 80
Fathering a child 70
Jail sentence of parent for over one year 70
Marital separation of parents 69
Death of a brother or sister 68
Change in acceptance by peers 67
Unplanned pregnancy of sister 64
Discovery of being an adopted child 63
Marriage of parent to stepparent 63
Death of a close friend 63
Having a visible congenital deformity 62
Serious illness requiring hospitalization 58
Failure of a grade in school 56
Not making an extracurricular activity 55
Hospitalization of a parent 55
Jail sentence of parent for over 30 days 53
Breaking up with boyfriend or girlfriend 53
Beginning to date 51
Suspension from school 50
Becoming involved with drugs or alcohol 50
Birth of a brother or sister 50
Increase in arguments between parents 47
Loss of job by parent 46
Outstanding personal achievement 46
Change in parent's financial status 45
Accepted at college of choice 43
Being a senior in high school 42
Hospitalization of a sibling 41
Increased absence of parent from home 38
Brother or sister leaving home 37
Addition of third adult to family 34
Becoming a full fledged member of a church 31
Decrease in arguments between parents 27
Decrease in arguments with parents 26
Mother or father beginning work 26
Score of 300+: At risk of illness.
Score of 150-299+: Risk of illness is moderate. (reduced by || 30% from the above risk)
Score 150-: Slight risk of illness.
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DR. SARNO'S 12 DAILY REMINDERS:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0dKBFwGR0g
TAKE THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale
Some of my favorite excerpts from _THE DIVIDED MIND_ :
http://www.tmshelp.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2605
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"It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." Jiddu Krishnamurti
"Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional." Author Unknown
"Happy People Are Happy Putters." Frank Nobilo, Golf Analyst
"Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint." Mark Twain and Balto
"The hot-dog is the noblest of dogs; it feeds the hand that bites it." Dr. Laurence Johnston Peter
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TMS PRACTITIONERS:
John Sarno, MD
400 E 34th St, New York, NY 10016
(212) 263-6035
Here's the TMS practitioners list from the TMS Help Forum:
http://www.tmshelp.com/links.htm
Here's a list of TMS practitioners from the TMS Wiki:
http://tmswiki.org/ppd/Find_a_TMS_Doctor_or_Therapist
Here's a map of TMS practitioners from the old Tarpit Yoga site, (click on the map by state for listings).:
http://www.tarpityoga.com/2007_08_01_archive.html |
Edited by - tennis tom on 08/29/2012 13:36:37 |
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I have TMS- now what?
