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avik
128 Posts |
 Posted - 09/18/2012 : 10:26:52
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This morning, out of the blue (and after a month+ of just ignoring any intermittent neck pain and NOT doing any stretches or massages or giving it any attention), im doing a usual morning stretch in my office chair and bang-I get a neck spasm.
What this means for me is a very sharp pain in the side or back of my neck that prevents me from moving my neck comfortably for a couple of days.
Once I am already in spasm, do I massage and stretch it or do I treat it like my daily pain and try and continue to ignore it?
My mind is telling me that the daily pains are TMS but that once I go into a spasm (which has been occurring far less frequently as of late), it is now a purely physical thing, no longer fueled by my sub-conscious and therefore needs to be treated physically.
Does this make any sense?
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Edited by - avik on 09/18/2012 10:34:23 |
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mala
Hong Kong
774 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2012 : 17:57:54
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Avik the answer to yr question will be different according to different people which in all likelihood will confuse you even more and cause more conflict in your mind which will cause doubt etc. & perhaps undo any good that you may have experienced in yr recovery so far. We all like to help but each person's recovery is different & different stories here will testify to that.
My advice for what it's worth is go with your gut instinct. After all who knows your body better than you do.
G'luck
Mala
Honestly, I sometimes really get fed up with my subconscious. It's like it's got a mind of its own.
Alexei Sayle
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andy64tms
USA
589 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2012 : 21:32:43
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Hi Avik,
I think your spasm was TMS, with no difference to your other daily pains.
I had one of these the other day, I awoke with my whole neck froze solid for no reason whatsoever. Any movement from side to side was extremely painful, a horrible start to the day. This pain absorbed my total focus and attention, my neck was solid.
Then I started thinking about what was really going on. I attributed this to TMS, (what else could it be, I was asleep and not even moving or straining). I was unable to relate pain with any specific emotional event, but it could have been a bad dream, but this doesn’t matter. What I think mattered was that I knew it was TMS and it was not serious, I had read recently that to just accept it without a fight.
This is what I did rightly or wrongly:
I lay flat on the bed without a pillow and rolled my head from side to side very gently nudging the pain each side. I relaxed and took deep breaths. Every time I nudged the pain each side I acknowledged in my mind that this was TMS pain and it did not bother me and that it was just there. I did this in a very soft, gentle and calm manner. My side rolls turned into full head circles, and then a full body stretch all over, including that wonderful early morning shoulder shrug. My emphasis was non-combative with slow movements. I had a hot bath and got on with my day.
My view was that if I had a stone in my shoe; remove it to get walking again. It was pandering to pain, yes, but I was also being good to myself and I got control instead of just laying there feeling sorry for myself.
Like you I have stopped stretching and massaging my neck since SteveO’s and Ace’s comments on your last thread. I had got into a habit of stretching to relieve discomfort all day long. It was hard at first, and I have to be honest it did relieve pain for about two minutes. Now I stretch in the form of a full Yoga routine, not just my neck.
As Mala says this stretching-exercise issue is different for everyone, I hope my commentary helps you decide.
Andy
Past TMS Experience in 2000, with success.
Taking a break from Wiki Edu. due to windsurfing priorities
Charlie horse on neck for 20 years. (to be evicted soon.)
Books:
Healing Back Pain
Unlearn your Pain
The Great Pain Deception |
Edited by - andy64tms on 09/18/2012 21:33:37 |
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forestfortrees
393 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2012 : 12:08:12
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Every once in a while I will notice a pain symptom pop up seemingly out of no where. It is just natural to have some part of you get nervous at first. If you think about it, our minds will only create TMS symptoms in places where we think they are actually serious conditions. Doing so is the only way the pain will continue to distract us.
For me, simply reminding myself of this fact helps alleviate most of the fear. Whenever I have a new symptom my initial goal is to simply reach a point where I don't care about the pain. From there it fades away relatively quickly.
Of course, as Mala pointed out, how you handle the symptom is really up to you. Trying some sort of stretching may be beneficial, but you would need to watch out for conditioning yourself or doing something that develops a belief you are injured or damaged. Personally, I try to not limit myself and go about my day as I normally would. Going with your gut, and doing what feel right to your body is a good view to have in dealing with flare-ups like this.
Forest
My Video Success Story
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Neck and back spasm sufferers:whats the move here?
