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verdammt
Canada
97 Posts |
 Posted - 03/22/2005 : 20:14:10
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Hi, friends! I kicked TMS (incapacitating lower back pain) totally and completely over three years ago, thanks to Sarno's wonderful books. Here's the problem: I'm convinced it's come back with a vengeance, and this time it's really pissed. It's like all the years I thought it was dead, it was just regrouping, rearming and devising new ways to torture (and maybe even kill) me. I'm calling it TMS-2 because it's a recurrence and it's worse than any form of TMS I've experienced in the past. It knows it won't have any luck in the form of back or neck pain so this time it's appearing as a horrible rash on my fingers.
Two doctors have diagnosed it as eczema; a combination of "dry skin," "too much hand-washing," and "cold weather" (gimme a break). They've prescribed cortisone cream and a bunch of over-the-counter lotions. They're all pretty much useless, and they leave my hands so greasy I can't use them. It's the familiar TMS line of attack and it's doing a great job keeping me fixated on a physical problem. Lots of emotional turmoil at home and at work, needless to say.
Has anyone out there experienced this kind of escalated Super-TMS attack after years of relative calm? I don't recall Sarno mentioning it anywhere. Seriously, it's so bad, I'd almost trade it for back pain.
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Baseball65
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - 03/22/2005 : 21:02:55
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Hey Verdammt
Stick around here and read the posts....there isn't a member here who hasn't had a 'new' symptom...in fact most of us have had multiple attempts.I ,for one, have had(after the initial back deal) Knees,shoulder,neck,anxiety attacks,nausea/dizziness,respiratory problems, and chronic ear infections.....and those are just the bad ones.
Usually if an attack seems to come out of nowhere it's someting sooo close it's hard to see..like family.
A friend of mine had horrible eczema until recently....she fit the TMS type to the tee,so I gave her the book.....she read it,but didn't really say much.I know she hates her job,hates where she lives and feels trapped by the home she just bought.Also,she is getting older,used to be a hot-momma lead singer in a band and is now working a 'straight' assembly job.
She finally found a medication that virtually erased her eczema after months of no respite...and immediately came down with the first respiratory illness she has had in years....she's been sick for weeks.
You are definitely safely inside the norm for this sort of thing....it's probably just time to go through the deal again...the reading,writing and whatever else you did before....it's only occupying your attention to distract you from the ??????
hang out and read and write....
welcome
peace
Baseball65 |
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Laura
USA
655 Posts |
Posted - 03/22/2005 : 21:36:03
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Hi, Verdammt -
Welcome to the TMS forum. Like Baseball said, stick around and read some of the posts and you'll find you are definitely NOT alone! I've had: back pain, neck pain, TMJ pain, knee pain, urinary tract infections, IBS, skin problems, twitching eye, red and itchy eyes, a mysterious thing that can only be labeled "burning mouth" complete with zillions of canker sores, tinnitus, headaches, ulcer, and three years of on and off dizziness. It sure is a picnic isn't it? As soon as I think one thing is under control, it morphs into some other bizarre problem that nobody can treat and there are no known cures for. Today, after about two hours of restless sleep, I've got a massive headache and, for the first time in a few days, have had a couple episodes of dizziness.
The best advice I think is to read the books over and over and keep telling yourself it's not a physical problem. Visiting this forum should help you, I know it does help a lot of us. And the writing is very therapeutic - I think of it as journaling.
Good luck and again, welcome!
Laura
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holly
USA
243 Posts |
Posted - 03/23/2005 : 12:44:39
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I also kicked tms with the back, neck etc. a long time ago and I have been going through tms2 very bad. I did at one time have a rash on my fingers, couldn't touch paper (easy to figure as I hated my business) I know when I figured that out it went away. I since sold that business (Horray). Now I have a sensitive pinky toe problem that once i finally learned to live with started attacking my big toe. socks hurt and so do touching sheets and blankets to my feet. i am feeling very upset about the spreading of this monster.  |
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verdammt
Canada
97 Posts |
Posted - 03/23/2005 : 19:55:39
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Thanks for your kind words of support, everyone. It sure helps to vent. You can't talk about these things with people who haven't been there. They just say, "Oh, poor you!" or mockingly pretend to play a violin.
The finger rash actually stopped burning a little after last night's post, but this morning about a half dozen intensely itchy red spots appeared on my arms (funny how these skin disorders always appear where you can see them, isn't it? It makes sense, though. You can't easily fixate on something you can only see with a mirror.) Anyway, my immediate reaction was, "What a pathetic morph! Take a hike!" I actually laughed out loud at it. It stopped within 5 minutes.
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Hilary
United Kingdom
191 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 01:29:44
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Hi, verdammt!
I know exactly how frustrating this thing can be.
Like many others here I've been plagued by different symptoms.
My backpain has now totally gone, thanks to Sarno. I also developed horribly dry itchy exzcema on my eyelids. Lovely. I spend hours fixating on it, examining it, worrying about it and thinking about how ugly it made me look. Finally I figured out that it was TMS and decided to totally ignore it. The real breakthrough came when I started wearing eye makeup again, which I hadn't for months in the fear that it would exacerbate my skin. Exactly the opposite happened: I got better. I think that was the moment my TMS realized I wasn't going to play by its rules any more.
So I know how difficult it is to ignore these things, but along with journalling I really think it is the best possible approach. |
Edited by - Hilary on 03/24/2005 01:32:45 |
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holly
USA
243 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 07:48:50
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| Hillary I went through the eyelid thing too! Going without the makeup sinerio. I remember it like it was yesterday! That didn't last that long thank god. I had figured out it was TMS and it did go away. How come i have figured out my toe problems (also known as "no pretty shoes allowed") is TMS and it has been going on 2 to 3 years now????? It just seems to get harder & harder. I have tried ignoring it once but it didn't go away even though I was truly convienced that it was TMS. It is attacking more toes now. I just hope down the road I can post this story as an OLD TMS story. |
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verdammt
Canada
97 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 13:43:12
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I gave this post some serious thought last night. I realize now I was fooling myself. There's no such thing as TMS-2. After I got over the back pain, there was no wonderful period of being totally free of TMS. Far from it. In fact, there probably wasn't a day without it in some form. I must have suppressed the memories. They're starting to come back now: heart palpitations, lichens planus (another stupid skin disorder), frequent headaches, visual migraines (exactly like Sarno's), painful fissures at the upper corners of my fingernails (they magically disappeared this winter), sinus problems, persistent itching, etc. I just accepted them all as minor irritants; part of life. I remember lying in bed one night and counting six things that were keeping me awake, tormenting me at the same time. My doctor laughed when I told him. I wasn't amused.
Think I'll make a list of all my afflictions from the past 25 years that turned out to be bogus. Should be interesting. |
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donnroc
USA
76 Posts |
Posted - 03/25/2005 : 18:55:51
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Hang in there
After 3 years of total calm on the TMS front my pain came back.
It did come back to my back,but would alternate between knees and back and an interesting pain in a chest joint.The Chest and knee pain has been gone for over a year. Still dealing with the back and some neck stuff but it is entertaining to see this syndrome do it's thing. Keep the faith. |
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TMS-2 This time it's war.
