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Day 31 New symptoms
After working the program for a month now, when I came to today's Question to Ponder asking about new symptoms after working through other issues, I seems to me that there might be some of this happening. My problem has primarily been sciatica in my right leg since last year around this time. My right leg rarely gives me much trouble these days. Some days I have pain but it's very manageable for the most part. The more frustrating thing is that my left leg has also become involved. I've noticed some pain here and there ever since this past summer and was assured that there was nothing wrong, that I was just favoring my right leg and putting too much pressure on the left, but it really ramped up around Christmas. On Christmas Eve, I was home alone. My husband was out of town at his family's and, as I headed to bed, I noticed a strange vibrating, mild pins-and-needles type sensation begin in my left knee. It ramped up and got "louder" over the course of a half hour so I called my husband because I was so stressed out. He talked me down and I was able to find a comfortable position and get some sleep. Since then, the issues w/ my left leg have continued to cause me stress. The intensity varies. This weekend, my parents came to visit and it really got bad: pain when sitting so bad I would have to get up and walk about, a weak feeling (but no actual weakness in the leg), and almost constant pain throughout my leg. It doesn't seem to follow any kind of logical pattern like down the back of my leg, etc. At times, it really spikes my anxiety. I try to remember that TMS can move around but I constantly think about my last MRI where the radiologist noted that my L5/S1 disk had a 3mm bulge to the left side. I keep asking my husband, who is a radiological technologist, if that could be causing the pain and sensations. He assures me that "no" it can't (he's embraced the TMS diagnosis better than I) but I am having such a hard time embracing and accepting. How does a person face the uncertainty? As I keep journaling, I keep reminding myself that I need to fully accept and believe in the program, refute the physical and focus on the psychological, but I become so overwhelmed sometimes that I find it incredibly difficult to stay focused on the here and how. I want to believe but how do I know I'm not taking a huge risk?

This past week I've also noticed some pain and numbness in my left arm also. Today I awoke with pain in the center of my upper back.

What more can I do to make this idea stick? Each day feels like a constant battle between my mind and body.