I just don’t fully get it??

Hey guys. Alittle help with me very much appreciated.
I’ve experienced a upper back and neck pain now for around 18 months. He can feel anything from burning to stiffness to throbbing to start being allsorts of different sensations.
When the pain came on I was in a bad way. I was abusing diet pills and not really taking care of my body. When the pain started I assumed it was the diet pills. But I have had every test done under the sun. I’ve seen rheumatologist and nurorogists . Nothing ever shows. So I basically have unexplained pain. Which I now know is TMS.
The healing process is very confusing to me. Do I journal? Do I somatic track? Do I do nothing? Do I meditate. Do ignore The pain. Where do I start?
I did have a two week period of being pain free after reading healing back pain. I thought was a miracle and to good to be true and talked myself into the pain again.
I took this as a sign that is 100% TMS. Do u agree.
Thanks for reading
Rachel xoxox

 

Hi Rachel,

I would strongly recommend you read The Great Pain Deception by Steve Ozanich. I think it will answer all your questions better than this forum.

But onto your questions,
Yes based on what you provided sure sounds like TMS pain.

I am curious when your pain subsided for 2 weeks after reading Healing Back Pain, why you thought that was a miracle?
Since the books outlined that it is just psychosomatic pain. If you 100% believe in the mindbody diagnosis and stop being fixed on the pain, then it is no miracle, that is you conveying to your subconscious to stop creating the pain. You turned off the pain yourself.

In regards to the healing process,
- don't be fixated on the pain. Live your life as if you were pain free. Don't think about the pain every hour and asseass its progress.
- don't be fixated on "healing". Its simple. Dont anticipate results and timeframes.
- meditation helps you calm your central nervous system so that of course helps
- journaling and talking about your emotions/problems helps bring to light your hidden anxieties and emotions and helps convey to your subconsious that you know what is it doing (giving you pain as a distraction) and once the subconsious understands that its cover is blown it will stop creating the pain (no more purpose for it)
- you need to be aware of your moment to moment mood and emotions and not repress them. Be honest with yourself. Speak your mind.
- you need to identify your addictions, such as diet pills, and try to break the addictions
- the fact that you took diet pills says that perhaps you are unsatisfied with your physique. That could be a huge source of anxiety. That could put self imposed pressure to be perfect --> TMS. Reread the sections on perfectionism and goodism
Goodism --> try to curb people pleasing behaviour in which you expect validation.

- it's not that you ignore the pain per-say but always remind yourself that it is your mind causing it and never make it a big deal. Dont let it dictate your life and movenent.

- reflect on your childhood - sources of anger, dependency, relationship with family, friends

- are you happy in life currently? With your job? Purpose? Not having purpose is source of anxiety -> TMS

- finances could be a source of anxiety. Coping with lifes stressors and reponsibility as well.

- its up to you to examine your life with honesty and bring to light everything that you need to change. Work on what you can change. What you can't change right now, don't dwell on it, be aware that it could be contributing to the pain. Knowledge of the TMS process is the solution.

- lastly curb drugs including diet pills. They are a band aid solution. Everything worthwhile requires some work.

 

Welcome, @Rachel110885 - and welcome to @Kingkong too, who has given you good advice!

We actually have two free programs which will get you started. One is more structured and perhaps easier to follow for newcomers, so that's the one I recommend first. It was designed by our founder, @Forest and a number of early volunteers, and is in fact called The Structured Educational Program. You can find it on the main tmswiki.org. The second program, which is less structured and more emotionally-based, is Alan Gordon's Pain Recovery Program, generously donated to the forum by Alan. Aspects of his program have been incorporated into the SEP, so you can get a taste for it there.

The Great Pain Deception is excellent - it's like an encyclopedia of TMS. Steve O's personal story is very inspirational, in addition to which I think he does a great job of explaining Freud and TMS, and he covers many different aspects and expressions of TMS.

 

@Kingkong and @JanAtheCPA I really appreciate you both replying. You are right it wasn’t a miracle the book was enough to make me feel safe and know that my pain wasn’t something I caused myself. I do have an obsessive tendency where I may not even be a pain but I will think about it till it comes. I don’t know what inside me is causing this.
I haven’t taken the diet pills in 18 months. As soon as the pain set and I stopped. I am now 20 weeks pregnant with my second baby. This does put a little bit of pressure on me to see you. As I want to be the best mother I can.
I do know 100% no there is nothing structurally wrong with me. I have had three MRIs x-rays I’ve seen a rheumatologist ans a neurologist.