Derek S. mania and depression

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Question

Four times over the last 20 years I had to reread Dr. Sarno's book to relieve chronic back pain. It has always worked.
Due to some recent back pain I decided to reread his books again. But this time I read The Great Pain Deception and realized that I have a lot of other TMS symptoms that I have been mitigating with a low fat low protein plant based diet. In other words as long as I am on the diet I am fine. But when I start eating heavier foods I begin to get stomach aches, irritable bowel syndrome, fevers and sore throats.
I have also been hospitalized a number of times for bi-polar mania. During a manic episode I am able to eat heavier foods and do not have any of the symptoms mentioned above. But after I recover from the mania I am forced to go back on the diet or suffer the symptoms.
The question is do you think I should eat heavier foods just to aggravate my symptoms so I can learn to get over them through awareness of TMS. Also do you think I can learn to get over the mania and depression itself. I am concerned that eating a wider range of heavier foods might trigger the mania since my subconscious associates the change of diet with mania.

 

Answer

Hi there.

I can't really comment on the mania and depression as that is an issue that would be best handled with your psychiatrist or treating therapist.

Regarding the food sensitivities, often foods can act as the stimulus in a conditioned response. It is curious that your food sensitivities disappear when you are having a manic episode. If you had a food allergy or intolerance, it would make sense that the symptoms would still occur during a manic episode. Conditioned responses can be de-conditioned, which is something that we often help our patients to accomplish in TMS therapy.

-Derek

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