Derek S. Need help with symptoms

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Question

I've had upper back, neck, shoulder, arm, wrist and lower back pain for just about a year now and i just watched a TMS success story on youtube and all of my pain went away in MINUTES.

I've been to doctors, kiropraktors, massages and all of that stuff, just a few days ago my ortopidic doctor told me that i have an galglion cyst in both my wrists and that i may be needing surgery, and that i should eat antiinflammatory for 50 days now. He also told me that i should stop training muay thai something that i just started recently after feeling better and its really helped me release some of the anger from inside.

I always keep my emotions inside, i push myself physically, i feel alot of pain when i see other people suffer, i feel alone, i feel depressed, i feel alot of anger but i dont express it.

I've been seeing an cbt therapist before i found out about tms but didnt get any improvements, im just looking for tips on how to get better and sorry for my bad english.

 

Answer

Hey there, Sanosuke.

What an amazing story of pain relief you shared. To have had that many symptoms and to have them resolve instantaneously really illustrates perfectly the power of your mind to heal. The only thing that changed from watching that video was your mindset and your attitude. It helped you to believe that you could be out of pain and to cease being afraid of the symptoms. If the symptoms don't create fear anymore, they no longer have a reason to stick around.

Don't worry if your symptoms come and go in the future. They can behave in many different ways but your job stays the same; don't submit to the fear.

Regarding the ganglion cysts, I would get a second opinion. These types of cysts are often benign and, except in severe cases, should be fairly easy to resolve (even if minor surgery is necessary). Since Muay Thai has been such a wonderful outlet for you, see if another physician can come up with a plan that doesn't involve removing an important physical and psychological coping mechanism from your life.

CBT can be a great form of psychological treatment and there is a strong cognitive/behavioral element to TMS recovery. That said, it is not the best type of treatment of you are wanting to work on processing deeply held emotions. I would recommend seeking out a therapist who has experience treating mind/body symptoms and is familiar with psychodynamic therapy (especially Intensive Short Term Dynamic Psychotherapy aka ISTDP).

Congratulations on your progress and best of luck in finding the right course of treatment for you both physically and psychologically.

-Derek

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