New here…think I have TMS

Hi,
I am new here. I read Dr Sarno's book on back pain and believe I have TMS.

Here's my story: Type A driven retired military guy, very dysfunctional childhood, over-achiever, reward-seeker, extreme perfectionist and have been under treatment for depression and anxiety for about 18 mos now. I developed low pack and calf pain in February when I was switched to on an SSRI medication (Celexa) following a variety of other meds that I was not responding too. I was having parasthesia (hot burning sensations around my waist) and anytime I tried to exercise I had severe calf, waist and low back pain. Dr discontinued meds thinking it was an adverse reaction to SSRIs. (bummer too since Celexa was helping with my other issues). I was on 6 different SSRI/SNRI meds over 16 mos and all but one "caused" pain…or so we thought.

I stopped meds May 24th (expect for Xanax) and my pain has intensified. The only difference is the parasthesia burning sensations ended. Pain is deep in my glutes, sacrum/lower lumbar area, hips and my hip pointers and sides are tender all the way to my rib cage. I feel bloated at the end of the day like I want to take my pants off and wear gym clothes even though pants are not tight and I'm not overweight. I've had diarrhea for months. I was a runner and it was my primary coping mechanism. What is weird is that I can exercise moderately (bike or jog) but I pay dearly for it just a few hours later…excruciating pain. I am now getting some transient chest pain and pain at the rear base of the neck. NSAIDs do nothing. I am also finding it difficult to stand for long periods of time and the pain is most intense mid-afternoon through early evening.

I FINALLY got an appointment next week with a physiatrist to start ruling things out. I am also seeing a PhD Psychologist who understands what TMS is (and psychosomatic anxiety) and we are working on emotional-based CBT. We are doing dialectical behavior therapy which includes pulling out repressed emotions and memories as well as mindfulness. We are just now getting to the painful emotions.

I am horrified of this pain. It dominates every waking hour. I have tried to exercise some more and I stopped going to Physical Therapy as it was not helping. But the pain unrelenting much of the time. I will start the education process as well. Any advice or encouragement is appreciated.

 

Have you tried running in the water with an aqua-jogger belt?

 

Well, uh, no, haven't tried that yet. But I am a member of a great gym with indoor and outdoor pools. Biking seems the least invasive and it gets me outside on the Colorado trails although I am peddling like an 80 year old.

 

I have similar symptoms as yours and there are others on this forum who have or had them as well. I am still recovering and have improved since the onset of my symptoms following dr sarnos healing methods. TMS can manifest itself in many ways including what you are describing but it's a great idea to rule out anything serious by a medical dr first. I have been on Celexa for 12 years, only 10 MG a day and my symptoms started 2 years after a series of stressful events. I don't believe there is a connection between the Celexa and my symptoms. I highly recomend the book by Steven Ozanich "The great pain deception" it contains all the information you need and will answer all your questions. Welcome to the forum ☺!