Day 15 Pain Movement

I guess there have been some subtle symptoms that have come up in the past couple of weeks... Like ringing in the ear for short periods of time, some pain in the shoulder blades or noticing moments where my pain feels better but at the same time my anxiety is worse, e.g. Difficulty breathing, pounding heart, etc....but for the most part the symptoms have stayed in the same places. What I have noticed though, is that I always feel better on the weekends. Which makes sense because work is a big stressor for me. It hasnt completely gone away on the weekends, but I can more easily enjoy myself and I can go for periods of time with not focusimg on it. This frustrates me because the week is so much longer than the weekends and i can't not work..so how do I get past this. I have meditated a couple times, but I am going to try to start doing 10 min of mindful meditation a day, seeing how this has helped a lot of you. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to minimize stress at work?

 

I completely understand you there, weekdays are much harder for me than weekends. Spending time with my family on the weekends and feeling more relaxed helps reduce my pain tremendously. I have been trying to work on reducing stress when I'm at university, anytime I go in for a lecture or even think about the work i have to do i feel pain. I find this helps in reaffirming my faith in TMS though, that the pain is consistent with stress and not all the time proves it isn't 'real'.
I find it helps to tell myself that no matter what happens, if i mess up on a paper, if i embarrass myself somehow...whatever it may be, none of that could possibly be worse than the pain i feel in my body, from years of not treating my mind with compassion. We are all human we make mistakes, sometimes we mess up and the boss shouts at us or we feel embarrassed in front of our co-workers. I used to feel so inferior among my co-workers at my part time job as a waitress (until i had to quit because of the pain), I was the new girl and kept messing up, but i wish i could have told myself that whatever happens it's all okay. I would give anything to be there again dropping things and messing up orders haha than being here right now. but like all of us here, i am working on it.

I'm no expert but i recommend just telling yourself a couple times throughout the day when stress or pain or both hits, that it's all okay, try and enjoy yourself at work (sometimes i hard i know) but we have one life to live, and it wouldn't be fair if you had to spend precious amounts of your time, being filled with fear of messing up etc. Of course i have no idea what your job is and how stressful but just try telling yourself that and see if it helps. Also use your evenings and weekends for time with the family/ friends or just doing what you enjoy.

Hope this helps somehow, keep sticking with the program and update us all with your progress. I hope for your recovery, it will get better!!

 

Hi, Nelsonaj and Joey,

I know from experience that job stress causes emotional and physical pain. I was in a job I hated and after 3 miserable years there I began to have nervous shakes. I quit and recovered right away. I often stayed home from colds and after leaving that job more than 40 years ago I can't remember when I had a cold last.

If you can change jobs, do it. If not, while at work find a time and place to do some deep breathing and meditating, even if only in a stall in the washroom for 10 minutes.

Meditation is a time-honored way of relaxing the mind and relieving anxiety, mental stress, headaches, and even physical pain. There are many ways to practice meditation, but many consider the most successful to be a technique called the Relaxation Response (RR).

It is a wonderful way to practice TMS Mindbody Healing because it changes harmful thinking in the subconscious mind which Dr. John Sarno says causes pain that is not caused by anything structural.

The RR, practiced once or twice a day for 10, 15, or 20 minutes has a profound positive effect on the subconscious mind, relieving or curing everything from anxiety, hypertension, headaches, fatigue, nervousness, dizziness, high blood pressure, insomnia, stomach problems, all forms of pain including backaches, abdominal pain, muscle pain, neck, arm, and leg pain, and relieves side affects from cancer and AIDS.

RR is like Transcendental Meditation which is taught by TM specialists who charge hundreds or thousands of dollars. But the RR is free and you can do it yourself.

It is practiced, before a meal, and works best if not practiced within two hours after a meal. I do it in bed before arising in the morning and again in bed before falling sleep. Often, I only do it 5 or 10 minutes and it works to calm me and put me to sleep.

Just sit in a chair (or lie in bed in the morning or at bedtime), close your eyes, don’t listen to any music, and try to avoid outside noises. Let your mind think of a word such as "One " which has no real meaning or association. Or say a calming word such as “Calm” or “Peace,” or add the faith or spiritual element by saying a favorite religious word or prayer. Breathe naturally or incorporate Deep Breathing by breathing in through the mouth to inflate the stomach, suck in the stomach while holding the breath for a few seconds, then say the word when you exhale through the mouth.

Say the word silently over and over. At the end of the 10 to 20 minutes, picture and feel yourself as you were when you felt your best, and in a place where you felt that way.

When distracting thoughts arise during the RR, as they will, just tell yourself, “Oh, well,” and go back to repeating your chosen word.

My "word" is a prayer: "God loves me and is protecting me." I say it a few times and go right to sleep. If my mind wanders onto other things, I tell myself"Oh, well," and repeat my mantra silently while deep breathing.

There are several free videos on Youtube about the Relaxation Response. I especially recommend these two by Dr. Benson:

 

Thanks Joey, I appreciate the advice...I agree that life is too precious to let work stress us out. I just need to figure out how to relax when I'm busy or under pressure and learn how to really believe it when I tell myself something is not worth stressing about.