Derek S. Shoulder and knee pain

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Question

Hi,
I have had some episodes of intractable TMS ( i believe). I am a 48 year old pretty healthy average weight female and I live in NYC. I had knee TMS ( chondromalacia and some arthritic changes in my left knee- Sarno diagnosed it back in 2010.) I have had some success in pain reduction there. I have had a hard time accepting the diagnosis in full due to the MRI's. I have also had a LOT of fear around doing things. Hence I stopped doing yoga and began an exercise program in swimming.

Last year my shoulder(s) were giving me pain- I used to swim 2 to 3 miles a week. I saw a few doctors who told me I had the beginnings of frozen shoulder on my left side and overuse on the right. I did NOT get an MRI for fear of making me feel way worse. I did PT, prolotherapy and had some success in pain reduction and increased range of motion. I swam in florida 2x over Christmas and had some pain that went a way in a day. I swam once here in NYC 2 weeks ago and have had pain for the past 2 weeks. No doubt you can imagine how frustrated I feel. I am afraid to swim due to pain. It sucks to have the pain 24 /7 shooting down my arm (s).

Can you help advise?

 

Answer

I'm sorry to hear that you've been having such a tough go of it.

The main problem that I see here is uncertainty. A lack of certainty (or something close to it) will nearly always result in feeling disempowered and afraid. It is hard to make progress on your TMS symptoms if you have persistent doubts about your diagnosis. I understand the desire to avoid further imaging for fear of hearing more scare-inducing diagnoses. That said, I feel that it is important for you to rule out any legitimate structural causes with a physician who understands TMS, even if you have to travel to see one. I know you saw Dr. Sarno in 2010 but that was 5 years ago and regarding a different part of your body.

Your pain is certainly behaving like TMS with the multiple locations and inconsistencies. I think that there is a good chance that the symptoms are psychogenic. You have been diagnosed with TMS pain in the past and you fit the description. You may just need more evidence to support this so you can approach this with confidence and assertiveness.

Check out the following thread for a great discussion about then importance of confidence, empowerment, and standing up to fear:

http://www.tmswiki.org/forum/threads/tried-everything-im-desperate.5459/

I hope that you are able to find the clarity that you need to challenge both the pain and the fear.

-Derek

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I know all about living with uncertainty. I've been a fulltime freelance writer for 40 of my 84 years
and never know where the next dime is coming from to pay the mortgage and other bills.

My parents divorced when I was 7, over money problems, so financial insecurity is a big bogey man
in my life. I keep positive, telling myself that a financial breakthrough is coming today or tomorrow.
That keeps me going, and I think it can apply to any physical or emotional uncertainty.

It's hope that keeps me going, and faith that the Lord has looked after me so far, He will continue.
Over the years, when I am broke, I pray for work, not money. New work comes almost immediately,
miraculously, and I get enough money to keep going.

Guest, swimming is wonderful exercise. Do as much as you can.