scrat26

My story isn't really that eventful, compared to some people. My first encounter with lower back pain was when I was in my early 20's. I was working in hospitality, flatting with a friend, and I don't even remember how or where it happened, but just that it was painful, and I had never experienced that before. I can't recall what they said, but i had anti inflammatories to take. I do remember being told not to lay down after taking them. I wasn't a sporty person or fit either, but was scared that this had happened to me at this age. There wasn't any other major incident that happened until my late thirties, and I had the same thing happen. Painful to move at all. Got my self to the doc eventually and he didn't seem very concerned that I was in this much pain. He found it quite amusing that it must have been from the previous day, which was a good friends Hen's day/night, and so put dancing on the medical form. That's all we could come up with. Same thing though, home and rest for a few days, take some pain killers and told to loose some weight too. Happened again a couple of years ago, but this time it never really went away. I found it increasingly difficult to bend, or reach out, so things like putting pants on or socks, I just couldn't reach down to bend over, and getting something out of the oven, I couldn't stand being in that half way pose. And God forbid if I coughed, that was like someone stabbed me in the back and twisted the knife around. I got paranoid of getting a cold or the flu and I was getting up hours earlier just so I had time to get dressed before work, because for some reason I could sit on the couch for an hour and a half then get up and move around almost normally. I have also had "clicking knee's" for years and decided to get them checked out. Very early stages of osteoarthritis.. I remember driving home with another bag full of pain killers, and thinking if I'm in this much pain now I'm really going to be crippled in my 50's and 60's! And my back was a degenerated disk. So that was where I was, when I found out about TMS. I was actually reading another book and the author had said she had cured her back pain. I was intrigued to say this least, and spent the next hour Google- ling Dr Sarno. I downloaded Healing Back Pain the next day and as soon as I finished my current book, I started reading. Could it really be as simple as that. I kind of guessed it wasn't necessarily going to be easy, but man, it was worth a shot. My Mum is a great believer in affirmations, so I grew up with that. I finished the book and had a little change in pain levels some days. And then I started the SEP. It's been interesting so far, up's and down's. The biggest event emotion wise, and one I'm a little scared of, if I'm honest, is my Dad's accident. I was 8, and we had just moved to start a new life in Australia. He had a serious car accident, and sustained a head injury. He lived for almost another 20 years in a rehabilitation hospital, and it was pneumonia that eventually took his life. But that's how I remember my Dad, sadly I don't recall many memories before that. I'm back in New Zealand now, Mum, brother and sister still live in Australia. So I've lots to learn and experience and I'm looking forward to the journey, whatever it throws at me.
Tracy