Day 22 2 steps forward....

I'll be honest @Earlson, back in 2011 I stopped doing the SEP at about Day 14 or so. By then I had spent enough time on the forum, reading and interacting, that I was more interested in accessing other resources. A lot of these are listed after my Profile story: Claire Weekes (for anxiety); Dr. Gabor Mate (for an introduction to the physiological changes that long-term emotional stress and repression can create); the audio program "Meditations to Change Your Brain" which taught me about the way our primitive brains are wired - and that we can change that wiring. There are also a couple of links to now-old audio chats with Alan Gordon, which blew my mind. The links are still good, and were recommended by today's Chat host @Steve2.

As for journaling (or expressive/free writing, which I prefer, since I don't keep what I write) the key is to listen to how your brain wants to edit what you write down - and to not let it do so. If you can't be honest with yourself - well, your fearful brain will continue to repress old stuff and you won't progress as far as you could. Nicole Sachs, LCSW (in my list) is the go-to resource for journaling, although Dr. David Hanscom has a nice brief tutorial on Expressive Writing here: https://backincontrol.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/DOC-Expressive-Writing-4f-1.pdf

This struck me:

I realize you probably said this off the top of your head without thinking about how it looks, but my reaction was swift! Thinking of these as separate processes unconsciously encourages your brain to continue to abuse your body with distracting symptoms. It's the mindbody, MBS or PPD, and you can't have self-healing without self-knowledge. Or without self-love, by the way

My two cents.

 

PS - lots and lots of people experience brain resistance at this point - basically anytime from Day 8 onwards. Many experience increasing/worsening/changing symptoms, whereas others simply find no changes at all, like yourself. It's almost easier when symptoms get worse, because that's clear proof of the brain fighting back, whereas no change at (really zero changes at all at any time since discovering this work?) is a tough one. However, if you are a very level-headed and analytical individual who is generally in control, this may be the perfect response for you. Just a thought - another half cent worth, maybe.