Day 14-Crisi

No, doing this is not going to be helpful to you at all, because it is not that precise or logical.

This is why we use pen and paper. The purpose of the writing exercises is to quickly write down ANYTHING that is on your mind, no matter how random it might be, and no matter when it occurred in real life, and especially if you think that you can skip something as "not important". The faster you scribble down your thoughts, the better, so that you don't have time to edit or "fix" them.

The things you need to uncover and examine are the thoughts that your brain felt that it needs to repress (and replace with pain) and yes, it apparently found a new reason to do this sometime between yesterday and today. HOWEVER, the actual incident or interaction could be something which happened last week, last month, or a long time ago - which was recently triggered into memory, perhaps in the last week or so for some reason (sometimes by something we read or see or hear, or a personal interaction).

It IS random, which I understand is terrifying for you, as you have acknowledged that you have an extreme attachment to perfectionism (one might say obsessively so).

You are terrified that things might be out of your control - which is logically irrational. If you will stop being so terrified and apply your logic, you might be able to accept the truth that you are perfectly safe, and that uncertainty and imperfection are not going to physically hurt you.

If the doctors have already said that they can't explain your pain, it is quite illogical to think that something could suddenly now be responsible. If you want to go back for another examination, that is your choice, but it will more likely be a waste of time and energy that would be better spent by reducing your anxiety and perfectionism! There are many Success Stories here where other people describe the futility of their multiple doctor visits because they were so afraid of "injuries" that did not exist. When they properly reduced their anxiety and addressed their repressed emotions with courage and acceptance, they stopped looking for physical "causes" and they recovered.

 

No, personally I don't think that is a useful interpretation.

I'll address anxiety first. Anxiety is not a personality trait. It is the exact opposite of Acceptance. Anxiety is useful when there might be an actual threat close at hand, but most of us don't live with actual threats in our lives. At its worst, what I call EIU anxiety can be a very disabling impediment to living a normal life. In order to recover from TMS, anxiety must be addressed, otherwise it gets in the way of doing the deeper emotional work. EIU stands for Excessive, Irrational, and Unnecessary.

I feel like someone must have recommended this little book before now, because it is so essential to so many of us. It is Hope and Help for Your Nerves, by Claire Weekes, and I'm sure it's been translated into many languages, including Italian (@feduccini?).

This may be the book you need to read and study on your vacation, before you go any farther with the SEP.

 

Perfectionism is described as a personality trait by Dr Sarno, but he's also quite clear that it is a trait which can be unhealthy when it is excessive and gets in the way of living your best life. Just like anxiety, Perfectionism becomes dysfunctional if it is Excessive, Irrational, and Unnecessary.

Ultimately, @Francesca, you have a choice. If your life is working for you, you don't need to change a thing. This, of course, is what your TMS brain is trying to tell you, and you are free to continue listening to it. But if you are not satisfied with your current life, something has got to change! After all, if humans never made the choice to change, we would never have taken risks, or learned anything new, or ever had new experiences, and we would still be living in caves.

Don't let your primitive and fearful TMS brain keep you stuck by focusing on meaningless word games.

 

Hah, got it. I do love our global village.

Well, that's unfortunate, but @Francesca, I'm quite sure there are good resources in Italian for anxiety. You just have to be willing and open-minded.