Day 1 Doubts

Hi, this is Day 1 for me and I thought I'd express some of my thoughts.

First, I'm a bit worried that I won't be helped by the program because I don't have the kind of pain most often discussed in TMS. Apart from a little shoulder pain, I don't seem to have muscular-skeletal pain at all, but rather, diffuse pain all over, but especially in the legs, where I get strong burning which increases with any kind of activity or movement. It's been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and the pain is accompanied by fatigue, but the main thing that feels different from what I've read is that I have delayed pain and unwellness. Sure, it hurts when I walk, but the main problem is that some time later, sometimes hours, the pain comes, and sometimes I just sort of crash with fatigue as well. The pain and fatigue are cumulative, so I've learned to become very cautious and fearful about any activity, especially walking. I have a low walking tolerance at the moment and I have doubts about how I will be able to resume normal walking activity as the program suggests when I often don't know I've had a reaction until much later.

One doubt I have about the ideological underpinnings of this is that it assumes that if there's no organic cause to pain/illness, it's caused by the mind, but how can we be sure that medical science that rule out an organic basis? Hormonal, adrenal and chemical changes to the nervous system may have organic causes we don't yet know how to identify.

Having said this, I will say, though, I think that even if there were some organic component to my condition, there are likely to be psychological reasons as well. I have irritable bowel as well, and in the past I've had back pain (although I don't now) so I will concede that it's very possible I have TMS.

Any suggestions or encouragement would be greatly appreciated!

 

Hi Porpoise,
Welcome to the SEP. Don't be worried about not being helped by the program. That, I can tell you, is an impossibility! The beauty of this work, healing journey is that its all self-knowledge. And the more we learn about ourselves - bringing the unconscious to the conscious, pain starts dissipating. This program helped me discover where I was causing myself pain - either physically or in my thoughts or repressing emotions. It has been very empowering to develop my awareness. I have many more choices today about how I want to react or think about something. I'm not completely healed from the TMS but I am a much more grounded, aware and confident person than I was when I started this journey of healing in November '13. Stay the course, have faith and I can PROMISE you will feel better. So glad you're here and look forward to hearing more from you!

 

Hi nowtimecoach,

Thank you so much for your warm welcome and encouragement! It's wonderful to hear that the program has helped you feel so much more empowered and free.

I'm wondering if my beginning the program is a bit premature, though! I've really only started reading Sarno ('The Divided Mind') and am busy thinking about it and taking it in. I think I'm going to have to adapt his theories as I go along (for instance: I think people's choice of symptoms may well have symbolic meaning - so, my feeling 'unable to walk' may well express the sense of powerlessness I'm aware I have. I don't think I 'repress' that knowledge but I'm not aware of how it happens on an everyday basis so the tension it generates expresses myself through my body. It's a theory anyway!). I need to give myself time to absorb and think about Sarno before doing Day 2. I work four days a week so I think I will take it very slowly!

Cheers
Porpoise

 

Fibromialgia is TMS so you are in the right place and on the right path

 

Thanks for the encouragement, alexandra!