Symptom imperative

Wow....since I started to fret less about insomnia and possible consequences like exhaustion and so on, I started to have tendon pain/ stiffness in my elbow again. This was a huge TMS symptom some time ago when my elbow became totally "frozen" and I was unable to bend it. It still is not as flexible as the other arm as I made the mistake to rest it about 1 year and some of the tendons/muscles contracted/atrophied. But it was ok, there was no pain any longer. And now it starts again. I tappered off some medication. This plus the fact that I ruminate less about my sleep brought the symptom imperative back into the arena.
So: still horroble nights plus TMS-elbow .... how annoying . After 10 years of psychoanalysis there is still the need for symptoms . After 20 years of severe TMS in all forms I am really sick of having symptoms all the time. So more acceptance and more TMS work is needed.....

 

You need to make PEACE with the pain except it let it wrap you like a warm blanket, the more you push it away the stronger it gets….THIS IS NO EASY ACCOMPLISHMENT….. journal, meditate, laugh….and most important is prayer.

 

Lol Boston......I'm not disagreeing with you but that is a really tall order, letting the pain wrap you like a warm blanket. I have been having limited success by ignoring it but i'm still not anywhere near the level i should be yet.

 

Hi Birdie,

I like your little head-banging icon. Glad to see you have a sense of humor despite your frustration.

Are you seeing a TMS psychologist? Unfortunately most psychologists and psychiatrists, like most doctors, don't know how to treat TMS. Worse, they don't know that they don't know, and they'll let therapy go on and on without realizing that there are better methods. I found that out the hard way, wasting many years with two different therapists before finally going to a TMS psychologist. Big difference!

If you've been with the same therapist for a while and are still on the symptom-imperative treadmill, try finding a therapist from the resource list on this site. Some will work by Skype if none are in your area.

I hope this helps.
David.

 

David

That funny I found no difference on there methodology between a tms therpistband a regular therpist that deals with chronic pain patients with no know health issues...what did u find different?

 

Lol I know that sounds like a far reach....but it took me some time to make peace with my pain and discomforts. I learned not to fight it which increased the pain.

 

The main difference is that a TMS therapist is much more direct about confronting pain as a defense. They are determined to get to the underlying emotional conflict. There is a very good explanation in The Divided Mind, the section on treatment, starting on page 150.

Other therapists are usually uneasy about confronting physical symptoms. They feel it's out of their area and want a physician to deal with it. One therapist told me it would be 'presumptuous' of him to treat my back pain as psychosomatic, even though I told him I was convinced that it was.

Another therapist didn't see the point of dealing with my traumatic family history. His motto was "You have to live in the present." That may work for some people, but my TMS comes from my repressed childhood feelings, and I wasted a lot of time and money on him.

 

Interesting and the person you are seeing takes insurance, that was the main reason I had to switch I just could not afford $100 per session anymore tried 5 of them and it did put me on the right road

 

Good post. It's mind boggling how one forgets the ability to accept the pain when being painless for some time.

 

Still have pain every day...