Talk:Sciatica

I've had tingling in my lower leg and sciatic pain for about 7 years. That's since I was diagnosed with a ruptured L5-S1 disc. I started reading Dr. Sarno's book Healing Back Pain 10 days ago and have felt better and move more freely than I have in 7 years. I've remained active throughout the 7 years, but never recovered completely and always feared more sciatic attacks. I'm a reporter and stopped sitting for too long. I avoided going on anything where long periods of sitting or standing were involved. Yet, I could ride my racing bike in packs of competitive cyclists for hours. I stopped running (I was running marathons). I stopped lifting and became semi disabled in my eyes and my friends' eyes. I still have tingling in my lower leg and have always felt that leg never completely recovered from the injury. Funny thing was, I read the book and went out for a 5-mile run without pain. I didn't think twice. It was wonderful. But (there's always a but) yesterday was a more stressful day. I was doing well but am starting to question things again. How can I stop questioning whether I'm damaged goods?

Response to above post

It is great to hear that you have been able to make progress just by reading Healing Back Pain. That book really is transformative. It is always difficult to overcome that notion that you are damaged, but remember, this is what your unconscious wants you to do. Thinking that you are damaged is what distracts you from your emotions. Hey, as you even mentioned, you had a really stressful day. No wonder your feelings of being damaged increased. Gaining confidence in yourself takes time, but if you keep at it you will make progress.

Forest