Back pain gone… anxiety taking its place?

My low back pain (of 10 years) is 90% better only one week after reading Dr. Sarno’s books. Now, it has been another week and I am dealing with constant low- level anxiety. My brain is always on high alert. Is this a normal part of recovery? Do I need to just be patient? Or do I need to dig deeper into my repressed emotions?

I did not have to dig very deep for my back pain to vanish. Just being armed with the knowledge that my pain is TMS seemed to be enough.

Dr. Sarno mentions how new physical pains tend to “pop up” during recovery, but he doesn’t mention new anxiety.

Thanks in advance for any feedback

 

It is very, very common for anxiety to occur after the pain starts dissipating. So, no need to worry! What you're experiencing is very normal.

And actually, Dr. Sarno does discuss this several times in his different books. Anxiety is a form of fear, and fear is at the root of all TMS pain.

Here's a great TED Talk about dealing with anxiety:
How to stop feeling anxious about anxiety | Tim Box | TEDxFolkestone - YouTube

 

Yep - everything that Tim said!

If you have anxiety, just reading Dr Sarno's books is unlikely to be enough, and I'm basing that on eleven years of experience hanging out here and seeing many people return to "do the work" after initial - but not lasting - success just from gaining the knowledge. Knowledge is very powerful indeed, but it turns out that our fearful brains are even more powerful, and they will inevitably find sneaky and insidious ways to make you doubt, and ultimately forget, the truth of any success you might have had!

It's kind of a chicken-vs-egg question, but in my own personal experience as well as the years of observation, those of us with anxiety always have to do the work. Ultimately, you will struggle to recover as long as anxiety is in control of your thoughts. Fortunately there are a ton of free resources for anxiety, starting with the video Tim suggests.

As for learning how to access the repressed negative emotions, we have you covered, with two free programs. Start with the SEP (the Structured Educational Program on the main tmswiki.org) and also check out Alan Gordon's Pain Recovery Program (on this forum). Neither requires any kind of sign-up or sign-in - just do it on your own. But you have to do it with commitment, and you have to take the time to really do it. Don't let your brain cheat you by convincing you to skim quickly through it. The SEP in particular is divided into easy "days".

You can do it!

 

Thanks so much for the info. I’ve begun with the SEP, it is a great resource!

 

Please read Clair Weeks books on anxiety , Google her and you can listen to her. She is the best for anxiety. No need to get overwhelmed on all other information out there, she is all you need.

 

Having contracted Type A Influenza last week and after making two late night pilgrimages to the local ER in Sonora, California, I certainly notice how all my TMS aches and pains disappeared as the symptoms of the flu became more and more acute. The flu definitely is not mind-body (although it contains elements of both) but the fever, aches and pains and coughing are so intense there obviously is no need for TMS to provide emotional distraction.