Beat TMS before but has come back or maybe injury?

Hello,

I am a 24 year old bodybuilder. I was diagnosed with "Degenerative Disc Disease" When I was 19 and for 4 years I was doing all types of physio, had epidural injection and kept being offered surgery etc. I was in complete agony on a daily basis, couldn't sit down for long periods, had to stretch/use roller all the time, waking up through the night in pain etc.

This year I was able to be completely pain free by reading DR Sarno's book "Healing Back Pain" and this lasted for around 6 months. Unfortunately my pain has come back in the exact same way it used to be and I am in agony my back has gone into spasm (left side lower back) I cannot sit still and even walking around is hard. It started last Saturday when I was squatting heavy I felt a really tight/ inflammatory pain in my lower back whilst at the bottom of the movement.

A couple of things that I remember last week that makes me believe this is TMS are:

- Injured my shin bone playing football last Friday (which may of caused some anxiety and TMS snuck back in?)

- I do remember being stressed out last weekend as I had a stressful week and another busy work week ahead of me.

My issue is that I believe I can beat this again but I feel that I need to know FIRST if this is an injury from squatting or TMS? I am struggling to find a TMS physician in the UK at the moment.

Could anyone please give me some advice?

Thank you.

 

Hi Jason,

Welcome! It seems to be fairly common that someone who has a "book" cure has TMS resurface some time later. The fact it is in exactly the same place and type of pain also supports this. So this part makes sense. In a way, it is a a call to go deeper and learn more about what makes you tick.

I wonder if the surgery offered was important to you physically, or just to remove the pain. In other words, is there a real health concern if the previous findings are actually true and important? Or can you sit this out, while engaging deeper work with Dr. Sarno's approach? Pain seems to grab our attention and demand that "something be done because something is wrong."

If you can get to a TMS physician, this can be a big help, but most people proceed without this and do just fine, as long as immediate possible health concerns are addressed by a regular physician.

There are wonderful programs at the TMS Wiki, linked at the top of this page, for your deeper education. Knowing you were under stress lately is a good start to your inquiry. Good luck, and keep checking in as you engage here.

Andy B