How TMS helped me solve other health issues

Hi everybody! I live in Buenos Aires, Argentina. 17 years ago, when I lived in New York City, I recovered from approximately eight years of low back pain (the last two years having suffered very acute and incapacitating episodes), thanks to Doctor Sarno. I wanted to share with you how Doctor Sarno's teachings helped me deal with other health issues, in case someone in this forum finds this information helpful.

At that time I had to undergo breast surgery for the extirpation of a benign tumor. In October 2000, one year and a half after my first breast surgery, my doctor found a second tumor in my left breast, exactly in the same place where the first tumor had been found (also, I had had dense breast tissue since I was 13 years old). Fortunately, my doctor, who is a “natural” mind-body believer (and my aunt!), seriously recommended me to undergo therapy or start yoga or make some other “philosophical” change in my life that would help me prevent future breast cancer. In her opinion, it was very odd that I had two similar tumors in the same place, so there was probably some underlying psychological cause that could turn dangerous in the future.

After my experience with TMS, I was very receptive to her advice and, although I had never contemplated to undergo therapy before (since I considered myself a very healthy and “normal” person), I started it with a therapist who specializes both in logotherapy and transgenerational psychology. After one year of therapy (with a frequency of one visit per month) and without taking any other physical measure nor drugs of any kind, my doctor ordered a new ultrasound study for control purposes and found that for the first time in 16 years my breasts were completely normal and all dense tissue had disappeared. This was extraordinary and, together with my TMS cure, contributed to make me a full believer of mind and body medicine.

In 2001, a couple of months after my second surgery, my husband and I begun looking for a baby. It turned out to be more difficult than we had expected, so we took all the usual steps: monitoring, laparoscopic surgery, hormonal induction and finally four tries of insemination. During my laparoscopic surgery , my doctor noticed that my uterine cervix was too tense, its tension corresponding to that of a postmenopausic woman. Since I have normal cycles and there was not known physical reason for such tension, she suggested that the problem was 100% psychological. Therefore, I continued with my therapy, reduced my work from 5 to 4 days a week and started yoga. At the same time I started to be treated by an acupuncturist, which completely relaxed my cervix.

Finally, in January 2005, following four unsuccessful insemination procedures performed in a fertility clinic, we found a research immunologist who found out that I suffered from what was then a recently discovered syndrome, which is treated with Sildenafil (the drug used in Viagra): apparently the blood vessels in my uterus were too tense, causing a decrease in the flow of blood and thus making my endometrium thinner following ovulation. This doctor prescribed Sildenafil, which I used for three months in order to increase blood supply to my uterus. The result was excellent. Three months after I started using Sildenafil, an ultrasound showed that my endometrium was properly thick. That month my husband and I got pregnant of our first son (we are now the parents of three sons). Although there is no doubt that the pharmaceutical treatment was the main cause of my “physical” cure, we are also pretty sure that a natural conception, and so soon, would not have been possible had we not dealt with the psychological and spiritual issues involved (mostly with my therapist’s help).

It was a long journey, and we will never know how long it would have taken us to become parents without the big transformation that started in our lives so many years ago, with a modest back pain and a brilliant doctor.

I also find it really curious that two of the main difficulties we had to conceive actually related to tension: of my cervix and of the blood vessels of my uterus. Since we believe that the ultimate reasons for our infertility were psychological, isn’t it possible that just as I used the TMS mechanism to repress emotions, I used a similar mechanism (tension in my reproductive organs) to subconsciously prevent pregnancy?

That is a question that I have been pondering all these years. Therefore, I think this information may be useful for research on mind and body medicine, and may help other TMS patients who are infertile and may be suffering from these unusual syndromes. For that purpose I wrote a letter to Dr. Sarno in 2006 and I am sharing this information with you in this forum. I hope some of you may find it helpful, and I am at your disposal in case you need further information.

Best regards.

 

Wow, Arg, welcome, and thank you for sharing your personal story and insights!

I believe that the number of physical conditions that are partly or fully-attributable to underlying pyschological conditions and mind-sets is pretty much unlimited. We conveniently refer to it all as TMS in honor of Dr. Sarno, but my personal outlook regarding the power of our minds has actually gone beyond his theories.

My third-favorite book (after The Divided Mind, and Hope & Help For Your Nerves by Claire Weekes) is When The Body Says No by Dr. Gabor Mate. His ideas about the physiological toll that unrelenting emotional stress can take on our bodies is nothing short of radical - and also brilliant. In addition, Dr. Mate is a wonderful writer and a compassionate human being.

~Jan

 

That is an incredible story! I had to chime in because I really believe that stress and tension plays such a role in fertility too-- not in all cases, but probably many. My first and third pregnancies happened without even really trying, but with my second, it took us a lot longer to conceive. We were also under TREMENDOUS stress and pressure, as we were planning an international move the following year and had a "conceive baby by this date or it's not going to happen until we move back" deadline. I was also finishing a degree program and had a huge final project to complete. Well, two weeks after I turned in my project, I became pregnant. I don't think it was a coincidence- I think I was way too tense.

I'm impressed with your insightful doctor who suggested the connection. The connection between mind and body continues to amaze me. Thank you for posting this!

 

Arg,
Thanks for sharing your story. So many people, including importantly, doctors, categorize our ailments as biological only, not considering seriously the psychological circumstances that bring us to where our bodies are at this point in time. If doctors have these thoughts they often do not suggest them to their patients, possibly because of fear of being seen as an inadequate doctor. Our society is steeped in the biological model of healing and it is difficult to become the one professional (so to speak) standing out alone and saying that this problem may be created by our minds. Look at how Dr. Sarno was treated by so many of his colleagues within the institute he worked in. I am sure other physicians that have the courage to look beyond the biological have been fighting an uphill battle to become legitimate to their "peers". Your Aunt put you on the right track and I am glad you finally found a solution to your infertility issues.
Lainey

 

Thank you everybody for your comments.