Just Starting ...

I've had chronic migraines for almost 30 years as well as neck, back and shoulder pain ... and have seen all the specialists for each individual body part. I've also tried every alternative therapy I've ever heard of - from acupuncture to cranial-sacral work to a green juice diet. I recently went to a one-day professional conference on TMS - I'm in the mental health field - and have been reading Sarno's MindBody Prescription as well as Schubiner's Unlearn Your Pain. Forest was incredibly responsive and welcoming (thanks again!) with some initial questions I emailed him. Anyway, it took a couple of weeks for me to get a sense of the programs offered by each book and the structured program offered on this site - and for a variety of reasons, I'm going to start by doing Schubiner's program but I also want to take advantage of this site and hopefully get support from reading others' stories, etc.
I'm obviously open to the basic idea that TMS is causing my headaches but I'm afraid, despite some initial relief, that at the 1st sign of pain, I'll interpret that as personal failure: I can't do this program; maybe other people can but I can't; maybe TMS is true for other people but - see? - it's apparently not true for me. I'll blame myself and spiral down into fear, anxiety, and more pain. How do people avoid this obvious trap??

 

Welcome, Donna!

My pain sounds like yours except my headaches have been chronic tension-type and I've only had mine for close to 20 years. Over the past couple, though, my pain has been spreading and I am almost positive that if I went to a rheumatologist, they would diagnose me with Fibromyalgia, which we both know from the books is a severe form of TMS. I am also working in Unlearn Your Pain and have read all of Dr. Sarno's books.

I have had all of the same thoughts as you have. I just try to take it a day at a time, so I can't give you any magical suggestions. Just last night and this morning I spiraled my way down into one of the deepest pits of despair that I have ever been in. What is showed me is that I have to really get into the journaling and try to resolve why I put so much pressure on myself to be perfect. Also, I need to read Christopher Germer's The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion, a book which Dr. Schubiner refers to in his book. I got it a couple of weeks ago, and although I started it then, somehow it got put into the stack with something else on top.

 

Welcome, Donna!

If this thought happens, then you will know it is TMS, because I am willing to bet that nearly everyone with TMS has had this exact thought. It's part of the perfectionist in us.