Long COVID and TMS

I have seen questions on long COVID brain fog and fatigue possibly being TMS here and there on the forum and each time decided against replying with my thoughts on the subject, becuase there is such an obvious physical damage to the body done by the virus and inflammation. So I thought, my speculations that despite physical damage, long-haulers could re-wire their brains to get rid of brain fog and CFS, are not worth a dime becuase I am not aware of anybody who actually did it successfully.

But last night I was listening to the Q&A by Dr. Schubiner, and he was asked about long COVID possibly being TMS. His answer was very much Dr. Schubiner's style, measured but optimistic. He thinks that fibromyalgia-like symptoms exhibited by long-haulers could be TMS and, from a neuroscientific point of view, it is possible that re-wiring the brain could be done. He referred to the blog by Dr. Paul Garner (link below) as the evidence that long COVID can be treated as TMS. He also mentioned that couple studies have began in that area, so there is hope for those who had a misfortune of becoming a long-hauler.

https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/01/25/paul-garner-on-his-recovery-from-long-covid/ (Paul Garner: on his recovery from long covid - The BMJ)

 

Many people believe they got fibro from the Epstein Barr virus, so what's the difference? Didn't Sarno also say post-polio syndrome is also TMS?

Regarding the "permanent tissue damage" supposedly caused by covid - to me, this smacks of the "permanent tissue damage" lots of TMSers are told they have.... Doesn't all tissue heal? What does "permanent tissue damage" even mean exactly? What tissue? In the brain? Plus, the fact that the list of post-covid symptoms is ever growing - fatigue, dizziness, fast heart rate, hives, rashes etc etc etc....

 

There is another story floating around of a person who treated post-covid like TMS and recovered. They posted a document of their story in a facebook group.

 

What I meant was that people end up with sepsis that damages their lungs, they also can experience hemorrhage in the brain - to name a few. Those are tissue damages.

 

Hi there-
would you happen to know where i could find this story?

Im right in the midst of some long haul myself and want to read as much articles/stories like this as possible.

 

Where can this be found?

 

That was at the screening of the documentary This Might Hurt. It is not publicly available, but I would not be surprised if Dr. Schubiner has some information on his website.

 

The facebook group is called TMS - The Mindbody Syndrome. Search posts for "long haul covid" and it should come up.

 

Hi avik,

I think this article might interest you. It's by Paul Garner, Professor at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, who recovered from long covid https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/01/25/paul-garner-on-his-recovery-from-long-covid/ (Paul Garner: on his recovery from long covid - The BMJ)

 

I definitely believe that certain long-term COVID, mono, Lyme (after successful antibiotics), etc. symptoms such as CFS are mind-body components, and they are separate from chronic post-illness issues such as truly measurable lung damage. I don't think this is a one-size-fits-all issue. We are all affected by things differently.

I have a friend in their early 30s who experienced multiple heart attacks after COVID and has had verifiable heart damage ever since. I personally won't be telling him to pick up a Sarno book. Now, if he had CFS and no measurable causes, I'd likely have a very different opinion of his situation.

Is it possible that heavy emotions delay healing true damage? Possibly, but again, I think it varies by the individual and their situation. I can't sit here and tell you that there are no long-term consequences for anyone, ever. I think we're all unique and disproportionately vulnerable to life, plus there are sometimes multiple contributing factors at play.

I sincerely believe it varies.

 

I agree. A lot can be fixed by mindbody approach: CFS, even loss of smell and taste or neurological conditions. My only point was that if most of the lung tissue is destroyed, it may seriously limit functioning of the person. If somebody proves me wrong and returns to running marathons with half of the lung capacity - I would be the first one to admit my mistake.

 

That’s exactly what I think about my friend with measurable heart damage. Unless I’m proven wrong, I don’t think Sarno and TMS work will fix it.