RSI in thumbs/forearms

Hello everyone, this is my first time posting here! i have had thumb pain and forearm pain for a little over a year now, it started at the beginning of quarantine after i got laid off from my job. i began playing a bunch of video games, knitting, using my phone and lots of other activities with my hands when i started to develop pain in my thumbs. i ignored it at first but it kept getting worse until i had to stop doing the things i enjoyed, so i stopped gaming indefinitely. ive tried it all since then, ive rested for months, ive gone to so many physios, doctors, chiros, specialists, ive tried cortisone, etc with very little success. i have had this pain before and it went away after some time, i believe the longest i had this before was around a month and then it eventually left. i also have a history of other symptoms that are linked to TMS, the most significant being IBS which i had for months before i finally got over the fear and realized it was anxiety. i discovered tms about a month ago and ive noticed a difference, the pain is minimal for the most part aside from the occasional flare up, the pain seems to always be worse on one side and they alternate. most of the time im able to accept that this is TMS because of the pain moving around, the lack of results ive had from medical professionals and a bunch of other evidence but i am having a very hard time with the fear aspect. even when im able to recognize that its caused by my mind i get scared because i feel like im not allowed to think about my pain now. im at home all day alone and its very hard to take my mind off of this pain, even when its very minimal or even gone i still think about it and i dont know how to get out of this habit! im doing things i used to do (i typed this whole thing, thats something i never would have done a month ago) but i cant seem to get rid of the pain fully, ive only been able to prevent it from getting worse during activities. i also think im putting a lot 0f pressure on myself to heal faster because i want to get back to working and living my life again but im very scared if i get a job this pain will get worse (even though ive done lots of activities at home that havent made it worse). i would love to hear your story if you've been through something similar as well as tips to get over the fear, im scared of the symptoms a bit still sometimes but im also scared that im causing the pain by obsessing about it too much, which makes it harder to take my mind off of it. i feel like im going a bit crazy so words of encouragement are welcome too! lol

 

Here is my story. I was told that I had RSI, plus I had other symptoms. In fact, it was TMS. I went through the same fears and worries, and I fully recovered. You can do it, too!

https://www.tmswiki.org/forum/threads/cts-carpal-tunnel-syndrome-crps-dystonia-raynauds-full-recovery.22242/#post-116102 (CTS(Carpal tunnel syndrome), CRPS, dystonia, Raynaud's - full recovery)

 

And the distraction is now complete. Sarno called this "Physicophobia" and it is rampant in our society. Everytime I go to move a washing machine or a fridge (I do maintenance) if somebody I don't know is there "Watch your back...lift correctly..."...when fear of activity is present, the distraction is 100% manifest and you no longer even need pain... just the fear of pain. I quoted all of your statements to highlight how almost all of them are thoughts...

I used to think just like that. I was lost in my head AND the pain. Then,I read Sarno and did what he instructed militantly.

That was; ""when you find yourself paying attention to the pain, immediately and forcefully shift your attention to a source of recurrent rage like a financial problem or bad relationship...this sends a message to the unconscious that you know what is going on... It is like blowing the cover on a covert operation.... The pain no longer serves a purpose and it ceases. "" PERIOD.

That is the number ONE effective strategy. It seems counter intuitive. To think of something that sucks while I am already uncomfortable, scared,etc??? But as crazy as it sounds, it worked!

22 pain free years later I have not meditated, journaled, read a bunch of positive thinking authors, or 'forgiven my inner child' or any other strategy. I HAVE developed a new habit of instantly thinking "Hmmm... I wonder what I could be angry about?" the second I even get a twinge....and it works. It also deletes all of that merry go round of obsessive thought.

TMS is OCD of the body. Scratch the record so it can't play anymore.

 

thanks for replying, you're definitely right about all of that. i know that when i dealt with IBS years ago i did something similar before i discovered IMS but the connection between my symptoms and my anxiety seemed more obvious at the time, i still seem to jump back to doubt when my symptoms get bad despite the evidence i have. i think a lot of it has to do with too much time to myself too so i think im going to try to keep busy and just live my life normally!

 

Very true!

“Thus fear of danger is ten thousand times more terrifying than danger itself when apparent to the eyes ; and we find the burden of anxiety greater, by much, than the evil which we are anxious about :...” ― Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe