Recent content by Christie Uipi MSW

Thank you for reaching out to us. It sounds like you are dealing with a few deeply ingrained conditioned responses, which are notoriously difficult to break. The pain is, like you mentioned, programmed to the activities that you mentioned (laying down and participating in sports). The reason...

Hi Will! Thanks for your question, and you're bringing up a very common struggle for people working through TMS, because we have all learned that preoccupation will perpetuate our symptoms. Preoccupation is a form of fear (i.e., "Is my pain going to get better in the next half hour?" or, "Why...

Lovely to be in touch with so many of you throughout the past three weeks, and I'm so happy Alan's hard work resonated with this group. He crafted this program with a lot of thought and care, and I think you all felt that. Of course a big thank you Forest for your continued and tireless work...

Hi there! What a great question. Usually, somatic tracking is done as a way of attending to our anxiety (which may be felt as pain sensations or more classic physical anxiety sensations). When our anxiety regulates and we are calm, it is much easier for our feelings to come up and be felt by...

In continuation of my previous comment, the second prong of this program is meant to help you feel safer in response to, or in the face of, your pain symptoms. I love what @bluesboy63 and @Cricket313 have to say regarding the pain cycle. The pain may start as a result of fear of [fill in the...

Today's post seems to have stirred up a mix of things: some clarity, some confusion, some hope, and a good dose of fear. I want to start off by saying that this process is messy by nature, and we are all learning to sit with that uncertainty. For anyone feeling overwhelmed, please give yourself...

I love this point! Sometimes people ask, "But which one should I do - safety, or empowerment? When the pain comes on, should I soothe myself, or should I fire myself up?" Safety and empowerment both effectively neutralize fear. Sometimes one resonates with one person more than the next, or...

Hey! Another good question, and I understand the confusion. I encourage everyone to use all these new strategies as different ways to be kind and good to themselves. So, somatic tracking can be done, as Alan describes, as a way of attending to oneself and honing a sense of safety. Somatic...

There are a couple of great questions here. The first is some confusion around the difference between tracking anxiety sensations and tracking pain sensations. The short answer is: there is no difference. Here's the long answer. Both pain and anxiety are danger signals, as we learned earlier...

To jump in with my two cents here, I think that that's a great idea, if that feels good to you. Practicing for 10-20 minutes a day while also doing your best to apply the principle throughout your normal day to day activities is a great way to learn. That being said...as much as we all want to...

Keep it up!! Once it starts clicking, you can really get on a roll. Stay motivated and know that it is okay to have hope. Sending you my very best for your continued healing!

You're spot on here, Forest. Kicking the fear around the pain, followed by breaking the cycle of fear I had around all sorts of things in my life, was my first step. It takes awareness, and it takes practice!!! I cannot underline the importance of this first step enough - simply being aware...

Hey Eugene! I've kicked a number of symptoms, as Alan mentioned, with the hand/wrist pain being the last to go. I am always honest with my patients, so I'll be honest with all of you guys, too. My pain is, for all intensive purposes, gone. It doesn't interfere with my daily life, it doesn't...

Hi everyone! Just wanted to drop in and let you all know that I love reading through your comments on this program as it rolls out. I'll be checking in on this post throughout the day, and am happy to answer any questions you might have about outcome independence, fear, or my TMS work in general.

Hi everyone! My name is Christie, and I've recovered from TMS (well, it's always really one big work in progress, isn't it? :)) and work as a pain therapist with the Pain Psychology Center. I love reading all of your stories and am consistently inspired by the work you put in to your...