symptom imperative and symptom substitution

I still have to do a vacation update which went REALLY well overall . I will do a separate thread. But here comes the spiral right? Even though I was expecting to have a worsening of symptoms (thank you @dlane2530 you prepared me). We got back 2 days ago and I have ran 2x since we got home...

Hi everyone, I do believe in TMS. My entire adult life I've gone from one "nerve" issue to another. I won't list them. Now, they just hop around faster, so I take it I haven't 100% committed to the psychological aspect. I used to go to doctors for the issues, but I don't now. The internet...

Tried doing a search on this but returned 0 results. How often should you get tested when you get a new symptom? I seem to have a particularly active 'symptom imperative' and get new symptoms or pain in new spots ALL the time. If I got checked for them I'd be going to a new doctor atleast once...

So I have been on my TMS journey for about 1.5 years and convinced it's the answer to chronic pain (in 98% of the cases). I have a business partner that just turned 50 and proves Sarno's findings to the "T". Why? She is a 50 year old female executive that fits the prototypical personality -...

I am one of those fortunate people who actually went to see Dr.Sarno. I saw him the first time in the early 90's. I had done what everyone else had done before going to see him; seeking out any and all other modalities to cure my pain. (Everything except surgery, thankfully) I took my...

I have an urge to update you all on how things are coming along with me. It's almost been a year since I started the TMS approach. When I started I was having migraines and headaches every day along with anxiety. It completely ruled my life and I was very depressed. My brain controlled me most...

Hi everyone, in the last days/weeks my recovery reached the next level. I am now able to open the door to my subconscious and explore situations of the last 10 years. The emotions and feeling are sometimes overwhelming me. Today I had a hard knock-out. I was in a therm yesterday and had a...

I'm curious to know if this is an issue for anyone else. I hesitate to read other's posts that include symptoms, because if it's at all relatable I will find myself feeling similar symptoms, sometimes the next hour!! I am trying to figure out why my mind is so suggestible and latches on to...

Here's Jerry! from Wikipedia Jerome Littlefield (Jerry Lewis) is an orderly at the Whitestone Sanatorium and Hospital who suffers from "neurotic identification empathy"—a psychosomatic problem that causes him to suffer the symptoms of others and interferes with his ability to function...

Hello to all. I want to pass along this Steven Ozanich quote because bells rang in my head when I read it. "The tendency of a negative perfectionist is to look at the impossibility and to make that their probability." My mother, in an attempt to end a discussion, would address something I...

Hey y'all, I'm still experiencing some pain symptoms with my low back/left butt/leg, but as I'm getting better at ignoring it and getting back to my life, I've noticed my allergies, especially in the last week, have really kicked in. I've read about this being a TMS manifestation, but I'm...

My question is on pain moving around. I've had new symptoms over the last week - knee, wrist and elbow. All old injuries! However, my back and leg pain have continued whilst the new symptoms have come and gone (none of the symptoms at the same time though). Anyone experienced this? My story...

I read Armchair's Linguists Success Story for DAY 11. The SEP asks if I see myself in the story. I do, and I have also seen some of the success of acknowledging I have TMS. Two weeks ago, I could barely sit at my desk, and definitely not with my legs crossed. The sciatic would kick in heavy...

Since totally embracing the TMS way for my back pain i have started getting migraines which previously was very rare. Can someone please share some light on the situation (am i thinking about TMS too much?). Also my pain is moving daily around my back which i believe is a good sign Stephen

Originally written by Dr. Schubiner on August 28, 2009 I have learned so many things about the mind and the body over the past 5 years of working with patients with Mind Body syndrome.One of the most interesting things is that disorders that we considered psychological, such as anxiety...

:joyful: Greetings! I'm a confirmed believer in the existence of TMS and the "symptom imperative." Therefore, any new symptoms that come along are met immediately with the question, "Could this be TMS?" Well, a couple of weeks ago, and then again last night, I had a particular pain that...

Written by on November 25, 2008 Everyone who has MBS/TMS or works with people who have this syndrome knows about symptom substitution, which Dr. Sarno calls the symptom imperative. Freud wrote about it many years ago. For the purposes of MBS/TMS, it basically means that the manifestations of...

Hi, Bit lost at the moment and looking for some words of advice/Encouragement. Iv'e been at the TMS work for about 6 months and have seen some improvement for my chronic back pain however it has now increased dramatically despite me knowing the pain is not from a structural issue. The pain...

I've been struggling with the return of foot pain for the past month. In the past, this foot pain was the main manifestation of my TMS, but it's been nearly two years since I've had a major episode. Since December I've been in a relapse of sorts...first sciatica, then knee pain, then the foot...

Hi, First thing is to say thanks for this amazing site. Truly, it was crucial to me tackling my RSI, which I recovered from successfully a few years ago thanks to the Sarno method and also to support on this forum. Since I recovered from RSI I started to get other substitute symptoms like...