I've had so much success in the past year using allowing and other techniques with TMS. Slow and steady. Yay!
Now I've learned another lesson: Telling yourself that you should never adjust anything can also be a presentation of TMS perfectionism!
Saying to myself, "This is the normal thing, so I will not adjust my situation" (which is often helpful when there's pain with no basis in the context) sometimes has been turning into "I can't adjust my chair because that would be giving into feeding TMS" or "I can't get dedicated reading glasses along with my bifocals because bifocals should be enough" (which is pretty silly since I am an author and editor and I read and write tons and tons)." TMS took hold of my healing practices in this area and turned them into more TMS brain nonsense.
Wow. It's such a good reminder that healing from TMS is not about a set of rules, but about an attitude of freedom and security and self-acceptance. Sometimes that will play out one way with any given matter, and sometimes in another. If it becomes a set of rigid anti-self rules, then it's not supporting good values.
Saying something like "you can sit in any chair without pain" is not the same as "if your neck is cramping up because your chair is really wobbly, you're not allowed to sit on a stiff chair instead." The first is good TMS talk, and the second is unloving toward yourself.
Welp, off to edit a beautiful 20-page interview with an Inklings scholar while I sit in my nicely-adjusted chair!
P.S. My first book just came out and it even got reviewed in the Wall Street Journal! It's been so exciting...so no wonder TMS reared its ugly head in a new and unexpected way. But this is also to say that we can do big and wonderful things even with TMS.
Now I've learned another lesson: Telling yourself that you should never adjust anything can also be a presentation of TMS perfectionism!
Saying to myself, "This is the normal thing, so I will not adjust my situation" (which is often helpful when there's pain with no basis in the context) sometimes has been turning into "I can't adjust my chair because that would be giving into feeding TMS" or "I can't get dedicated reading glasses along with my bifocals because bifocals should be enough" (which is pretty silly since I am an author and editor and I read and write tons and tons)." TMS took hold of my healing practices in this area and turned them into more TMS brain nonsense.
Wow. It's such a good reminder that healing from TMS is not about a set of rules, but about an attitude of freedom and security and self-acceptance. Sometimes that will play out one way with any given matter, and sometimes in another. If it becomes a set of rigid anti-self rules, then it's not supporting good values.
Saying something like "you can sit in any chair without pain" is not the same as "if your neck is cramping up because your chair is really wobbly, you're not allowed to sit on a stiff chair instead." The first is good TMS talk, and the second is unloving toward yourself.
Welp, off to edit a beautiful 20-page interview with an Inklings scholar while I sit in my nicely-adjusted chair!
P.S. My first book just came out and it even got reviewed in the Wall Street Journal! It's been so exciting...so no wonder TMS reared its ugly head in a new and unexpected way. But this is also to say that we can do big and wonderful things even with TMS.
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Fantastic!!! I’m so happy for you! What is the title of your book?
