Can knowledge hurt us?

[Donnie]

As I am learning more and more about TMS I am discovering that I feel better. Although it is slight I do feel better. Know what I am wondering is how much does knowledge hurt us? The day I hurt myself, I started googling what I did and how to fix it. When the pain didn't resolve I went to a few Dr's who diagnosed me with the normal findings (disc issues, si joint, ligament issues etc etc).. So what did I do, I started googling these conditions and sure enough my pain started to increase in the ways the symptoms were described. What I found even more interesting is that the exercises given to me worked, but only temporarily (15 minutes of pain free).

I still believe the only reason I never reached disabling pain is because I told myself that I would not let my pain prevent me from doing anything.. I said if it hurt ill do it anyway..

So I find our knowledge to be a problem sometimes depending on what we learn.. I just wish my body would adapt to the new knowledge of TMS as quick as it did to every other condition. All of the signs are there, but this one takes more time. I guess it's because physical is easier than psychological

Anyone else have any similar problems with this in the past? Anyone's pain ever mimic what you learned from a Dr or from online reading?

 

[leonardo999]

In my early days of spinal pain there were no computers..no Google to browse through. 1970s
Like all my friends in their 20s I played squash..and ran a couple times a week... until trying to hook a fast ball out of a low corner..backhand... and crack... I heard and felt my spine... and crashed to the floor.
I was carried out and with so much pain could hardly move for several days.
I was not going to give in... so a few weeks later I was playing again.. and same thing.... this time I couldnt move and had to be dragged carefully even get to the bathroom.
No matter how I tried with any physical challenge.... in most cases the pain beat me.

Now in my late 50s the problem remains... and when it hits now I cant move at all.... not even to get to the bathroom... and thats not nice :*(

I still do what I can.... and now looking into TMS at least to help with some of my issues.
It has given me some hope... and additional confidence in various aspects of pain.

Physical diagnosis was premature aged spine... and at 50 was told my spine was like a 70 year old womans.

I have always fought to keep moving at least.... but now and then I go down like I was hit with a bullet and so far I have not found anything to aid that happening... but Im still hopeful and working on it.

As far a Google goes... If I find something possibly helpful it will lift my mood for a while until the next fall... The bad stuff,, I wont read :*)

Good luck... Leo

 

[plum]

Donnie, knowledge cannot hurt but unfortunately Dr. Google deals in dogma and fear, which most decidedly distresses, confuses and harms. Don't google your symptoms. Never google your symptoms unless you want to scare the bejesus out of yourself. The thing is it takes a while to truly, madly, deeply understand how tms is having its way with you. Intellectually we all get the concept early on but shucking off the fear that the pain is physical is a lot harder. When you google your problems, all you're really doing is slathering your dread with butter and salt.

As for mimicry of other symptoms, I believe this is common. Humans can be very suggestible at times and particularly when afraid, tired and in pain. There is good reason why brain-washing techniques rely on inducing such states. My best advice is to capitalise on this tendency by focusing on health and happiness. Read success stories. When you feel the urge to explore a symptom, maybe you could try reading more deeply around the unconscious and the nature of the emotional self. Carl Jung's books alone would keep you in reading material for years.

At this point you are experiencing the classic signs of doubt; you want to believe its tms but the physical aspect is too damn compelling. Safe to say we all go through this. The fastest way to ramp pain is to start thinking it has a physical cause. The fastest way to calm it is to recognise the emotional tensions of the moment. Slowly, slowly the shift happens and as it does, you'll be amazed.

I'm not completely out of the woods yet but I CAN see the wood for the trees. I'm getting there and all due credit to the good people here. Spend some time watching the videos posted by Forest. He has a real knack of explaining things well. Read his posts. Read Eric "Herbie" Watson's posts too because he excells in offering ways to fight negativity and pour goodness into your life. In the end Donnie that's all healing is about - restoring balance and harmony to the psyche.

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

Donnie, plum is right about focusing on health and happiness. I sometimes google to get knowledge about an ache or pain or just a
headache. It can give me a worse headache and sometimes lead to doomsday thoughts. I have to beware of bad advice. I had a roommate once who thought he knew why I couldn't sleep for a few nights. He said he thought it was this and then that and then another thing. I let myself think yes,
that's why I can't sleep. But he was playing amateur psychiatrist with me and only made me worse.

I finally realized it was more simple than he could imagine. I had overworked myself in a very stressful job and work environment, then quit and had no job, no money coming in. That worried me into losing sleep. I soon found another job and all was well.

Now I'm careful of what medical or psychological advice I find on the Internet. What works for some may not work for others, and we have to
watch what we put in our minds. I consider it a very lucky day when seeking knowledge about my back pain a year ago led me to learning about Dr. Sarno. He had the answer: TMS. Once I totally believed my repressed emotions were causing my pain, it went away.

Stay the course and, as plum says, "pour goodness into your life." Keep your spirits up and your focus on knowing you will heal.

It worked for me and has for many, many others. We're in a wonderful club with members who share their knowledge with us that really works.

 

[Becca]

Hi Donnie,

Great to hear you are feeling better. Even if it is a slight change, it's still a change and that's worth celebrating!

I agree with everything Walt and plum wrote. Something else to keep in mind: gaining knowledge of TMS won't harm you. There's a possibility of working too hard in your recovery -- overloading on information, not giving yourself a break -- but even then, seeking that knowledge doesn't harm you, necessarily. It sounds like you're not at that point, though. My main point is, learning about TMS really won't hurt you; in most cases, it will help you! But, seeking knowledge about a purely physical condition that seems similar to your TMS symptom won't help you, and may even harm you, as you do not have that condition. You have to remind yourself that you have TMS, and that your physical symptoms are benign. At the very least, looking at the other conditions your symptoms could potentially belong to is simply irrelevant. At the very worst, well Plum put it best - you can really "scare the bejeezus out of yourself" ! I know I've done that - and with purely physical symptoms, too. The power of suggestion...we just have to figure out what's relevant to us, to our situation. And even then, even if we're in the right place, some things won't help. Like Walt so wisely said, "What works for some may not work for others, and we have to watch what we put in our minds." Love that.

 

[North Star]

Donnie, You've already received a lot of great advice. I just want to chime and say...yeah, Dr. Google can really stir things up. I was a nurse and it was funny how many afflictions my fellow nursing students endured when we were in school. Coincidentally, the maladies were always about the same time we were studying on that subject. I personally have survived about 35 fatal diseases. (None of which were real.)

One thing that I have been learning is that while knowledge is empowering, self-compassion is equally important. I, like most TMS sufferers, tend to be driven. So I remind myself that many times, I really don't need more knowledge...I just need to learn to be nicer to myself. Does that make sense?

 

[Gigi]

As I librarian, I'm fond of saying, "Knowledge is power." Of course, what you DO with that knowledge is another matter

 

[leonardo999]

Donnie, You've already received a lot of great advice. I just want to chime and say...yeah, Dr. Google can really stir things up. I was a nurse and it was funny how many afflictions my fellow nursing students endured when we were in school. Coincidentally, the maladies were always about the same time we were studying on that subject. I personally have survived about 35 fatal diseases. (None of which were real.)

One thing that I have been learning is that while knowledge is empowering, self-compassion is equally important. I, like most TMS sufferers, tend to be driven. So I remind myself that many times, I really don't need more knowledge...I just need to learn to be nicer to myself. Does that make sense?

That makes a lot of sense,,,well put.

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

I'm being nicer to myself.
I keep reminding me how much my dog loves me.

I have a note on the front of my refrigerator door that says:
"I will try to be the person my dog thinks I am."

But not bully or pressure myself doing it.

 

[leonardo999]

"I will try to be the person my dog thinks I am."

Brilliant line.

 

[Steve Ozanich]

This topic could open up Pandora's box. It's one of the most philosophically debated topics I've ever seen, and I believe, the main point of Genesis 2:17.

Are we supposed to live and laugh and love? Or constantly think and ponder? It's an age old question. But I can say as it relates to health, that knowledge was my curse, and my savior. What I didn't know was killing me, and what I learned anew saved me. So it was the truth that freed me. But it was there all along, covered by ignorance. The key was in separating the truth from ALL knowledge--the wheat from the chaff.

But the reverse was also true. What I thought I knew was killing me because it was wrong. That's why I quoted Plato in GPD, "attention to health is life's greatest hindrance." We would all be so much better off if we would forget about health and go become happy--let go of attachments. But--there are things that need monitored, thus the conundrum. Or is it?

As the librarian above said, it's all about what you do with that knowledge, I suppose. It was Francis Bacon, one of my personal heroes, who stated that knowledge was power. But how much power does the wrong knowledge wield? An equivalent power I suppose to the accurate knowledge. So be-war-e. This also pertains to TMS healing. I've seen people making themselves worse through TMS healing, trying many self sabotaging things. But we learn through mistakes, not through victory. The fire burns us as it also forges us.

Be aware. But don't over think. The direct translation of Genesis 2:17 is not possible. But it could very well mean that we die the instant we stop being innocent. And I will say, from my own experience, that TMS-healing begins with a return to innocence. And, trying to heal from TMS stops healing and is counterproductive. So it's best to get the fundamental understanding of TMS, and then stop reading, and gathering more fruit. Just go live. Knowledge may just cause you more suffering. Balance is king in the middle.

Steve

 

[Ellen]

Ahhh, it always seems to come down to balance......the yin and yang in harmony.

 

[Forest]

But how much power does the wrong knowledge wield? An equivalent power I suppose to the accurate knowledge. So be-war-e. This also pertains to TMS healing. I've seen people making themselves worse through TMS healing, trying many self sabotaging things. But we learn through mistakes, not through victory. The fire burns us as it also forges us.

TMS knowledge will heal us, however information that reinforces the physical will keep you in pain. Yes, google can help you find the right information, but it will also show you the wrong kind as well. The other issue is that when you search for "back pain" you are reinforcing the physical. Remember the goal is to not care if you have back pain or not, because it is all TMS. There is not need to search for back pain.