Can this really be true?

I learned about TMS - yesterday. I ordered Dr. Sarno's book Healing Back Pain. It was the result of a desperate search after a morning spent in agonizing back pain which cut short an overnight getaway. I've done all the usual (except surgery), and got tired of going to doctors because it only lead to more doctors, and after 30 years nothing had changed. So I ordered the eBook, and while resting my back I read it in one sitting.

It made so much sense. I had wondered how I could have days when my back was only marginally achy, then others when it was so painful that I could not stand up without assistance, and could not find a comfortable position to lay in. Doctors blamed it on arthritis and scoliosis, but if those were the cause, why would it sometimes feel better? When the student is ready, the teacher will arrive. Even after 30 years of being told I had back problems that could only be helped by surgery, I found myself ready to believe that THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MY BACK!!!

I fell asleep telling myself this - that my back pain is not due to any physical injury or abnormality. I even slept on my side - a position I had been told would make it worse. I ordered my brain to keep sending oxygen to my muscles. Today I woke up - no pain, no stiffness, stood up out of bed like I was 20. Today, I've been doing many of the things that I KNEW would irritate my back - arching, slouching in my chair, working with the computer in my lap - no pain, no stiffness.

Lucky me - I think I was really ready to hear this. Seven years ago, I woke up coughing and unable to draw air back into my lungs. Because I had a diagnosis of asthma, I was treated for asthma for 6 weeks, even though I told doctors that it did not feel like asthma. I was on steroids and a medicine that contained vicodin - I could have walked into a group of zombies and would have been accepted as one of their own! Finally, my doctor admitted defeat and sent me to a pulmonologist, who found that I had a viral infection. The six weeks of missing work and overmedication were for nothing.

I also had a blocked ear tube, annual bouts of bronchitis, and multiple sinus and ear infections every year. I'd been told that they were due to my asthma and allergies, and there was nothing that could be done. I was looking forward to retirement soon, but thinking that I would not enjoy it much if I was still suffering from all of the conditions that were making me miserable. I'd also be financially strapped without a regular income to pay all the doctors. So I set off on a quest to find solutions.

I changed doctors, going to a recommended doctor who listened and believed in getting the body to heal itself. This doctor referred me to an ENT, and he put an ear tube in my 57 year old ear (other ENTs had said that was only useful in infants)! This helped the ear clear its own blockage, and as a result the inflammation went down and the pain and pressure in my ear relaxed. After the tube fell out, the ENT said to wait a few months and see if the symptoms came back - and they did not! I was so relieved that I had found someone who believed the body could fix itself, and was not in a rush to put a tube back in or give me medication. My new doctor also removed the diagnosis of asthma from my charts, as she said she did not see any evidence that I had it. I realized that the misinformation I'd received over the years had kept me believing I was doomed to frequent infections and respiratory problems, and now that I had found help and rejected the false diagnoses, I was healing!

However, I didn't at the time think about this possibly applying to my back. So when I found Dr. Sarno's book yesterday, I was open to what it had to say. Right now, I am wiggling all over, doing everything I can to try and get a twinge of pain from my back - but it's not happening! Could I really have fixed this in 24 hours!!! THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MY BACK!!!!

 

Amazing.... you must feel like the most relieved person on this earth today

 

I do - with one little 'but...'. From what I've learned already, it's not unusual for TMS cases to have a little doubt. My concern is travel. One consistency has always been that I get major back pain when sleeping in different beds from my one at home. This is what drove me to my search yesterday. I have a big trip planned in June - 3 days in a hotel in Chicago to celebrate my nephew's birthday and college graduation. I don't want to be disabled while I'm there, and the old fear and anxiety about travel pain is still there. It's ruined a lot of vacations. I used to associate a lot of stress with travel - I would worry about forgetting to pack things, or something happening to my pets. I've created a comprehensive packing list that I print off and check off, and that has relieved a lot of the stress, and I found a reliable pet sitter willing to come in nightly and text pictures of my pets. So I know what may have caused TMS to kick in on these trips in the past, and now that I know that stress may have caused my body to create the back pain, I have a month to strengthen my belief and confidence in this - because I know if I worry about it, I'm going to make it happen. Wish me luck!!!

Sorry for writing a book above, but my transformation wasn't really a 24 hour process, and I wanted skeptical people to know that. I just found a new mind-body connection, and new ways to work with it, and I'm so filled with joy right now it's overflowing!! Learning about TMS gave me a better understanding and a practical way to work with my mind to influence my body. I was such a miserable wretch 4 years ago, and I've found paths of hope and out of despair, and a big part of it is learning to ignore those who say we have to live with it. Why not keep fighting? What have we got to lose?

 

Hi, Debbi. Your post is wonderful and inspirational to everyone.

I suggest just try not to worry on your trip. Things will be fine at home since you've made arrangements
for everything, and you've made a list so you won't forget anything.

Imagine the hotel bed being just right for you. If it isn't, you'll only need it 2 or 3 nights.

Keep feeling full of joy. That will block out the worries.

Some people can heal in 24 hours, but you and I took longer. That's okay. The time I spent
on TMS thinking and journaling helped me to learn a lot more about myself, my pain, and
about others.

Keep focused on how you are going to enjoy being with family and friends and
the graduation and celebrating.

 

Hi Debs, you have very, very strong evidence now that you suffer(ed) from TMS. I suggest making the 7th of may your personal special day, the day you discovered a tool for the rest of your life. From now on, you can always fall back on this day if things might become rough on the health front.
Plaster this on your toilet door or fridge door: "I feel calm, relaxed, patient and confident". Stare at it once a day for 1 or 2 minutes, especially if you know something 'provoking' is coming. Like Walt explains, imagine that what you are going to do will be done in a calm, relaxed patient and confident way.
you go girl!

 

I like your suggestion, Gigalos, about putting that affirmation around the house,
especially in front of the computer if you work on it a lot.

 

Congratulations, Debbi - what a wonderful and quick recovery.

"and the old fear and anxiety about travel pain is still there. "

Remember: Lose the fear = Lose the pain. It's that simple. If you allow fear to come up, the pain will come. Be fearless. If you feel twinges coming on before and during travel, laugh at your brain. I've been doing that lately - almost taunting it. I'll ask my brain "What are you going to give me today? Huh? What have you got in store for me? Ohhhh, I see. It's going to pins and needles. Or the next time - oooh, a spasm. You're so tough!! Silly brain. Nice try, but you're not fooling me." And then I just go about my business even if there is pain. It really does help calm things down when you take control and don't give in to the fear.

Wish you the best!

 

Tigerlily, you give a terrific boost to talk to our brain and tell it to let go of the pain.

Lose the fear and Laugh. They go together real well. Your dog always give me a smile!

 

For you, Walt! I call it his "cheesecake" photo!

 

Thanks to all for the support. I'm in Day 2 and still no pain! I'm almost overwhelmed with the materials available here, and how wonderfully supportive and kind everyone is.

I like the idea of the affirmations - and the computer is a great place, as I'm a work-at-home programmer. I've also got my own mantra - there is nothing wrong with my back, and there never was!

And love the dog!

I keep doing things as if I'm testing this to see if it's real. My husband caught me twerking (so embarrassing!).

 

Tigerlily, I love the "cheesecake" photo and have stored it to my desktop. What a hoot!