Can't find any other causes?

I've been doing the SEP journaling and reading Sarnos book. I'm almost done with Mind Body Prescription and I'm on day 12 of SEP. This is my 3rd time doing this in the last 3 years with various issues. This time, I'm noticing in my journaling, I'm journaling about the same issues I journaled about before. I cannot seem to dig up any other repressed problems from my past/present. Does that matter really? If my pain is from the same problem, why does it come back if I've already addressed it? I started TMS work 3 years ago for urinary issues, got it to go away, the 2nd time was with low back pain, it went away, and now with some pelvic pain. Just want to make sure I'm not missing something here.

 

We seem to have the same problems with the symptoms moving around. I started with back pain, then it was heart palpitations, then gastritis, now back to back pain. Reading Sarnos books are helping, I'm on The Divided Mind now, I seem to do better reading Healing Back Pain over and over. I've only been doing the journal for a little over a week now. It makes some issues obvious, but like you there must be something else I'm not getting at.

 

Oh I've had the heart palps too but I never contributed it to TMS before. Interesting! I went through a period back in 2009 (way before I discovered TMS) where I got them daily, multiple times. Now I just get them here and there (had some today actually). How is the Divided Mind? Its in my amazon cart been thinking about ordering it.

 

You might want to take a look at this site, it's helping me a bit. https://palousemindfulness.com/index.html (Online MBSR/Mindfulness (Free)). It's structured like this site but is a mindfulness meditation site.

 

Leslie,

Recall that the journaling is helpful but it's ok if you can't identify the "exact" cause of the pain...I don't think anyone knows this! The mind is so complex and it seems to be the general store of repressed or unacknowledged emotions that cause the pain, there may not be one specific thing.

I would definitely read as many TMS books as you have time for, also from different authors- Sarno's books are great but there are more by other authors here that will help strengthen your belief and deepen your knowledge : http://www.tmswiki.org/ppd/Books_%26_DVDs,_etc.#TMS_books_by_other_authors (Books & DVDs, etc.)

I think I originally linked that mindfulness online course, it is great and really helpful, though not directly related to TMS! Many of us find that mindfulness meditation and TMS go hand-in-hand

 

If you can't identify the cause then how do you get the pain to go away completely? I went Monday and Tuesday without any pain then day its been on and off. So I'm afraid now I haven't found the true reason behind it. Does that make sense? I'm sure I'm letting my anxiety get in my way. I will defiantly check out some ot her books, thanks!

 

Forget the books and the sep you did that move on....set some goals , be with people , do volunteer work ...yell at your pain be aggressive telling it off and move on ...stop dwelling on it..this was the best advice I got from my TMS Dr

 

I don't know the "true" cause of my TMS! I think there are many, recall the overflowing reservoir of unconscious emotions, many past and presents causes could contribute. The cause is a buildup of painful unconscious emotions contributing to the reinforcement of pain pathways in the brain. Anxiety (including about the "real" cause of the pain) will worsen it. Focus on strategies to reduce anxiety and try not to focus on it, like Boston Redsox said above.

 

No it does't matter, stop doing the psycho-archeology. The cause is TMS--that's all you NEED TO BELIEVE.

One morning you wake up and poof--it's gone! You make it go away by finding positive distractions to replace the negative ones with--find things that give you pleasure.

From Monte Hueftle's book "GET RID OF THE PAIN IN YOUR BUTT NOW!" :

page 86 : ...anything in your past that is stored and needs to be expressed will naturally be experienced when your consciousness is in the present moment. There is no reason to waste more energy looking for it. Realize, once you start going back to dig up emotional stuff--how far back do you go? There will always be more stuff to uncover, to analyze, and to worry about. Drop it. Let it Die. Become present--watching, listening, feeling , and observing your inner self, the less you will be trapped in the past or the future. Every time you realize you are in the past, you have just become present. Each time you observe your dialogue as the detached observer, you are consciously aware.​

 

Leslie,

I've only known about TMS for about a year now. And in that time I spent a lot of time journaling and trying to figure out traumatic experiences and things that are bothering me. From my experience, it is good to journal in order to become aware of the rage we are holding up inside but at some point journaling starts to get redundant and I find myself just writing and analyzing the same things over and over.

I've been getting frustrated about this and now it seems obvious that I can't really write my way out of TMS. Instead, it is important to have faith and to constantly remind myself that I will heal. I've been reading Don Colbert's "Deadly Emotions" and much of what he writes is relevant to us TMS sufferers. He talks about the importance of forgiveness and how holding grudges generates toxic emotions and ultimately causes pain and suffering. He has a good saying along the lines, "What we feel emotionally is what we will feel physically"

I think if journaling isn't going anywhere, then just do something relaxing like listening to some music you love or taking a bath or going on a walk. And of course have full faith in TMS healing and try to remind yourself every day of the things in life that you are grateful for. Don't worry about it because if you've accepted the TMS diagnosis, then you can recover.