Day 1

[Chiquita5]

Hello. My name is Carol and I just turned 50 years old. About 1.5 years ago, I woke up in the morning with a moderate pain in the back/ side of my upper right leg. The pain came and went for about 5 months, but then it started affecting my other side and knees. I started physical therapy, but that only made it worse. I went to an orthopedic surgeon and had an MRI done on my hips. They didn't find any arthritis, but found a small hip labral tear, but stated that wasn't the reason for my pain. I ended up going to another pt and had astym done which helped a bit. I still had a rocky year with ups and downs. When the summer started, I decided that I was going to get active release done, but that just sent things spinning downwards.....pain started to go into different areas--- on and off. I went to another surgeon and they didn't think my pain was from the tear...more likely my core ( I have very tight hips/ psoas muscles). My sister told me about Dr. Sarno and I have been reading since.

A little background-- I have been physically active since I was 6 years old. Started running when I was 20 and stopped running when I was about 40 due to tight psoas muscles and my pelvis getting out of alignment. Although I wasn't running daily, I walked every day for about an hour. Now, I don't exercise because something starts acting up. I've had mri's on my back ( normal) and a bone scan ( normal). All of my blood tests come back normal...no red flags. I thought maybe it was fibro, but no one thinks it is and thinks it's my tight core muscles.

Coincidentally, the weekend I woke with my initial pain, I witnessed my father having a heart attack ( he's ok, also had recently been diagnosed with cancer, too, but he is so strong). I have always been protective of my parents and even though they were able to take care of things on their own, I would always try to help out.

Anyway, I am on day 1 of this journey and am determined to free myself of this pain. Even if my labral tear is the cause of some pain, the other pains seem to definitely be tms. I have always tried to stay positive and hardly tell me anyone about my struggles. Thank you for reading!!

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

Hi, Carol. You've been checked out and nothing structural has been found, so I believe your pain is TMS, from your emotions. They may have been repressed for years, perhaps because of your concern for your parents' health, and your father's especially. Witnessing his heart attack may have triggered that concern in your subconscious. I am confident that going through the SEProgram, you will heal. TMS pain moves around because as Dr. Sarno says, that's how the subconscious works as you recognize your emotions. You don't even have to solve any emotional problem, just recognize them. In your case, you may have to work on modifying your very caring personality. Do what you can for your parents and others, but also look after yourself too.

I think you will benefit from meditation, and my favorite technique for that is the Relaxation Response.

Meditation is a time-honored way of relaxing the mind and relieving anxiety, mental stress, headaches, and even physical pain. There are many ways to practice meditation, but many consider the most successful to be a technique called the Relaxation Response (RR).

It is a wonderful way to practice TMS Mindbody Healing because it changes harmful thinking in the subconscious mind which Dr. John Sarno says causes pain in many people.

The RR, practiced daily for a few minutes has a profound positive effect on the subconscious mind, relieving or curing everything from inflammation and pain to headaches, stomach problems, insomnia, high blood pressure, to even aiding in recovery from cancer.

RR is like Transcendental Meditation which is taught by TM specialists who charge hundreds or thousands of dollars. But the RR is free and you can do it yourself.

It is done 20 minutes once or twice a day, before a meal and works best if not practiced within two hours after a meal. I do it in bed before arising in the morning and again in bed before falling sleep. Often, I only do it 5 or 10 minutes and it works to calm me and put me to sleep.

Just sit in a chair (or lie in bed in the morning or at bedtime), close your eyes, don’t listen to any music, and try to avoid outside noises. Let your mind think of a word such as "One " which has no real meaning or association. Or say a calming word such as “Peace,” or add the faith or spiritual element by saying a favorite religious word.

Say the word silently over and over. At the end of the 10 to 20 minutes, picture and feel yourself as you were when you felt your best, and in a place where you felt that way.

When distracting thoughts arise during the RR, as they will, just tell yourslf, “Oh, well,” and go back to repeating your chosen word. Transcendental Meditation teachers will charge hundreds of dollars to give practitioners a word, but the word you choose yourself in the RR works just as well.

There are several free videos on Youtube about the Relaxation Response. I especially recommend these two by Dr. Benson:

 

[Chiquita5]

Hi Walt! Thank you so much for your thoughtful response. I will definitely start this meditation technique tonight....I am a special ed high school teacher and this practice will help me in multiple ways. I know this journey will have its ups and down, so I very much appreciate this community for additional support. It is wonderful to read all of the success stories and discover different authors to encourage and inform me during this time. Thank you again for taking the time to respond to my post. I hope you have a good evening~ Carol