dizziness, headaches, neck pain, shoulder pain

[Forest]

On the old forum wiki member, cptusopp, wrote the following post. I wanted to post it here to see if we can get more responses.

Hi All,

I am new to this forum. Not sure if i posted in the right section.
Sorry, just want to share the problem i am facing (Sorry for my bad English)
I am sharing my experience as I am very lost as nothing seems to work until i read Dr Sarno's book "The divided Mind" (still reading) which gives me hope again.
===============================================================

I started having severe neck & shoulder ache in year 2009 which I seek treatment with a medical specialist who sent me for physio therapy treatment.
It helps to a certain extend and was sent for MRI scan which shows no abnormality..
Endured with the pain till last year July 2011, I had a terrible dizziness for few weeks where I almost broke down. Seeks treatment with neurology who found nothing.
The dizziness went off by itself suddenly and I still suffer from neck and shoulder ache almost daily.

This year feb 2012, I had a bad dizziness again and this time it lasted for a full month. After the dizziness is gone, i have constant pulling of muscle on my left eye (makes me sensitive to light) and headache daily till today.

Had another appointment with my neurology, which prescribe me anti depressant which i have not taken due to side effect.
Did a brain scan as well (still pending result)

I don't know what is wrong with me. I m in the IT sector and using a laptop daily. Every body seems to say my problem must be due to bad posture. (I have tried to adopt different posture with not much positive effect)

This issue is affecting my work and my life...

As i was typing this message , an hour ago i had a bad dizziness again together with neck and shoulder pain.

I don't know if I have TMS ...if i have , how should i approach it..Feeling very vex. I am only 32 years old, i dont wanna live like this for the rest of my life..

Reading the Divided Mind is a great first step and hopefully you find some of your answers there. Check out our page on Migraines. It has quite a few success stories written by people in similar situations as yourself. I myself had severe RSI along with neck and shoulder pain. Like you I thought that if I worked less on the computer it would get better, but it never did. I tried almost every kind of treatment and the only thing that actually worked was the TMS approach. Now I am pain free.

I suggest that you make a list of all of the stresses in your life and of major life events that have happened in your past. Then spend some time and journal about each one of these items and investigate what emotions you may have about them. As you read through Sarno's book you may think that this is 'too good to be true' or that it 'won't work for me.' This is simply nonsense. I had severe chronic pain for over 16 years and I am now pain free. If it worked for me, it will work for you.

I am so happy that you have found this site, and I hope that you find some answers here. We have a wonderful group of people here and if you ever have any questions feel free to ask.

Best,

Forest

 

[honeybear424]

Thank you for posting this here, Forest.

My headaches began a little over 18 years ago, but a few years prior to that, I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Seems like once I had my two car accidents in Feb. '94, the anxiety was replaced by the headaches and chronic pain, and has continued to this day. Only it is not just headaches. I have always referred to it as my "TNJ" problem because I would have tooth pain (dentists never found a problem), neck pain and headaches (from the whiplash), and jaw problems (TMJ stuff and malocclusion). Over the past year or so, my stuff is moving down from my head and neck to now include my shoulders (constant pain for the past year) and most recently arm pain since January. I know there is an emotional link and I am not giving up til I find it. I am not going to live the rest of my life as a prisoner to this darn pain!!! I just received The Divided Mind in yesterday's mail. It is next on the agenda. Now if only I could find a TMS doctor close by. My doctor point blank told me a couple of weeks ago...all I can offer you is the Pain Clinic, medication, or therapy. No thanks. I'll stick with the TMS approach.

 

[Beach-Girl]

My headaches began a little over 18 years ago, but a few years prior to that, I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

Hi Honeybear: I have GAD as well. Trying to connect the dots, I agree, is frustrating. GAD, it is so sneaky and cunning, I don't realize I'm ruminating with the fear until I'm well into it. I want it to stop too.

Over the past year or so, my stuff is moving down from my head and neck to now include my shoulders (constant pain for the past year) and most recently arm pain since January. I know there is an emotional link and I am not giving up til I find it. I am not going to live the rest of my life as a prisoner to this darn pain!!!

I'm with you 100% Honeybear! I too have neck and shoulder pain now, when it started in my lower back. I don't notice my back so much anymore, but can barely move my arm sometimes. I know it's related! I just can't figure how where I "hit" on something and could go back and keep going. I too have, but have not read, the Divided Mind. I guess it's time to give it a try.

And don't get me started on pain clinics. Biggest waste of time I ever engaged in.

Best of luck to us both. I'm too am very tired of this pain.

BG

 

[honeybear424]

Hi Honeybear: I have GAD as well. Trying to connect the dots, I agree, is frustrating. GAD, it is so sneaky and cunning, I don't realize I'm ruminating with the fear until I'm well into it. I want it to stop too.

I'm with you 100% Honeybear! I too have neck and shoulder pain now, when it started in my lower back. I don't notice my back so much anymore, but can barely move my arm sometimes. I know it's related! I just can't figure how where I "hit" on something and could go back and keep going. I too have, but have not read, the Divided Mind. I guess it's time to give it a try.

And don't get me started on pain clinics. Biggest waste of time I ever engaged in.

Best of luck to us both. I'm too am very tired of this pain.

BG

BG ~ I don't know what the heck happened with my arms either! In January, my husband and I painted my meditation room. That's when the pain started in my arms. Guess using the roller so much was harder on me than I thought. lol The next day, I felt like I had been hit by a truck. My arms were so sore! Instead of it resolving itself over a few days, it has continued, and really, it's mostly my forearms that feel extremely sore (especially my right side)...like I have been lifting weights for days. It hurts to lift anything, even a coffee cup. That's why I went to the doctor. I wanted some blood work done to see if there was anything causing it and the other disturbing thing that came up about 8 months ago...Raynaud's Syndrome. Dr. Sarno talks about it in The MindBody Prescription with the other circulatory disorders that are TMS equivalents. Bingo! There it is, right there with tension and migraine headaches. Mine are more the tension-type, but sometimes I think they border on migraine since when they are REALLY bad, they are one-sided. Only I don't get the sensitivity to light associated with migraines, but I do sometimes get nauseous from the pain. Ugh! Just so ready to be free. Yes, good luck to us both!

I only went once to the pain clinic and got some shots in my neck of lidocaine or something. When I called the office later that day with a question, they were very rude with me, I decided then and there that I wasn't going back and have stuck with alternative therapies since then. Unfortunately, none of them worked either and that is why I am here.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

On the old forum wiki member, cptusopp, wrote the following post. I wanted to post it here to see if we can get more responses.

Forest, remind me to start a thread about dizziness after April 17 - I would love to tell cptusopp about my dizziness (and stiff neck, painful shoulders, light sensitivities, twitchy facial muscles, weak lower back, shaky legs... and that's not even a complete list) and how I was able to achieve 90% relief within a couple of months.

100% relief all the time? Hardly - in fact I've been having symptoms the last couple of weeks as I panic over the approaching tax deadline. But my relationship to the symptoms is totally different than a year ago, because I no longer fear them, I simply observe, accept, and "float through" them as Claire Weekes suggests. And I know that they will pass.

Actually, this weekend I stopped "finishing" tax returns and I'm just cranking out extensions, which takes a LOT of the pressure off, and I already feel better :^)

Dinner break is over, back to work, see you all in 10 days - I miss everyone!

Jan

 

[Beach-Girl]

And we miss you too!

 

[cptusopp]

hi Jan,

I am having bad dizziness since Christmas last year...
it all started with a bad food poisoning on Xmas day and bad headache that lasted for 3 days.

thereafter I am having bad dizziness till now. I m currently reading " the great pain deception".

I was having bad back pain and shoulder pain and dizziness about years ago and back pain is gone..

recently shoulder pain and dizziness is back.I don't know what is wrong

 

[Gigalos]

just want to add a thread I started some time ago on all this...
http://www.tmswiki.org/forum/threads/psycho-physiological-dizziness-syndrome-ppds.4599/