Derek S. Do I really have tms?

[vanessa30]

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Question

Hi,
Im having trouble finding a connection between my symptom and my mind.
I try (like Sarno and Schubiner say) to look inside me and see what I feel and think right now and what my physical symptom is trying to tell me but there is nothing. Even hypnosis or meditation didnt help with that.

I have chronical muscle tenderness. That makes complete sense to me that that comes from inner tension and my physical reaction towards stress in the past and now. I can even feel that.

But my main issue is a really disturbing feeling/sensation in my uterus area that sometimes even goes through my genital area into the legs. Its a little bit arousal like and definetly no pain. But it is so terrible (I dont find words to describe it) that Im losing my mind.

I always read in Schubiners books that the symptoms people have are direclty linked to their past events.,e.g. a woman developed migraine as a child after her parents divorce and later developed interstitial cystitis after her own divorce.
That connection seems pretty obvious.

I have a weird pressure and sensations in my uterus area that sometimes goes thrugh my genital area right down in the legs. It isnt painful but is so disturbing that Im about to lose my mind and I lately developed panic attack because of it and on top of this feeling in my uterus comes now the panic when it starts. I never had any symptoms like this in my childhood before so where is the connection? Also- when this feeling is really intense and I try to take my look inside me like Schubiner says (What am I feeling right now etc) there is nothing I feel or think. Sometimes there is nothing on my mind and I dont feel anything and this feeling is there. In other situations for example when I feel a little bit anxious and I feel sick or have sweaty hands I can easily tell where that comes from and see the connections but not with this terrible arousal like feeling in lower stomach area.

That makes me wondering If I really have TMS?

Thanks for reading this.

 

[Derek Sapico MFT]

Answer

Hi Vanessa,

Thanks for your question. It is hard for me to say for certain whether or not your symptoms are TMS, however there appears to be a strong possibility of it. Symptoms of pain and/or arousal in the pelvic area are common TMS symptoms.

You appear to have other straightforward TMS symptoms and it would stand to reason that since you have started approaching these symptoms from a TMS perspective, the appearance of another "scarier" sensation could be an example of symptom imperative.

Instead of trying to go directly to your unconscious emotions, try focusing on addressing the fear that the symptom causes. It's hard to explore emotions when you're in a full on fight-or-flight state.

If possible, see a TMS doctor or therapist to get the certainty that you need to approach your symptoms as TMS. Therapy could also help with accessing those pesky emotions.

-Derek

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