Fatigue, anxiety

[Jabre24]

Hello people,
I’m not sure what I want from posting this, perhaps some word of support or tips.

I’m J, 24 years old. For the last 5 years I’ve had so many different health issues without ever finding a medical cause. To name a few; random electrical shock pains, anxiety, strong physical jittery feeling, heart flutters, strong hunger/hollow stomach feeling, flu feeling, fatigue, panic feelings, head pressure, chest and throat pain when excercising.
Its been so horrible and I’ve lost out on a lot of my university years. I have constantly had something to deal with, just surviving and consuming my attention.

I’ve read The Mind Body Prescription and followed Nicole Sachs and her journalspeak for a few weeks. I do check some boxes personality wise, afraid of conflicts and try to be very “good”. I have had a easy life (besides these pains) but was always a fragile and anxious child. I can’t recall any significant traumas, and have lovely parents. I also follow Eckhart Tolles teachings and mindfulness, I would do anything to be “free” of this constant issues.

What exactly is my aim with this work and journaling? To conjure and then feel the rage and allow it? To be OK with the physical issues? I feel lost, would love to hear any similar experiences or so.

 

[Dorado]

Hello and welcome, J!

I am sorry you've dealt with so many symptoms over the years - the good news is that you are not alone and there are many things that can be done to help you live your best life. All those symptoms can indeed be products of the mind-body connection. I've personally had every single one myself.

Even if you haven't experienced any significant traumas, you can still develop symptoms and benefit from mind-body work. In fact, no matter how minor (e.g., a passing headache) or significant (e.g., full-blown CRPS) symptoms may be, every human being will be faced with the mind-body response at some point. I once read a scientific journal about a baby who was diagnosed with psychosomatic stomach issues after being put in daycare.

To me, the aim of mind-body work is to help manage my daily feelings and emotions. I may not seem like it to my professional or personal connections (who have described me as professional, confident, mild-mannered, humorous and not easily rattled, etc.), but I was born more sensitive. This sensitivity isn't always a negative trait - it's allowed me to build strong interpersonal relationships. However, on an internal level I sometimes deal with highly stressful feelings that I'm not sure what to do with. As such, I go into fight-or-flight mode easily, igniting my sympathetic nervous system and bringing about symptoms. It's important for me to focus on not fearing the symptoms, accepting that they're part of the mind-body connection, and allow myself to feel how I feel but manage the intensity of those feelings by creating a peaceful inner environment for myself.

That's just one example. Mind-body work isn't a one-size-fits-all hat and it doesn't always have to be focused on rage or include journaling, meditation, etc., but it certainly can if those focuses / approaches are applicable / helpful! Some questions for you to consider: do you fear your symptoms? Do you truly believe your symptoms are a result of the mind-body connection? Do you have a medical and personal support network that is helping you through this? How do you deal with feelings and emotions? What helps you feel relaxed? What does your best life look like?

 

[Jabre24]

Hello and welcome, J!

I am sorry you've dealt with so many symptoms over the years - the good news is that you are not alone and there are many things that can be done to help you live your best life. All those symptoms can indeed be products of the mind-body connection. I've personally had every single one myself.

Even if you haven't experienced any significant traumas, you can still develop symptoms and benefit from mind-body work. In fact, no matter how minor (e.g., a passing headache) or significant (e.g., full-blown CRPS) symptoms may be, every human being will be faced with the mind-body response at some point. I once read a scientific journal about a baby who was diagnosed with psychosomatic stomach issues after being put in daycare.

To me, the aim of mind-body work is to help manage my daily feelings and emotions. I may not seem like it to my professional or personal connections (who have described me as professional, confident, mild-mannered, humorous and not easily rattled, etc.), but I was born more sensitive. This sensitivity isn't always a negative trait - it's allowed me to build strong interpersonal relationships. However, on an internal level I sometimes deal with highly stressful feelings that I'm not sure what to do with. As such, I go into fight-or-flight mode easily, igniting my sympathetic nervous system and bringing about symptoms. It's important for me to focus on not fearing the symptoms, accepting that they're part of the mind-body connection, and allow myself to feel how I feel but manage the intensity of those feelings by creating a peaceful inner environment for myself.

That's just one example. Mind-body work isn't a one-size-fits-all hat and it doesn't always have to be focused on rage or include journaling, meditation, etc., but it certainly can if those focuses / approaches are applicable / helpful! Some questions for you to consider: do you fear your symptoms? Do you truly believe your symptoms are a result of the mind-body connection? Do you have a medical and personal support network that is helping you through this? How do you deal with feelings and emotions? What helps you feel relaxed? What does your best life look like?

hey, thank you so much for replying, I truly appreciate it, really! There was so much you wrote that connected to me, and I believe I have to commit myself to the belief that it’s a mind-body ‘problem’. I guess I kind of felt like It shouldn’t be because I genuinely can’t think of events in my life that were rough )even after a lot of journaling and introspection). Which I’m lucky to say, even though I am very sensitive somehow and for example very very easily startled or scared ha. I’m focusing on not fearing the feelings and truly feeling them, somatic tracking for example, and letting them be there. I guess it’s hard for me to genuinely accept them even though I can do it intellectually or say to myself “I accept and let these problems just be”.
Im also on antidepressants for all of the symtoms above because that was all my doctor could offer and I didn’t know better at the time. Perhaps I need to give mind body approach more time and spend some time on this forum. I think I wanted to express myself here too, so I love that you replied in such a thoughtful way. Thank you.

 

[Dorado]

Helping is what we're here for! We're very happy to provide support.

RE: trauma - I had the same exact concerns after my neurologist said my symptoms were real but the result of emotional turmoil (he wasn't aware of the TMS acronym or John Sarno, but was essentially referring to the same exact phenomenon). But severe trauma is not required for mind-body symptoms. It's also important to remember that something can be validly challenging despite not being the worst-case scenario. As an example, I have an extremely close relationship with these family members now and they no longer drink alcohol, but dealing with them drinking every single night - always starting at dinnertime and sometimes ending after my bedtime - when I was a child was straight up awful. These family members never drank during the day, drove drunk, couldn't hold a job, physically abused me, etc. For that reason, it was always regarded by my family as something that sucked but wasn't a real issue. Looking back on it, it totally was and I absolutely had a reason to feel affected. I was a very young child who felt alienated and like I barely had time with some of the most important people in my life since the majority of my day was spent at school. Watching these family members drink at dinner and then sneak away to the basement for the remainder of the night was super confusing for me and led to a lot of anxiety and negative feelings, including abandonment and insecurity.

Bottom line: sometimes we don't give ourselves the understanding we deserve because we think about how other people have it worse or feel like we're simply complaining unnecessarily. As humans, we've all been through something at some point, even if it may not always be as severe other situations. There's a reason they say society as a whole is in fight-or-flight mode like never before. Cortisol was key to keeping cavemen alive when avoiding threats, but this isn't always helpful in the modern world where stressors are heightened throughout the day with jobs, technology, tension, etc. Nobody has a perfect life! I have moved on from what happened in my childhood, but analyzing its impact helped me better understand certain thought patterns. That may not be necessary for everyone - sometimes there isn't an identifiable root cause for something. For me, that's where my general sensitivity comes in. Don't sweat it when that happens, just focus on what you'd like to achieve and work toward those goals.

Regarding the antidepressants, don't sweat the decision to go on them! Sometimes they can help people get in the right mindset to do the mind-body work. Your doctor can help you safely taper off them when you're ready to make that decision. Lots of us have spent some time on antidepressants.

You are more than welcome to express yourself here! That can include sharing your story, ongoing experiences, and/or support for other members. It can also include requesting support from other members when needed. This is truly a great community and we're happy to have you.