Fearing TMS...

[Filipe2025]

Hi,

I've been pain free for almost 15 years. Unfortunately, I start having a strange sensation in my throat, which is still present, that made me very anxious, and made my pain come back.

The first time I cured myself, I convinced my self it was TMS, so there wasn't any structural damage. This time, I fear my brain, and what it can do to me, the pain it inflicts me. I mean, I don't feel pain in my throat, only a mild discomfort, but I start having pain all over my body again. Stupid TMS...

The other day I Was completely pain free, but then I remember, where did my pain go, and voilà, my pain returned, aggressively. So, is my brain really protecting/distracting me from my emotional conflicts, or torturing me? I see at an inner child, affraid, but also spoiled, and mean.

I'm having difficulty overcoming this obstacle, because I really fear my throat issue, although is probably related to my thyroid. How can you you make your brain don't perceive danger, when you have cancer, or something physical that is really scary?

I think that pain is due to fear/anxiety. People that had book cures, just loose their fear. But I wonder if those same people developed a serious condition, how do they turn off pain, if they develope something scaring as a cancer, etc.

On the other hand, how should one relate to fear? Maybe we should cope with it, so it won't be repressed.

Thanks

 

[Sid Hartha]

I find that I need to goto a doctor rule out anything serious. When they do it sets my mind at ease and then I can confidently treat it as TMS. Sarno said to do that. Have a doctor check it out to rule out anything serious and when they do you can confidently treat it as TMS.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

How can you you make your brain don't perceive danger, when you have cancer, or something physical that is really scary?

Is this true for you? I forget if you've ever been properly examined for something serious and you don't believe that you're okay - or if you're one of those people who are too scared to be properly checked out.

I agree with @Sid Hartha. You must rule out serious conditions that require immediate treatment, and when you're told there's nothing wrong, you "do the work".

Or, if you do have an urgent medical condition, you deal with it proactively and you follow instructions, and you still "do the work" while you also actively visualize your recovery.

Victimhood is anathema to any kind of recovery, no matter what the issue is. Medical professionals have known for decades, if not centuries, that patients who approach recovery with confidence and a proactive attitude will always heal better and faster than the ones who wallow in fear and in being victims.

 

[Filipe2025]

Is this true for you? I forget if you've ever been properly examined for something serious and you don't believe that you're okay - or if you're one of those people who are too scared to be properly checked out.

I agree with @Sid Hartha. You must rule out serious conditions that require immediate treatment, and when you're told there's nothing wrong, you "do the work".

Or, if you do have an urgent medical condition, you deal with it proactively and you follow instructions, and you still "do the work" while you also actively visualize your recovery.

Victimhood is anathema to any kind of recovery, no matter what the issue is. Medical professionals have known for decades, if not centuries, that patients who approach recovery with confidence and a proactive attitude will always heal better and faster than the ones who wallow in fear and in being victims.

Drs didn't find anything, despite hashimoto, which sometimes gives you the sensation of having something stuck on your throat, but it freaks me out. Because it is in my throat. Why do people get stuck in tms? Because they fear TMS, they fear the symptoms.

Most of my symptoms flair up when I'm sleeping. I wake up in the middle of the night very fearful. But you are right, I think pain has to do with being stuck in life, alone, and it's linked to OCD. You have to shift your attention from symptoms, but it's is increasingly difficult with age when most of the things just don't give you any kicks. You are also tiered of reinventing yourself, or looking for something that excites you. I am

 

[JanAtheCPA]

Sadly, @Filipe2025, that's your victim mentality talking. As long as you are attached to being a victim, you will remain stuck. I know that OCD is a significant factor.

 

[Filipe2025]

Sadly, @Filipe2025, that's your victim mentality talking. As long as you are attached to being a victim, you will remain stuck. I know that OCD is a significant factor.

Yes, I agree. It's rooted in my DNA. I always been afraid of life, and don't trust life. I don't understand death, or suffering. And guess what, today, I start crying and my throat discomfort went away. I think it is sadness. Loneliness, lack of love, it's TMS. I'm sticked in depression, missing the past. I just don't like things to change. Getting old is not easy. It takes courage to continue living, and finding a meaning for one's life.

Some of us that recover from TMS, get well, because they see it as a means to help others, they find a meaning for their lives.

 

[Alouqua47]

Hola Felipe, ¡guau! Estar 15 años sin dolor sería un sueño para mí. Solo llevo haciendo esto un mes, pero incluso antes ya había empezado a reducir el miedo a los síntomas nerviosos, porque noté que cada vez que tenía ataques de pánico, todo se intensificaba al instante. Básicamente, le empecé a tener miedo al miedo mismo. No sé si a otros aquí les ha pasado algo similar, donde los ataques de pánico intensificaron sus síntomas al instante.
Creo que mis ataques de pánico pudieron haber desencadenado este problema en mis brazos. Durante uno de esos episodios, sentí una línea fría detrás de los codos, y con el tiempo los síntomas comenzaron allí: primero en los codos y los dedos, y luego gradualmente por los brazos. Ahora las sensaciones son variables y el tipo de sensación puede cambiar.
Me identifico mucho con tu situación actual. Hay momentos en que me siento desesperada, pero intento mantener la calma aunque mis síntomas son constantes y cambiantes, y podrían ser aterradores si no los conociera. Además, tengo ardor en las piernas y otros síntomas que aparecen y desaparecen en segundos.
Sinceramente, siento que las cosas se han intensificado desde que empecé a intentar no reaccionar a los síntomas; quizá sea parte del proceso. Si pudiste superar esto una vez y vivir tantos años sin síntomas, creo de verdad que puedes volver a hacerlo. Por lo que he leído, parece que este problema de garganta me causó unos dos meses de angustia, y creo que el miedo a su alrededor influyó mucho.
También me identifico con la ansiedad por la salud. Mis problemas parecen estar estrechamente relacionados con ataques de pánico, miedo a enfermar y toda una vida de ansiedad. Y es cierto: tener una enfermedad grave puede hacer que el miedo vuelva incluso después de la recuperación. Yo también tengo un pequeño problema de salud grave, y aunque a veces me asusta, ahora intento cuidarme en lugar de caer en una espiral. Cuando empecé, con el miedo incluso me hizo perder mucho peso y apetito.
Ahora estoy decidido. Con tantas historias de éxito, me pregunto: ¿por qué no podría ser uno de ellos? Sé que lleva tiempo. También tengo familia e hijos, y por eso rendirme no es una opción. Todos queremos vivir sin dolor. Puede ser frustrante ver a algunas personas recuperarse rápidamente, mientras que otras presentan síntomas más generalizados.
Quizás haya diferentes niveles de sensibilización. Algunas personas tienen un síntoma principal que cambia, mientras que otras lo sienten en todo el cuerpo, como tú o yo. Me imagino la sensibilización central como una radiofrecuencia que se reduce lentamente. Todavía no he visto un progreso claro, solo fluctuaciones: más un día, menos al siguiente, fluctuando. Eso dificulta saber cómo se ve la verdadera mejoría.
Por eso es tan importante que quienes se han recuperado sigan compartiendo sus historias, incluso si el alivio fue temporal. Y, la verdad, estar sin síntomas durante 15 años debe haber sido increíble. No pierdas la esperanza. Si lo lograste una vez, puedes volver a hacerlo.

 

[Filipe2025]

Hola Felipe, ¡guau! Estar 15 años sin dolor sería un sueño para mí. Solo llevo haciendo esto un mes, pero incluso antes ya había empezado a reducir el miedo a los síntomas nerviosos, porque noté que cada vez que tenía ataques de pánico, todo se intensificaba al instante. Básicamente, le empecé a tener miedo al miedo mismo. No sé si a otros aquí les ha pasado algo similar, donde los ataques de pánico intensificaron sus síntomas al instante.
Creo que mis ataques de pánico pudieron haber desencadenado este problema en mis brazos. Durante uno de esos episodios, sentí una línea fría detrás de los codos, y con el tiempo los síntomas comenzaron allí: primero en los codos y los dedos, y luego gradualmente por los brazos. Ahora las sensaciones son variables y el tipo de sensación puede cambiar.
Me identifico mucho con tu situación actual. Hay momentos en que me siento desesperada, pero intento mantener la calma aunque mis síntomas son constantes y cambiantes, y podrían ser aterradores si no los conociera. Además, tengo ardor en las piernas y otros síntomas que aparecen y desaparecen en segundos.
Sinceramente, siento que las cosas se han intensificado desde que empecé a intentar no reaccionar a los síntomas; quizá sea parte del proceso. Si pudiste superar esto una vez y vivir tantos años sin síntomas, creo de verdad que puedes volver a hacerlo. Por lo que he leído, parece que este problema de garganta me causó unos dos meses de angustia, y creo que el miedo a su alrededor influyó mucho.
También me identifico con la ansiedad por la salud. Mis problemas parecen estar estrechamente relacionados con ataques de pánico, miedo a enfermar y toda una vida de ansiedad. Y es cierto: tener una enfermedad grave puede hacer que el miedo vuelva incluso después de la recuperación. Yo también tengo un pequeño problema de salud grave, y aunque a veces me asusta, ahora intento cuidarme en lugar de caer en una espiral. Cuando empecé, con el miedo incluso me hizo perder mucho peso y apetito.
Ahora estoy decidido. Con tantas historias de éxito, me pregunto: ¿por qué no podría ser uno de ellos? Sé que lleva tiempo. También tengo familia e hijos, y por eso rendirme no es una opción. Todos queremos vivir sin dolor. Puede ser frustrante ver a algunas personas recuperarse rápidamente, mientras que otras presentan síntomas más generalizados.
Quizás haya diferentes niveles de sensibilización. Algunas personas tienen un síntoma principal que cambia, mientras que otras lo sienten en todo el cuerpo, como tú o yo. Me imagino la sensibilización central como una radiofrecuencia que se reduce lentamente. Todavía no he visto un progreso claro, solo fluctuaciones: más un día, menos al siguiente, fluctuando. Eso dificulta saber cómo se ve la verdadera mejoría.
Por eso es tan importante que quienes se han recuperado sigan compartiendo sus historias, incluso si el alivio fue temporal. Y, la verdad, estar sin síntomas durante 15 años debe haber sido increíble. No pierdas la esperanza. Si lo lograste una vez, puedes volver a hacerlo.

Lose your fear, lose your pain. TMS it's caused by health anxiety. It is fear. The cure, is to shift your attention from pain, doing something you really love, and not giving a damn about the symptoms, they will go away, I promise you.

Unfortunately, if you scared yourself to much, and if you feel stuck in live, it will take longer. You have to have the will to move on.

Right now, fear it's still rooted in my subconscious. It show when I go t sleep. I'm also still very anxious, and afraid. I go to bed fine, no pain, than I'm betrayed by .t subconscious, that inundated me with stress hormones during the night/fear. And I get so frustrated.

 

[Alouqua47]

Most of the posts here are in English, so I’ll share my experience as well. I don’t know how it was for others, but in my case fear played a big role at the beginning, because the nature of my symptoms was extremely confusing. It wasn’t a simple muscular pain—it was neuropathic pain in my arms that kept changing in intensity and even in quality, shifting from burning to electric sensations.
Over time, it worsened in terms of spread. At first it was only in my elbows and hands, and later it extended to more areas of my arms and became more mobile. What I find interesting is that as my fear started to decrease—first out of survival, and later because I understood that fear was connected to the symptoms—the sensations began to move even more, almost as if they were scanning. That makes them harder to ignore at times.
There are moments when things feel calmer, but when I use my arms, I may suddenly feel pain in a finger or another spot. It’s a strange pattern. I’ve asked if others here experience something similar, and some do, though usually not focused on one specific area. I know detailed symptom descriptions aren’t very common here, even though at the beginning many of us look for patterns to feel less alone.
Fear is probably always present in some form. I’m not so afraid of the symptoms themselves anymore, but I do fear the idea that this might never improve. That’s why your words gave me a lot of hope. From what I understand, your symptoms come and go rather than being constant, and they’re widespread and neuropathic. I wish I had more symptom-free moments in my arms. Today started relatively well, with fewer areas involved, so I’m choosing to see it as a good day—knowing it can always change.
I’ll be following your updates. You’re starting this work again, but you’ve already recovered once before. I haven’t. At times I still wonder how something this complex could truly resolve—but in the end, they are symptoms. And if the brain learned them, it can also unlearn them.

Lose your fear, lose your pain. TMS it's caused by health anxiety. It is fear. The cure, is to shift your attention from pain, doing something you really love, and not giving a damn about the symptoms, they will go away, I promise you.

Unfortunately, if you scared yourself to much, and if you feel stuck in live, it will take longer. You have to have the will to move on.

Right now, fear it's still rooted in my subconscious. It show when I go t sleep. I'm also still very anxious, and afraid. I go to bed fine, no pain, than I'm betrayed by .t subconscious, that inundated me with stress hormones during the night/fear. And I get so frustrated.

 

[Alouqua47]

Since you’ve been through this process before, I wanted to ask you a few questions, just out of curiosity. When you first started reducing fear and trying to ignore your symptoms, did you feel like things got worse at first? That’s how I’m feeling right now. And how did your pain fade over time—did it gradually become less intense when it appeared, or did it simply show up less often? I hope you don’t mind me asking, and I’d really appreciate your response.

 

[Filipe2025]

Since you’ve been through this process before, I wanted to ask you a few questions, just out of curiosity. When you first started reducing fear and trying to ignore your symptoms, did you feel like things got worse at first? That’s how I’m feeling right now. And how did your pain fade over time—did it gradually become less intense when it appeared, or did it simply show up less often? I hope you don’t mind me asking, and I’d really appreciate your response.

The first time it was slow because I still wasn't convinced about TMS. Once I embody it it was fast. But I was married back then, I had a little child, my parents were still around. Now, I'm alone. The problem now is that, I already know This is not structural, but I'm afraid I cannot distract myself from pain, because there are few things that absorbed me. I'm also feel a lot of guilt because, I knew about health anxiety, but I didn't stop it in the beggining, despite being warned. I never thought my pain would come back, never. I was really stupid. You have to look at your brain as a child. You have to distract it. You have to reduce anxiety and fear, intentionally. You can get stuck in pain because it's difficult to move on when you have no hobbies. Your increase in pain is due to the resistance of your brain to keep the symptoms going. It happened to me in different times, during my recover. Sometimes you just feel fear, there doesn't have to be a reason.

 

[Filipe2025]

Sadly, @Filipe2025, that's your victim mentality talking. As long as you are attached to being a victim, you will remain stuck. I know that OCD is a significant factor.

@JanAtheCPA

I think OCD and ruminating is one of the culprit of maintaining pain. Ho do you deal with it? When you are alone, and your life seems stuck. I'm afraid of not being able to shift my attention and overcome my intrusive thoughts. More fear/more pain.

 

[Sid Hartha]

@JanAtheCPA

I think OCD and ruminating is one of the culprit of maintaining pain. Ho do you deal with it? When you are alone, and your life seems stuck. I'm afraid of not being able to shift my attention and overcome my intrusive thoughts. More fear/more pain.

In my opinion you just watch and allow it. You don't try and fight it or change it. When you do that for some period of time you begin to understand fear and thought and your relation to them. Trying to fight and struggle does not help in my opinion it just gives fear more power over you. Watching as if it's happening to someone else brings insight and awareness and detachment. Over time that awareness will change you without you having to do anything at all. But it takes time, patience and practice.

 

[Joulegirl]

When you first started reducing fear and trying to ignore your symptoms, did you feel like things got worse at first?

This is extremely common and I experienced this as well. It made me even more afraid!

I think OCD and ruminating is one of the culprit of maintaining pain.

Yes! I have OCD and know this is my biggest hurdle to overcome-and I've come a long ways since I started working on this. You don't want to fight your ruminations and your fears. You basically want to just accept it (but not letting it get you upset) and move about your day. If you fight it, you will feel fear and your brain will be on high alert again.

 

[Filipe2025]

I also been lead to think that you could change your subconscious with affirmations, like in the teachings if Joseph Murphy, and such. I really think you can't. It only adds more stress and frustration, and anger, because you are obtaining the opposite. I try it and got much worse. I try doing joe dispenza meditations, it all made me feel more anxious.

What took me out if pain the other time was to regain pleasure in life, the joy of living. I didn't do anything, I just forgot pain, and anxiety. I start obsessing over living again, and having a good time.

In other wards, the best way to overcome pain is doing nothing. I think emotional work is also ruminating, is also OCDing.

 

[Cactusflower]

If you focus on the emotional work in a stressful, anxious manner then of course it will increase those symptoms. However, learning how you leap into cycles of emotional avoidance and how that contributes to stress can help you recognize when you are getting into another of those cycles -eg the hyper fear of symptoms or illness.
However, if you believe you are a victim to your "DNA" and that you will never be able to step away from these kinds of thought patterns then you are choosing to keep staying in the cycles and patterns.
Some folks start this journey and want to use to to make a difference in their overall life, others just want to use it to get out of pain when the pain and TMS symptoms begin again. It's up to each individual but there is not only one path, one way, one beginning and ending - there are many ways to get to where you want to be. You are right that it includes some level of indifference to symptoms but that won't change your overall stress patterns.

 

[cafe_bustelo]

The first time it was slow because I still wasn't convinced about TMS. Once I embody it it was fast. But I was married back then, I had a little child, my parents were still around. Now, I'm alone. The problem now is that, I already know This is not structural, but I'm afraid I cannot distract myself from pain, because there are few things that absorbed me. I'm also feel a lot of guilt because, I knew about health anxiety, but I didn't stop it in the beggining, despite being warned. I never thought my pain would come back, never. I was really stupid. You have to look at your brain as a child. You have to distract it. You have to reduce anxiety and fear, intentionally. You can get stuck in pain because it's difficult to move on when you have no hobbies. Your increase in pain is due to the resistance of your brain to keep the symptoms going. It happened to me in different times, during my recover. Sometimes you just feel fear, there doesn't have to be a reason.

This is really interesting to me; it is exactly as you say, my symptoms began at a time when I felt especially alone in life. It was indeed difficult to move on because I had very little at the time that I was looking forward to or engaged with purely for enjoyment or fulfillment. Now things are getting better as I slowly build confidence in myself and "get my life together" or really just align things more around what I believe in and want to do.

It seems to me you have all the pieces. The only thing I see missing from what you've written is self-compassion. You weren't stupid to let your guard down when it comes to TMS. Everyone experiences anxiety about health issues. The fear is sneaky, and there's no reason to blame or berate yourself on top of the symptoms. Your brain—being like a child—certainly won't appreciate that. I wonder if there is more to uncover there around how you feel towards yourself.

Today I was talking with my therapist about a recent time that I was at a party and had a sudden onset of symptoms. I had worked out that it was the social anxiety that was the trigger, but what I hadn't confronted was that being at that party was for whatever reason reminding me of a really happy time in my life when I had been at a similar party, and I was remembering that and the fact that I'm not really in touch with anyone from that time anymore, and all of our lives have changed so much, and not all for the better, and I can never go back there. So what was causing my symptoms? The stress about having to be at this party and talk to people, or actually this deep sense of grief that was coming up for me and that I had been avoiding? As I let myself feel what I was actually feeling, the fear and anxiety started to melt away, and my symptoms softened too.

 

[Alouqua47]

Hi Felipe, how are you? I was wondering if you could answer a few questions for me. Every day has been very difficult. I’ve noticed that my symptoms tend to concentrate more on the left side of my body, especially in my arm, which is where it bothers me the most.
The sensation is quite intense; it feels like something electric and constant, with ups and downs, and sometimes it becomes diffuse. I wanted to ask what your pain was like. Was it there all the time, or was it intermittent? Was it nerve-type pain like mine, with burning or electric sensations?
I also wanted to ask how long your recovery took the first time, from when you say you truly committed to the process.
I don’t want to have false expectations. I just want to accept what I’m going through and have at least a rough idea of what recovery can look like when almost the whole body seems filled with symptoms

Hola,

Llevo casi 15 años sin dolor. Desafortunadamente, empecé a tener una sensación extraña en la garganta, que aún persiste, que me causó mucha ansiedad y provocó que el dolor volviera.

La primera vez que me curé, me convencí de que era SMT, así que no había daño estructural. Esta vez, le temo a mi cerebro y a lo que me puede hacer, al dolor que me inflige. Es decir, no siento dolor en la garganta, solo una leve molestia, pero vuelvo a sentir dolor en todo el cuerpo. ¡Maldito SMT!

El otro día no tenía ningún dolor, pero entonces recordé adónde se había ido, y ¡voilá!, regresó con fuerza. Entonces, ¿mi cerebro realmente me protege o me distrae de mis conflictos emocionales, o me tortura? Veo a una niña interior, asustada, pero también consentida y malvada.

Me cuesta superar este obstáculo porque le tengo mucho miedo a mi problema de garganta, aunque probablemente esté relacionado con la tiroides. ¿Cómo puedes evitar que tu cerebro perciba el peligro cuando tienes cáncer o algo físico que te asusta tanto?

Creo que el dolor se debe al miedo/ansiedad. Las personas que se curaron con libros simplemente perdieron el miedo. Pero me pregunto si esas mismas personas desarrollaron una enfermedad grave, cómo alivian el dolor, si desarrollan algo aterrador como un cáncer, etc.

Por otro lado, ¿cómo deberíamos relacionarnos con el miedo? Quizás deberíamos afrontarlo para que no se reprima.

Gracias

 

[iaminpain1989]

15 years pain-free. That's not a fluke. Whatever is happening now doesn't erase that.

Reading your post, the throat sensation isn't really the problem. The fear about it is. You said it yourself. The throat thing made you anxious, then pain came back everywhere. And then you were pain-free for a day, remembered "wait where did my pain go," and it came back aggressively. Structural problems don't work like that. They don't disappear because you forgot about them and return because you remembered.

The hard question you're asking, how do you stop fearing something that might be serious, I think the answer is you separate caution from fear. Get the throat checked. That's just being smart. But once it's cleared and nothing serious shows up, the ongoing worry is what feeds the cycle. Your brain reads "still scared about this" as confirmation that there's danger, and keeps the pain running.

You beat this once for 15 years. Your brain knows how to turn it off. It got re-triggered by fear, not by damage.

This goes into the cycle pretty well if you want to read more: https://neuroplasticpainguide.org/what-is-neuroplastic-pain/

Sending love