Fructose malabsorption as TMS symptom possible?

[Churpomelo]

Hello to all,

I am a new member on this forum and English is not my native language, so I apologize for grammatical errors or awkward sentence structures beforehand.
My TMS journey started in 2024 and I’ve made great strides since then in my recovery, going from constant chronic pain to being nearly pain-free which I am extremely grateful for.

After resolving the pain, my digestive issues came more into focus and I was diagnosed with fructose and sorbitol intolerance or malabsorption (non-hereditary) which I’ve most likely had since I was a kid (but didn’t know about).
Right now according to modern science it’s not possible to heal, you just have to live with a very restricted diet.

Can this be TMS-induced as well if I’ve had it for such a long time and react to the foods even if didn’t know I can’t digest them well (I just thought immense bloating is normal)?

Thank you so much! I hope this is the right place to ask this.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

Welcome, @Churpomelo.

I hope this is the right place to ask this.

Ah, well, if your question is directed to our forum vs the rest of the internet, this is definitely the best place to receive confirmation of your question - agreement that this could easily be yet another manifestation of TMS. Of course we are likely to be biased towards that answer

Or, if your question is about choosing the best subforum for your question, I would say this is the "right" one, since you are curious about our opinions, and you're not specifically asking for support.

Anyway, the reason I'm going to say that YES, this sounds like another version of TMS, is because in 15 years of studying and observing TMS, I am convinced that the concept of food "intolerances" has been adopted by the medical world because they really can't explain these symptoms which do not make any sense when tested using their many procedures to detect allergies.

Food intolerances are mysterious, but they are
not life-threatening - unlike true allergies or serious genetic deficiencies such as celiac disease.

My personal philosophy of every TMS symptom follows the same characteristics: the symptom is mysterious, it has no known origin, it has no known cure, many times it doesn't even have any good treatments, and, most importantly, it is not life-threatening.

 

[Churpomelo]

Welcome, @Churpomelo.

Ah, well, if your question is directed to our forum vs the rest of the internet, this is definitely the best place to receive confirmation of your question - agreement that this could easily be yet another manifestation of TMS. Of course we are likely to be biased towards that answer

Or, if your question is about choosing the best subforum for your question, I would say this is the "right" one, since you are curious about our opinions, and you're not specifically asking for support.

Anyway, the reason I'm going to say that YES, this sounds like another version of TMS, is because in 15 years of studying and observing TMS, I am convinced that the concept of food "intolerances" has been adopted by the medical world because they really can't explain these symptoms which do not make any sense when tested using their many procedures to detect allergies.

Food intolerances are mysterious, but they are
not life-threatening - unlike true allergies or serious genetic deficiencies such as celiac disease.

My personal philosophy of every TMS symptom follows the same characteristics: the symptom is mysterious, it has no known origin, it has no known cure, many times it doesn't even have any good treatments, and, most importantly, it is not life-threatening.

Thank you very much for the warm welcome and your answer, @JanAtheCPA

That’s a very interesting point you made, that food intolerances aren’t life-threatening and as such differ from allergies in that regard — that’s true and definitely helps to give them less power. I hadn’t thought about it like that.

I guess it’s also true that they seem to get a lot worse when under stress, which definitely sounds like TMS but even if it is, I feel like I don’t know where to start. With the chronic pain, it was easier to identify what might have triggered it and working through emotions and calming my nervous system had a big effect over these last months.

Because I never expected to react to fructose, I’m a bit stumped. I don’t remember any specific traumatic instances that might have been linked to eating something with fructose in it in my childhood/ food in general.
I probably should do the work again and see what comes up. The tricky part is being fully convinced this also is TMS and not to believe what traditional medicine says

Thank you very much for the advice!

 

[BloodMoon]

@Churpomelo

I guess it’s also true that they seem to get a lot worse when under stress, which definitely sounds like TMS but even if it is, I feel like I don’t know where to start. With the chronic pain, it was easier to identify what might have triggered it and working through emotions and calming my nervous system had a big effect over these last months.

Because I never expected to react to fructose, I’m a bit stumped. I don’t remember any specific traumatic instances that might have been linked to eating something with fructose in it in my childhood/ food in general.

It isn't always possible to work backwards from a mind-body/TMS symptom to pinpoint a triggering factor, then resolve a specific issue to make the symptom go away.

Although the brain tends to pick a symptom that you're likely to believe stems from something that happened—like an old injury 'flaring up', eating dodgy fruit, or a past time of high stress—it creates a symptom as either a distraction from feeling and expressing anger/rage because it sees it as dangerous to your survival for you to do so (à la Dr Sarno) or as an 'alarm bell' to grab your attention when something's going on in your life that you're unhappy with and not addressing (à la Alan Gordon).

It could even be a mix of both at the same time.

Fear plays a key role here, wiring symptoms into your nervous system via neuroplasticity (à la Alan Gordon)—your brain strengthens neural pathways linking fear (of pain, food, etc.) to physical reactions, making them feel inescapable, that is, until you calm your fearful brain down... And the pioneering Dr John Sarno also mentioned in his book The MindBody Prescription (circa 28 years ago) about using self-soothing to counterbalance anger/rage, which he postulated could sometimes be all that's necessary to stop the brain from creating symptoms.

Once your brain realises you're not believing the pain is a physical defect, it often moves on—creating a different symptom to distract or sound the 'alarm bell' that it doesn't feel safe.

This is why examining symptoms closely is often a red herring; the brain can generate virtually any one (pain, digestive issues, sensitivities) as a distraction to prevent you from feeling and expressing rage and/or to tell you that it's sensing danger (in things, e.g., bodily sensations, that may be completely innocuous).

In either case, what works is sending safety signals to your brain, reassuring it through your actions that there's no danger and you're safe.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

Agreeing with @BloodMoon. I urge you to forget preconceived notions about triggers. It's not just a waste of time! Obsessing about such details is a classic example of Distraction, and that's Sarno 101.

I probably should do the work again

Yep. And watch out for the subtle messages from your brain trying to steer you towards doubt. They are constant! Thinking that you need to find a trigger is an example.

Also consider the current state of the world. My therapist confirms my observations here, which is that people have been suffering from increasing mental health distress for more than the last six years.

 

[Ellen]

I had some food intolerances show up a few years ago. And as a lifelong TMSer I gave a lot a thought to whether or not is was TMS. I decided that if eliminating certain foods fixes the problem consistently, then it's probably not TMS. All the TMS symptoms I've had over the years were never fixed by changing my behavior--at least not consistently. That's not to say that our emotions or stress levels don't affect our biological processes of digestion and metabolism. So it's always good to look at psychological issues, but sometimes food intolerance is a physiological phenomenon. I think consistency is the key to figuring it out.

 

[Adam Coloretti (coach)]

I had some food intolerances show up a few years ago. And as a lifelong TMSer I gave a lot a thought to whether or not is was TMS. I decided that if eliminating certain foods fixes the problem consistently, then it's probably not TMS. All the TMS symptoms I've had over the years were never fixed by changing my behavior--at least not consistently. That's not to say that our emotions or stress levels don't affect our biological processes of digestion and metabolism. So it's always good to look at psychological issues, but sometimes food intolerance is a physiological phenomenon. I think consistency is the key to figuring it out.

Completely agree

 

[Magnolia-44]

@Churpomelo

It isn't always possible to work backwards from a mind-body/TMS symptom to pinpoint a triggering factor, then resolve a specific issue to make the symptom go away.

Although the brain tends to pick a symptom that you're likely to believe stems from something that happened—like an old injury 'flaring up', eating dodgy fruit, or a past time of high stress—it creates a symptom as either a distraction from feeling and expressing anger/rage because it sees it as dangerous to your survival for you to do so (à la Dr Sarno) or as an 'alarm bell' to grab your attention when something's going on in your life that you're unhappy with and not addressing (à la Alan Gordon).

It could even be a mix of both at the same time.

Fear plays a key role here, wiring symptoms into your nervous system via neuroplasticity (à la Alan Gordon)—your brain strengthens neural pathways linking fear (of pain, food, etc.) to physical reactions, making them feel inescapable, that is, until you calm your fearful brain down... And the pioneering Dr John Sarno also mentioned in his book The MindBody Prescription (circa 28 years ago) about using self-soothing to counterbalance anger/rage, which he postulated could sometimes be all that's necessary to stop the brain from creating symptoms.

Once your brain realises you're not believing the pain is a physical defect, it often moves on—creating a different symptom to distract or sound the 'alarm bell' that it doesn't feel safe.

This is why examining symptoms closely is often a red herring; the brain can generate virtually any one (pain, digestive issues, sensitivities) as a distraction to prevent you from feeling and expressing rage and/or to tell you that it's sensing danger (in things, e.g., bodily sensations, that may be completely innocuous).

In either case, what works is sending safety signals to your brain, reassuring it through your actions that there's no danger and you're safe.

 

[Magnolia-44]

That is so interesting! Thank you!
I’m new to this forum and just started reading through posts etc.
And must say I recognise myself so deeply in many of them. But especially in this chat here, discussing the link between “food issues” and TMS.
It may sound curious or even a bit “funny”, but a few years ago, I had some potatoes for dinner. And could suddenly feel a strange, new pain and tension in my neck area. Next day, same phenomenon. Each time, that pain eased after a few hours.
Over time, the pain spread out into my whole back and then whole body. Focus though still remaining mainly on neck area and back.
At first, the sensation only occurred with potatoes. Then with other veggies and fruits too and certain other type of foods.
Through detox groups and corresponding books, I learned that oftentimes it is through the neck area that we experience detoxification. Fruits and veggies (and especially certain specific ones) are highly antiviral and thus help the body rid itself from toxins. Which may feel unpleasant for some time.
On the other hand, when everything comes down to what Dr. Sarno describes, there are deeper causes to pain that need to be addressed on an emotional level.
I wonder, from Dr. Sarno’s point of view, what might explain the reaction to only specific foods but not to others? When the pain occurred at first with those foods, I did not expect any physical reaction - yet it came on.
Now, I expect it to come because it has for so long.
Learning through the books and his lectures how to counteract this, is such a wonderful insight.

 

[BloodMoon]

Hi @Magnolia-44

Your potato-neck pain story is fascinating. I think Sarno would've said the mind latches onto specific foods like potatoes as handy distractions for buried stress or emotions—hitting you with symptoms there (but not elsewhere) to grab your attention. Modern brain science backs it: those initial potatoes might've had hidden toxins (like solanine from light/cold stress, or pesticide leftovers like chlorpropham) that sparked the first weird reaction, linking their taste/smell/texture to "danger" in your brain—like Pavlov's dogs, but for pain. (I just looked it up and apparently, potatoes don't need to have green skin or be sprouting to pack high solanine.)

So, anyway, once that kicks in, stress cranks up the gut-brain connection, and boom—expectation (nocebo-style) keeps it going. Your brain then pattern-matches, flagging similar veggies/fruits as threats too, spreading the pain even though they're fine.

One of my weird body/brain reactions: I'm Vit D deficient (blood test confirmed). When I take pure Vit D supplements (liquid, no fillers/capsules—even in a teeny weeny dose suitable for babies), my breast tissue flares up red, hot, and super painful (sometimes with a fever), but with zero gut issues. When I eat Vit D-rich foods like mackerel? No reaction. Seems my brain flags concentrated/pure Vit D as "dangerous" even when only in tiny amounts, but when Vit D is consumed in a food-source it views it as safe (presumably because it's more natural).

 

[Magnolia-44]

Thanks so much for responding!
And for sharing the example with vit. D.
What is so interesting about this:
Someone else might not experience at all what we experience - like I’ve spoken to so many who can eat masses of potatoes and on a daily basis and have absolutely no issue.
Which to me means that the particular food is not the problem. It’s as you say something in our system/brain that reacts.
Problem for me is though: this occurs with quite a lot of foods since some time now.
And that can be tricky and restricting.
And so it would be great to resolve this.
I think as long as we have alternatives we can turn to (in your case vitamin d rich foods or natural sunlight=best form), then it won’t be too much of a problem. In my case though it has become a daily issue.
I’m working on transforming it.
Maybe it is key to also not try to force anything. And focus on calmth and letting go of doubt.
It might be worth working with a practitioner on this

 

[BloodMoon]

I think as long as we have alternatives we can turn to (in your case vitamin d rich foods or natural sunlight=best form), then it won’t be too much of a problem.

True, in principle. However, with my Vit D deficiency I can't get enough from foods. I'd have to eat a ton of mackerel and other high vit D foods so that's not practical. Also, I'm very faired skinned and burn easily in the sun (I can tolerate no more than 5 minutes sun on bare skin and although I could do that every day to build up stores of Vit D, it doesn't amount to enough to correct the deficiency and I can only do that in the summer months plus I live in the northern hemisphere where the sun's concentration isn't so great even in the summer months)... so, all in all, it's a problem.

I used to avoid a lot of foods due to so called "IBS" (I won't bore you with naming those foods because when it's a mind-body/TMS issue it's irrelevant anyway) but what I did was to go on the low fodmap diet (which stopped the pain, whether that be due to psychological reasons or not) and then very very slowly I've re-introduce the foods that the diet cuts out in tiny amounts in a gradual 'baby steps' way. It's worked a treat to 'fly under the radar' and avoid putting my brain into danger mode and in turn avoid pain and other symptoms. (There were a few 'hiccups' with reintroducing some foods, but I eliminated again for a while and then reintroduced them again later with no problem.)

 

[Magnolia-44]

Oh I understand completely. I’m in the same boat - very fairy skin and burn after a few minutes only, just like you.
And being dependant on sunlight is no options
Very happy you got to manage with the foods, step by step.
For me, it’s precisely the foods that are most gentle to my stomach and digestion, that trigger issues too. So quite tricky.
And gut health and liver health are directly related. Which makes it quite a bit complex.

 

[BloodMoon]

For me, it’s precisely the foods that are most gentle to my stomach and digestion, that trigger issues too.

Ah, I see.
I really like what you said about not forcing things and focusing on calm — showing our brains that we are safe and there’s no danger is a big part of recovering from mind-body/TMS symptoms. The fodmap diet process that I described was really just a means to an end for me, to help circumvent triggering my fearful brain. There are other ways, of course, to convey safety to the brain. I've had to use a lot of those in my recovery from mind-body/TMS symptoms that manifested in a myriad of different ways. I found I needed to experiment to find what worked for me personally, which seems to be par for the course for many TMSers. It can be a bit of a learning curve.