Day 12 Holmes and Rahe Social Readjustment Rating Scale

[Kiara]

I decided to use the calculator on my computer to see how many points I would have on the Holmes and Rahe Social Readjustment Rating Scale, and I was surprised that I got quite a high score.

This helped me become aware that I have had quite a few stresses over the last year, and I should not underestimate their impact. However, I am also reminded that a great deal is related to my PERCEPTION of the stressful event, and my interpretation of a situation. It's not so much the event itself, but my thoughts about it.

I realised that I have experienced the following situations in the last year:

• Personal injury or illness
• Change in financial state
• Change in responsibilities at work
• Change in living conditions
• Revision of personal habits
• Trouble with boss
• Change in working hours or conditions
• Change in residence
• Change in recreation
• Change in church activities
• Change in social activities

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

Hi, Laudisco.

You had quite a few stressful situations last year, but your post shows that you are handling your perfectionism well
and that can reduce the anxiety-stress-and-pain.

I've been googling YouTube for videos and other information on anxiety control and there are some good ones, most of them free.
I notice they all focus mainly on deep breathing to relieve tension and anxiety. It seems to me that if you apply deep breathing,
slowly in any stressful situation, and concentrate on it, it will help.

 

[BruceMC]

However, I am also reminded that a great deal is related to my PERCEPTION of the stressful event, and my interpretation of a situation. It's not so much the event itself, but my thoughts about it.

Yes, Laudisco, that's where I think you've hit the nail squarely on its proverbial "head". That's also where various mental strategies and therapies like mindfulness meditation, the SEP and TPP can help: they provide tools that help you detach from the stream of mental images, emotions and thoughts that maintain and intensify your anxiety. But recognizing and cataloging your stressors is an important first step in the decompression process. Just doing that means you're starting to detach from them. Good first step!

 

[Tennis Tom]

Laudisco, thanks for sharing that! The Holmes-Rahe is one of the scientific proofs of TMS cited by Dr. Sarno. Anyone not sure of the cause(s) of their TMS dis-ease should refer to it.

 

[BruceMC]

When I was wasting my time in Physical Therapy trying to cure my so-called herniated disk from 2002 to 2005 or so, I came into contact with a lot of fellow sufferers (i.e. pain patients) there. Although some had RSI, others had knees, and the majority had lower lumbar issues, the one common denominator they all shared was one (or multiple) Holmes-Rahe life stress events. And the pain patient who had the worst pain, a lady who'd dropped to the ground out running and immediately been rushed to the hospital for a double spinal fusion operation had the most H-R events: death of her father, divorce, loss of house, huge loss of her inheritance in the dot.com market crash . . . the list was nearly endless. Based on my admittedly limited sampling, I would say that there is a one-to-one relationship between the number and serverity of H-R events in a patient's personal life and number and severity of their pain symptoms. Seems to kick the sh_t out of the argument that back pain is caused by structural abnormalities, doesn't it? And, yes, to once again confirm Dr. Sarno, I likewise noticed that all the patients at my PT clinic shared similar personality traits like perfectionism and goodism that contributed to their obsessing about (and thereby reinforcing) their pain symptoms.

 

[Ellen]

Adding results from the Adverse Childhood Event (ACE) Questionaires to the Homes-Rahe Scale results, and one can get a very clear picture of the effects of current, recent, and past stress and trauma on health and well being.

Here's a link to the ACE study and there is a link on the sidebar to the ACE questionaires. As a caveat, I found just reading through the ACE questionaire to be stressful, as it triggered some painful memories. Please don't read through it if you feel it might be too much for you right now.

http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/acestudy/index.html

 

[BruceMC]

Ellen: It sure sounds like ACEs followed by Holmes-Rahe life stress events can make up the two parts of the two-trauma sequence that Clancy McKenzie believes leads to the development of schizophrenia and all kinds of other mental and physical ailments including PTSD and, of course, TMS. It's well known that soldiers with traumatic childhood lives tend to fall apart quicker in combat than those from more stable home environments. But the lives of children in the 20th and now 21st centuries have not exactly been pastoral and pristine, not with WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam and today, Iraq and Afghanistan. Does anyone ever have a childhood that's exactly 'ideal'? I guess trauma is of various degrees.

 

[Kiara]

Thanks for sharing everyone! I've found your stories and insights very helpful. I would like to investigate the Adverse Childhood Event Questionnaires further.

 

[Kiara]

I have also been reading a book called 'CFS Unravelled' as I have been dealing with fatigue, and his explanation confirms that often stressful events and personality play a key role in triggering CFS. It certainly confirms the theories of Dr Sarno, but focuses more on fatigue rather than back pain. The author notes how his "Type A" perfectionist personality played a strong part in leading to his CFS, combined with stressful events in his life.