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Day 16 How long should this take to get better?

I

ijb

Newcomer
Hi there,

I'm on Day 15 in the programme and this is the first time that I've posted. I'm 31 years old, male, married to a wonderful wife and with a fabulous 1yr old boy. I've been struggling with shoulder, back, ankle and sciatic pain for about three years. It has severely impacted my well being and happiness and also that of my family. I used to love doing sport so much. It was the only real hobby that I had and I miss it so much. I've started trying to get back into it since reading Sarno's book and I'm slowly getting there I hope. I've been running for about 10 minutes 4 times now and although it's not comfortable, I haven't noticed any bad effects afterwards and I feel like it's giving my body more confidence again.

My problem all started 7 years ago when I had achilles tendon problems. I didn't do anything about this problem at the time and just assumed that the issue would go away. It was only painful for the first 10 minutes of running and would then ease up afterwards. After about 4 years I thought I should get it sorted out and went to see a physiotherapist. I feel like that was the worst decision I made. I went there with an achilles problem and came out with an achilles problem and chronic back pain. I'm almost sure that I was conditioned into having chronic back pain. When the achilles didn't heal up, it was suggested that I may have back problems. As soon as we started work on that, I got more pain in my back. I began to have big problems working at a computer and would only be comfortable when lying down.

3 years later and I've come across Sarno and this programme. I'd really like to thank the managers of this forum and site for putting together some amazing resources and giving this syndrome some more authority. I really want to believe that this can heal me.

I'm on day 15 in the programme but it is about 5 weeks since I first read Sarno's book. I'm desperate to get better and really hope that this will be the answer. I have noticed a difference so far. I'm able to sit for longer and walking has been a bit easier than it previously was. I really want to be completely pain free and I think the biggest question on my mind is: how long should I do this for before determining that I'm one of the few people that this approach does not work for or who needs professional psychotherapy? Sarno in his book says that we should expect something between 2 - 4 weeks. From reading this site, it would suggest that it can take a lot longer than that. Whilst I am ok at understanding other people's emotions, I feel like I've never been good at feeling or understanding my own and think that this is possibly why it's taking me a little longer to get better.

Would be very interested in anyone's thoughts.

Iain
 
Hi Iain,

I have read dr. Sarno's book 2 months ago. I still have a lott of pain, but I am improving, so that really gives me hope.

Good luck and stick to the program!
 
Ian, it's very good that you are running again and feel less pain when sitting.
There's no real timetable for healing. It takes some longer than others.
Your post does not mention working on repressed emotions.
Something or things psychological brought on your TMS and you need to discover them.
Then your subconscious mind will stop the pain. It's giving you the pain so you work on the
TMS repressed emotions. Or you may have a perfectionist personality that also causes TMS symptoms.

Stay with the SEP but don't stress about how long it takes to heal. You still have repressed emotions to discover
and they may very well go back to your boyhood, as they do for many or most of us.
 
I've read dr. Sarno's book twice and bought his lectures on DVD. Some of the patients in the DVD said it took them months to feel better so it varies greatly. I myself first read about Dr. Sarno in July and am still struggling with pain. However, the message in the DVD is clear: don't give up. And also, he says to try not to obsess about how long it is taking. This is a pressure you are putting on yourself which can be counter productive to recovery. The biggest step that you need to achieve first is 100% belief and faith in the TMS diagnosis. Without that it is hard to make progress. I suspect that this has been a major factor in the delay of my own recovery. Dont give up. It is a process. Just keep reminding yourself of all the reasons why you think TMS makes sense for you.
 
Hi IJB - you sound very similar to me. I have a wife I love and a great 2 year old son (only just on Halloween!) I have been working on this TMS since around the end of March when I first found out about it. It made quite a big difference in me, especially how I was feeling about the pain.

I am still struggling at the moment but am putting all my faith in this still being the issue. With making such slow progress, and even falling backwards, its so so difficult to keep it in your mind that this is the answer.

I am going to see a TMS therapist now to see if seeing someone and speaking about it can help with acceptance of the diagnosis. As great as this site is, with no one else knowing about it, it can sometimes make it feel like a real lonely battle.

Have you talked with your wife about it?
 
I think most of us wish we could talk to someone who could give us confidence that our symptoms are caused by
TMS repressed emotions, and for some, that person is a TMS therapist.

I think, however, that belief in TMS -- total 100 percent belief -- has to come from within.
If nothing structural has been ruled out, the pain is psychological.
The TMS journey has been, to me, not a lonely one, but a solitary one, getting to know myself better.
 
Hi there,
I started my journey in June and I am now almost pain free. At some point during the Sep, I stopped watching the calendar and started focussing only on the emotional work I needed to do. There were times I was confused, overwhelmed and discouraged, but I just kept on going.

I think healing time is different for everyone because it can take a while to truly understand how the things we learn about tms apply to us personally. I also know that finding the right combination of tools and techniques can take a while. It did for me.
My advice would be to keep plugging away at the program, the best you can, and give yourself permission to have faith that you too can heal.
Best of luck on your journey,
Blake
 
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