If I know I have TMS then why is my pain not going away?

5 years ago I had a whiplash neck injury that I recovered from with no remaining physical injuries, clear MRI etc.

8 weeks later after returning to work I started to get nerve pain down my right arm and fingers and tender (trigger) points in my upper trapezius.

I tried everything from physio to medications to nerve blocks. Nothing worked.

About 2 months ago I discovered the concept of TMS. Suddenly it all made sense, I'm definitely a Type T personality and tend to be hard on myself.

My injury also came at time of change in my house. I became a dad and despite it being enjoyable I also found the lack of sleep and other challenges difficult. I found myself tensed up continuously. Maybe this was a subconscious protection of my neck and also fear of the stresses of life at that time.

These days my triggers can be general work pressure, family pressure (just typical things) and other ordinary life stresses.

The triggers cause pain in my neck and shoulder. I get reduced range of movement and my whole neck can get tensed up.

I have also periods of relief. Those have been either:

1. I was doing an activity that I felt was "fixing" me, for example a medication or physio program. However once the doubt of the fix actually working kicked in then the pain came back.

2. If I'm VERY distracted with an activity, working hard, maybe a manual task. A few hours later I'll check in with myself and noticed reduced pain. And that's the moment it comes back again.

So, if know TMS is almost certainly the cause (based on the fact that symptoms seem to be driven by psychological causes rather than physical ones (physical exercise actually gives me temporary relief) then why am I not getting better?

I've read a few books on TMS now and it all makes sense. But I don't seem to be able to make the next step.

 

Well... Your Number 1 means you are experiencing the placebo effect . For you it seems to be meds and exercise. You must not have understood TMS recovery though, because it has NOTHING to do with 'fixing' anything structural because there is nothing to fix. #1 means you still believe that you are broken somehow. What do meds and exercise do to reduce repressed unconscious rage?
Your continued belief in meds and exercise will actually prevent you from recovering if you have TMS. Exercise is great.... but not if you equate it with recovery

And your number two is just the beginning of a glimmer of the awareness it takes to get rid of the symptoms.

The three steps...RRR.... Refute the conventional diagnosis- "Everything I learned from THEM was BS". All of it

Re-educate your Brain- Reading, reflection, reconsider... "What was going on that made me need this distraction? Where was I when I first got distracted by the symptoms and they began to occupy my attention?"

Return to activity and 'normal' things before your alleged 'injury'. This is also 'Recondition'. I have to go back to Every single activity I did BEFORE I learned their BS. As I go about it I remind myself that there is nothing wrong with me, that most of the things I believe were conditioned into me by fear and pain and I am not going to let it win. Period.

I got my worst symptoms after the birth of my second son...when I became the sole bread winner... when the pressure to provide and perform were even greater than before. I wasn't aware of any of that though because the pain had my attention... I was just doing my thing, right?

Intellectual appreciation is a good start , but you gotta take a club to this thing and beat it to death... You can be totally free forever in a couple of weeks.

 

Thanks for your reply.

I may not have been clear in the parts that described when I have had relief. This was before I discovered the concept of TMS. The belief that I thought a medication was working was just that, a belief. That belief was what made the pain go away, not the meds. Which supports the idea that it is TMS.

I did extensive physio for months. Not only did I see no benefit during it but I felt exactly the same when I discontinued it. Physically there is no more I can do. Hence TMS being the likely cause. I have no expectation meds will help either.

So I do believe it's TMS. Well 99.9% sure. I think it's impossible to be 100% sure of anything. But nothing else has worked for me so I've very little doubt at this point.

And lastly I have no restrictions on anything I do now versus before my injury. Playing sport etc, no issue. However I definitely do view my life as that before the injury and life after it. My life now is more about fear of the pain, fear of the stress that might cause it. And the fear that it will never go away.