In what ways can chronic pain can change a person's mind ?

[IndiMarshall]

Trigger warning*

On top of my childhood trauma, For nearly a decade (between age 23 to 33) , I lived with constant back and neck pain—so intense that I often felt life was no longer worth living. Like I always thought of self harm. At times, the pain left me bedridden, trapped in a cycle of hopelessness and fear. What initially began as a physical injury gradually evolved into a psychosomatic condition, further complicating my struggle. Fortunately, after years of relentless mental effort thanks to Dr Sarno's knowledge and support here, I fully healed eight years ago. However, only now am I beginning to understand the profound ways in which those ten years of suffering have reshaped my mind.
One of the most noticeable changes is

1. My diminished attention span and difficulty focusing on details(I wonder if I developed adult ADHD).
2. I’ve become highly sensitive to emotions, lights, and sounds. (I think I have developed Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria (RSD).
3. CPTSD for sure

I’m curious to explore if there are other psychological or cognitive changes that might have resulted from this experience. Identifying and addressing each challenge individually will help me regain control and move forward with greater clarity. I get overwhelmed when I dont know what I am dealing with.
Are there any other aspects I should consider in my journey toward self-awareness and healing? Thanks.

My success story from 8 years ago.
Healed from chronic chronic back pain.. I Love Myself baby!! | TMS Forum (The Mindbody Syndrome)

 

[Cactusflower]

Have you read any of Gabor Mate's books? I think they would interest you.
Consider also how you've worded some of your worries, because that is truly what they are: worries.
You worry you have now "developed" adult ADHD although how you describe it can also describe "brain fog" and other things that people on this forum commonly report as a TMS symptom. They are also commonly reported symptoms of anxiety.

"Highly sensitive to emotions, lights and sounds" - these are also very common symptoms reported here. "Highly Sensative to Emotions" - your own, or others. If it is your own, it could mean that you are simply experiencing the physicality of the emotion in the normal manner human bodies do, and it's all new to you. It could also mean that you are unwilling to feel the sensations of emotions and you are now aware of how you "push" them or react to them instead of allowing them. Again, if you are experiencing the sensitivity of other people's emotions, that is your mind judging how you fit into their emotional world - perhaps due to personality traits you developed a long time ago.
I can tell you that sensitivity to light and sound is a TMS equivalent to anxiety.

From what you've written, I see anxiety all over it. You've been trying to label or name the "problem" which is often due to a tenancy to want to "fix" the "problem".
Humans feel emotions, humans see things, humans hear things. So what if you just let it all be. No fixing, no worrying about it, no sensing that something is "wrong". Flip the switch: I feel my emotions in my body and isn't it wondrous that I now have this skill, when in the past I didn't feel safe with my emotions (or the emotions of others). Use your sense of curiosity to train your mind that none of this is a problem, or something to be afraid of. Similarly with light and sound. I would take sound breaks by meditating, which was very helpful - and needed to be quiet a lot. It made me realize that I valued some quiet time in my life. Again, I used my sense of curiosity to be amazed at how the body can react to our inner state: the sensitivities when the nervous system is on "high" alert, and how this is absolutely a normal cycle of the human body.
I read books by Claire Weeks who discusses anxiety, and how to deal with the sensations of it. I used just a few of her techniques and began to stop worrying about them. For me they were inconsequential to my physical pain. I stopped getting frustrated at them, and just accepted they were here for the time being and that was OK, I'd deal with it. In the long run, I'm sure they existed to help me to learn boundaries. I needed to say no to doing many things, and discovered I WANTED to say no to those things (at least at the time). The symptoms bothered those around me more than they bothered me.
I am no longer sensitive to noises (except loud, startling noises which is normal) and my light sensitivity is back to normal. My brain fog and alertness is back to normal.
It's all temporary.
You don't need to "consider" anything at all like these symptoms because they are inconsequential. It's your anxiety and worry about perfectly healing that is where you need to do the work.
You don't have to be perfect, but living with anxiety and a constantly heightened nervous system sucks. It can absolutely be regulated and dealing with the anxiety is a great step.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

Heya Indi. I'm with @Cactusflower. These are symptom imperatives, emerging in place of your old symptoms, but still related to your original TMS survival mechanisms from childhood.

Gabor Mate MD is definitely the resource for you at this point, as he has been going well beyond basic Sarno theory for at least twenty years (and is well qualified to do so with quite a different medical background and career).

My understanding is that Dr Mate's book, Scattered, is focused on ADHD and its relationship to childhood adversity. In his latest book, The Myth of Normal, he presents a compelling case for the connection between many types of adult mental conditions and childhood adversity. ADHD is only one of the conditions he mentions.

I have listened to the audiobook version of The Myth of Normal which I downloaded from my library, (there was a long waiting list for all versions of the book) and then I bought the Kindle version.

 

[IndiMarshall]

.

Thank you, Cactus, for your detailed explanation. I appreciate your insights. While my writing may reflect anxiety, I would describe it more as a sense of helplessness—an awareness of everything that has happened beyond just healing the physical symptoms.

For years, I didn’t understand why I would wake up five hours into my sleep. Eventually, I realized it was due to unprocessed emotions—feelings I hadn’t fully acknowledged during the day.
Although I have physically healed from the pain and can now go to the gym, lift weights, and do things I once thought impossible, the mind has endured far more damage than just the physical symptoms.

Beyond all of this, life continues to unfold, and with each passing day, we learn more about ourselves and the complexities of the human mind. I cant emphasize how sensitive the childhood is and how much kids should be taken care of during their growth and in their teens.

 

[IndiMarshall]

Heya Indi. .

Thanks, Jan! Interestingly, I just received a recommendation for The Myth of Normal from someone else today as well—what a nice coincidence!
I’ll definitely consider reading it. I already have the Audible version, so I’ll check it out there to see its availability.