Is it always repressed emotions/rage?

[ComaDivine34]

So I went and saw Dr. Paul Gwozdz (TMS Dr) in NJ for an exam and sat in on his lecture. I learned a few new things and had a great visit with him going over everything in my life. His treatment/homework is to make a list of all things that can be causing your repressed rage. For example, your personality types, traumatic experiences in childhood, pressures from life etc. You then read over this list multiple times daily while reciting a statement like "I know my TMS symptoms are not from physical causes, but are due to my not wanting to think about ____" and then you list your causes. This is supposed to teach your unconscious to stop creating symptoms due to repressed rage

For instance, I listed my dog since I am angry about the needs of a dog and the responsibility required to own one. I think about this mostly everyday anyway, and reading it on the list just reinforces the anger. When I am not fixated on the negatives regarding my dog, I enjoy having her and spending time with her. This is with most things in life. I have a problem with fixating on the negatives.

Every time I read the list it makes me think my life is bad because I am constantly going over negative experiences that could be contributing to my rage. I have OCD, so unfortunately I am thinking of these uncomfortable thoughts most of the day anyway. I tend to obsess about health, finances, my home, relationships, etc. The start of my chronic symptoms has been going on for 9 months, and that became my new obsession (lots of googling, seeking reassurance and just being conditioned to expect symptoms).

My question, is it always repressed emotions/rage? I made good progress by reading MindBody Prescription, resuming physical activity, journaling and putting more effort into therapy and just putting less pressure on myself. Reading the MBP was the first time I truly thought "this actually makes sense, I see myself on every page". The reason I saw Dr. Gwozdz is I regressed when I got an MRI which showed mild abnormalities. It stuck in the back of my head and has made healing harder.

Any suggestions for alternate treatment are appreciated. I just ordered The Divided Mind since I need a new book to read anyway. I also started with a new more knowledgeable therapist when it comes to trauma, OCD, somatic disorders, etc. Hopeful to get back on the recovery train soon.

 

[Duggit]

My question, is it always repressed emotions/rage?

No, it is not always repressed emotions/rage. In chapter 3 of your copy of MindBody Prescription, see the pages under the heading Pavlovian Conditioning--Programming.

I regressed when I got an MRI which showed mild abnormalities. It stuck in the back of my head and has made healing harder.

Of course that makes healing harder. Dr. Sarno stressed that to recover from TMS you have to understand and "fully accept" that the cause of your pain is not structural. (The phrase “fully accept” is from the early pages of chapter 4 of The Divided Mind.) The older a person gets, the more mild abnormalities a person develops. It’s part of normal aging, like wrinkled skin is part of normal aging. The fact (I assume) that Dr. Gwozdz was not alarmed by your mild abnormalities ought to tell you all you need to know.

 

[Kozas]

My question, is it always repressed emotions/rage? I made good progress by reading MindBody Prescription, resuming physical activity, journaling and putting more effort into therapy and just putting less pressure on myself. Reading the MBP was the first time I truly thought "this actually makes sense, I see myself on every page". The reason I saw Dr. Gwozdz is I regressed when I got an MRI which showed mild abnormalities. It stuck in the back of my head and has made healing harder.

From what I understand - no. Let's say you've got injury. Or even not, let's say you've got an upset stomach. Then you starting to think about that stomach, be sad about it, be angry about, think maybe it's cancer? Mayber it's Crohn disease? You go to doctors, they find nothing. But you still think about it all day long. Neural pathways in your mind are building. But the truth is that your stomach problems were just temporaly, maybe because of some virus, maybe because of bad food, it's already healed and should stopped giving your symptoms, but your brain are already fixated on your stomach.
No hidden or repressed emotions, nothing about your past(maybe more about your character) and it's still basically TMS.

 

[Cactusflower]

I think it is a little more person specific. Dr. Sarno did recognize psychology and anger played a role for many people: he sent them to the psychologists he worked with.
Dr. Hanscom finds a co-relation with anger and fear: we now know they are processed in about the same place in the brain. He also has theories for treatment of OCD.
I saw a talk were Dr. Schubiner was asked a similar question. He mentioned that currently he finds most of his patients seem to have fear/sadness more than anger, but that in the past, most of his patients seemed to have more anger.
So I don’t think it matters much to the brain. Where Dr. Gwozdz’s approach (which is unique. I’m interested in knowing if it has worked for some folks) is simply acceptance for psychological perception of safety. Perhaps you can take his theory and create a method of approach which works for you.

 

[ComaDivine34]

Thanks @Kozas @Duggit and @Cactusflower . This gives me perspective that it is not a one size fits all approach. I watched a video from Dan Buglio/Pain Free You which really spoke to me. His approach is more fear based. A subscriber wrote to him and said that instead of trying to get rid of her symptoms, she got rid of the fear and her symptoms faded away. This really made sense to me.

Basically what started as a sore back and pelvic pain started obsessive googling, worrying about healthcare costs and time spent, worrying about disability, not being able to work, etc. Once I just started to feel the sensations, tell myself it is safe, I can still live just fine and there is nothing wrong, the pain got so much better. It is switching around a bit, but I am just looking at it, noticing it and going about my day. Even if I do have pain for the rest of my life I can either obsess over it or just notice it and carry on.