Is my IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) due to TMS?

Earlier in the year I was suffering from RSI (repetitive strain injury) in my right thumb and through TMS I was able to completely heal myself. It was an incredible feeling to overcome this pain but this is only one of my problems.

I've been suffering from IBS for over 4 years now and it has drastically changed my life. Whilst I'm managing it better now than I did in the beginning, it still negatively affects my life on a daily basis. There's a lot of foods I avoid in order to improve my symptoms but there's still a lot of room for improvement. I've tried to apply the TMS approach to my IBS but have had no results, including eating a non-restrictive diet again which actually went alright for about a week until I started getting very ill over the following weeks. The pain and frequent bathroom trips were too much to bare and I had to limit my diet again.

There's certainly a real correlation between how anxious/stressed I'm feeling and how severe my IBS is, which definitely points to a mindbody connection, and it's well regarded that your mental health affects your IBS in a big way, but could my mind be the actual cause of my IBS rather than just a catalyst?

I'm going to give this another shot. Working on TMS is always difficult because you do it to heal but you shouldn't do it for the sheer purpose of healing, similar to how you should meditate for the sake of meditation rather than trying to achieve a result, but good luck trying to do anything without expecting a result, otherwise why would you do it?

I was wondering how many of you out there struggle with IBS and if it was TMS for you? Did you manage to cure yourself or ease your symptoms?

 

I'm sorry to read of your struggle with IBS. I suffered from interstitial cystitis (bladder)many years ago, and just like IBS, it's another variant of TMS. Anxiety is at the very core of it and this is what you need to focus on...not the anxiety...but the emotions you are repressing that are at the root of the anxiety. You may also want to look into consulting with a psychiatrist for an anti depressant medication to help lower the anxiety level. IBS is definitely a mind/body condition and not a dietary one. I never bought into any correlation with my diet and my bladder spasms for example. It's totally psychological.

 

Thanks for responding, I'm really glad you were able to overcome your condition, miffybunny. Anxiety is definitely a big problem for me. I get quite worried about a lot of things and it's definitely gotten worse over the years. A lot of the time now I'm worried about my symptoms, worried about the pain and nausea I may feel whenever I go out somewhere, which would in turn worsen my symptoms and then make me even more worried and so on. I'm not completely sure what you mean by the emotions I am repressing that are at the root of my anxiety, however. Isn't anxiety an emotion? If i'm not focusing on that the only other thing I could be focusing on is the actual thing that's making me anxious, such as going to an event or meeting someone new.

I'm definitely going to be talking to a doctor when I'm back home from my trip, some medication to lower anxiety sounds more appealing each day. Would this affect my ability to heal myself however? Since it'd make me less anxious it may improve symptoms but it doesn't seem like a permanent fix as I'm not the one dealing with the anxiety and overcoming it.

 

I understand your question but the answer is no. If a medication helps lower your levels of anxiety you will be in a better position mentally, to reason and change your thought patterns. Think of it as a temporary tool not as a magic solution. When your anxiety is through the roof, it's almost impossible to make any progress and do the work you need to do. Anxiety is a symptom...not an emotion. Anxiety is a temporary state of fight or flight that can manifest in different ways (panic attacks, physical pain, hyperventilating, fatigue, general avoidance behaviors, obsessive thoughts). When you are actually dealing with your emotions in a healthy way and living your life on your terms, the anxiety goes down. Right now you need a little help imo to take the edge off so you can actually focus on your life.

 

Hey there. I have a few thoughts.

You’re overthinking this. You’re working way too hard on healing TMS which is ironically making it worse.

What do you enjoy doing? What are some of your favorite hobbies? I genuinely want to know.

 

That makes a lot of sense, I'll definitely ask my doctor about that. Forgive me for my ignorance but if anxiety is a symptom, what is the emotion behind it? Is the emotions the reason why you're anxious, such as a task you need to perform, a party you're going to, a change in life circumstances etc.

Perhaps you're right. Finding the balance of how much to work on this and how much to just relax is challenging. Some of my favourite hobbies are gaming, weight training, tennis, filmmaking, watching movies.

 

gaming, weight training, tennis, filmmaking, watching movies --- THIS is what you should be focusing on. This is what matters. This is what's important.

The symptoms are a distraction from that.

Best wishes

 

Hi, I'm new to this forum. It's a bit overwhelming but your post jumped out at me because I've suffered 38 years of IBS and, worse, 30 years of bladder pain. The latter started after a really bad bout of cystitis and never returned to normal. Every single time I empty my bladder, it aches for hours afterwards. I don't know if I have an embedded infection - that's one theory but it appears to be impossible to prove. I've tried just about everything with no relief until.....

Over the course of the last year I've started to take a more psychological approach to things (previously I'd dismissed any connection) and have definitely been helped by a combination of Pranic Healing, hypnotherapy, the Curable app and Nicole Sachs (she worked with John Sarno as you probably know).

I recognise that fear of the pain plays a massive part and I do believe things have started to change and improve - but at the moment I'm suffering a major setback (sexual intercourse brought about this "flare-up") and now a little voice inside my head is scaring me into wondering whether there really is a mind/body connection. I mean, what if I do have an embedded infection - how am I ever going to get rid of it? Whatever aggravation might have been caused by sex must surely have cleared up by now, yet the pain is grinding away and wearing me down so much. It's just so depressing when I'd had the best 2 months in 30 years.

I wonder is it the brain turning those pain signals into something more than is necessary, are those neural pathways firing up again needlessly?? Sorry for the long post but I'm in serious need of encouragement. Whenever I read about TMS it tends to be stuff like back or neck ache. Can my inflamed bladder really be part of the same syndrome? NB I did have a pretty horrible upbringing with a violent alcoholic father. Hoping you can give me some hope. Many thanks in advance.

 

Hi Angel8,

PBS (painful bladder syndrome) and IBS are indeed TMS. I have to say I've never hear of an "embedded infection" and it sounds like the stuff of fantasy to be honest. Also why do you think your bladder is "inflamed"?? It may feel that way but there is no truth to that unless you are in the midst of an actual infection. Sometimes we have images in our minds that turn into false or limiting beliefs that have no bearing on reality. I even had a cystoscope bladder distention test at one point and they showed me images of this nasty red bladder. Well, guess what I found out? Everyone's bladder looks that way if you distend it lol!! When it comes to these syndromes, no infection is present. It is the brain sending signals. This just means that your brain is trying to protect you from repressed emotions that are threatening to come to the surface from the subconscious. This is where the work lies. Have you had any therapy? I recommend The Pain Psychology Center (Alan Gordons) and they do phone sessions.

 

Thanks very much, that's really helpful. Yes, I am having therapy at the moment for the past few months). Thanks for the recommendation but I'm in the UK and don't like the idea of phone sessions, I'd prefer face to face. I'll continue doing it and keep doing the journalling etc. So you're healed from both the IBS and your bladder pain? Wow!!!