Day 1 Just getting started . . .

I started the SEP today after reading Mind Over Back Pain, Healing Back Pain, and The Mindbody Prescription. I've had this lumbar pain for so long (almost nine years), and I've had so many different treatments, that I'm having some difficulty believing that relief could result from something as simple as reading some books and focusing on the emotional component(s). And yet I'm hopeful! Dr. Sarno's theory really rings true to me, and I intend to follow the SEP and to reread the books as I go. I'm pleased to have a resource like this forum to provide support and community.

 

Hi Mike,

First and foremost, welcome to the TMS community. It's a great resource with so much information and support from qualified Professionals and individuals who are working through their journey.

Reading Dr Sarnos books and working through the SEP is definitely the right approach.

All I would suggest is to work through the material at a slow and steady pace, I know the amount of information is overwhelming but taking small steps has always been most beneficial for most members on this Forum.

If you have any questions, the support network is very friendly, respectful and approachable and always here to help.

Best regards

 

Hi MikeG and welcome!

I echo what Mike 2014 said, plus I would recommend that you read at least one post in the Success Stories subforum every day. Not only will they keep you inspired, but they will also give you a good look at the many different ways and the many different resources for doing this work.

 

Hi, MikeG. I too welcome you to the TMS community and the SEP. It helped me and many, many others to become free of pain, in my case extreme back pain. I journaled and realized that my father always had back pain and probably had it from TMS emotional stresses... financial, I believe. Money worries cause a lot of us, me included, to have back or other pains. Maybe that is not your problem, but if you have been checked out and nothing structural has been found wrong with your back, it has to be TMS. I agree with Jan to look at the success stories subforum every day. Meanwhile, he is a recent post from someone who gives great confidence to everyone that TMS heals...

Kevin healed 95 % from SEP

Welcome to the SEP and to the path of recovery. I am on my final two days of the program and I can say with complete confidence that I am a changed man. I started after 6 months of nasty low-back/butt/leg pain, could hardly walk, stand, etc. was in physical therapy, chiropractor, acupuncture, pain medications, etc.. the usual. My MRI showed 3 disk bulges/herniations touching nerves, so that is what I believe it to be....that is until I read Dr. Sarno and found this site.

I encourage you to really get involved, follow the instructions, do the journaling, take time to read all the suggested readings, and watch the videos. I'd say I'm 95% cured. There is still some very light lingering "annoyance", but I still have some work to do. I've been walking miles with hardly any pain these last few weeks. But even more, if the pain comes on now, it just doesn't bother me like it used to, I sorta just see it, acknowledge it, and go about my business. It took working the program to get to that point, but 6 weeks compared to 6 months is nothing! I made more progress in the first week than I did from two months of PT!!! It's going to challenge you and your "beliefs" in medicine, but you have nothing to lose. We generally wind up here when all else fails.

So give it a shot, especially before considering anything invasive like surgery. If you put the work in, you will get better. Have you read Dr. Sarno yet? I assume you have since you're here, but in case you haven't, definitely readHealing Back Pain. Again, it will challenge everything you've believed about your pain, and backs in general. You'll be encouraged to resume life as normal, i.e. stop ALL "therapies" (PT, chiro, etc.), stop taking medications, and most importantly, stop thinking STRUCTURAL problems are the cause of your pain and shift to psychological as the reason.....again, this can be difficult and takes some time to sink in, so be patient and kind to yourself.

It was a process for me. A few of the bigger moves in my case were: I ripped up and threw out my MRI test results (I found myself obsessively reading over them and comparing them to other results I could find on the web and even here on the TMSwiki site...); I got back to the gym and stopped using a weight belt; and I even cancelled an appointment I had made with aTMS doctorbecause it was more than a month away and it was hindering my recovery (that is, my 100% belief in TMS was lagging because I had this pending appointment, but as soon as I cancelled it, my recovery sped up significantly). Everyone's journey is unique to their situation, but I've found that really committing to the program and brining what I learn from it into my daily life has had profound results. Also, sharing along the way here in these forums has been extremely helpful - there's something about knowing that you're not alone in your TMS recovery that really helps. I encourage you to look through my past posts for some insight into my experience with SEP. Like I said, I'm just now finishing, tomorrow is my final day, and I feel like a changed person. It's amazing. And I feel as though it is something that one carries on with, not just like a one time 6 week thing and that's that...it has helped me to get to know myself and taught me tools to "deal" with my emotions. Learning and accepting TMS is a life changer for sure.

 

Mike,

Yes to everything all have said above. You can and will recover from your pain if you follow the program, it is an amazing gift. The frustrating part is seeing how many refuse to even consider the mind-body connection to their pain..... it really is a shame. But if you're among the lucky few able to think outside the cannon, you will succeed. Please keep us posted on your progress, it helps us all.

Stay the course.

Kev