just joined today

[Tennis Tom]

... I am going to see my GP next week. I know this may sound dumb, but not exactly sure what to say to my doctor. Going in saying I get aches and pains that move around and change and are sometimes really bad and other times non existent sounds a bit odd even to me....I am not sure what tests he will do or indeed what test I should ask for

Don't worry about it AND DON'T GO THINKING YOUR DUMB! That's a big part of the TMS personality and the "universal inferiority complex" that most everyone with any humanity in them possess. We're all dumb until we make mistakes, f'up, learn from them and evolve into smart.

Don't worry about what to tell your doc, they hear it all day long, probably 80% of those in the waiting room are suffering from TMS. If you get to blurt out 30 seconds to the doc uninterrupted, you'll be doing good. In modern medicine you're just like a car going down the medical/industrial assembly line. You'll get more empathy and hand-holding from your mechanic or vet. You'll get the usual tests, blood and urine (remember to save up so you don't feel additional TMS tension), they'll be sent out to the lab to see if you're outside the normal parameters, deficiencies will be red-flagged if any, and maybe get an RX for something. If you haven't collapsed in downward dog you're probably healthy. Modern defensive medicine is really good at dx'ing disease--don't forget about "gray-hair of the spine", (it's in the books), and don't ask a barber if you need a haircut. A TMS physician should be radically different, spending an hour or more discussing your emotional history etc. and do a palpation exam at the TMS tender spots. Unfortunately TMS physicians are few and far between, but by eliminating structural causes that may need attention or treatment, you are safe to pursue the TMS protocol.

Cheers,
tt

 

[heleng]

Don't worry about it AND DON'T GO THINKING YOUR DUMB! That's a big part of the TMS personality and the "universal inferiority complex" that most everyone with any humanity in them possess. We're all dumb until we make mistakes, f'up, learn from them and evolve into smart.

Don't worry about what to tell your doc, they hear it all day long, probably 80% of those in the waiting room are suffering from TMS. If you get to blurt out 30 seconds to the doc uninterrupted, you'll be doing good. In modern medicine you're just like a car going down the medical/industrial assembly line. You'll get more empathy and hand-holding from your mechanic or vet. You'll get the usual tests, blood and urine (remember to save up so you don't feel additional TMS tension), they'll be sent out to the lab to see if you're outside the normal parameters, deficiencies will be red-flagged if any, and maybe get an RX for something. If you haven't collapsed in downward dog you're probably healthy. Modern defensive medicine is really good at dx'ing disease--don't forget about "gray-hair of the spine", (it's in the books), and don't ask a barber if you need a haircut. A TMS physician should be radically different, spending an hour or more discussing your emotional history etc. and do a palpation exam at the TMS tender spots. Unfortunately TMS physicians are few and far between, but by eliminating structural causes that may need attention or treatment, you are safe to pursue the TMS protocol.

Cheers,
tt

Hey TT

Thanks so much for this you made me laugh a lot, I do take things overly seriously at times and need to stop building myself up for failure all the time. I have had a great afternoon thinking about my pain and I got sort of annoyed with the back pain and it moved to my head and gave me a mild tension headache which then just went away....that pain certainly is a slippery customer. I feel much better for all the help I am getting on this site and less tense about seeing my GP

Big thanks

Helen

 

[heleng]

Tell him what you feel be a specific as possible he will probably run blood work and do a physical

Thanks, I will do just that and see what happens

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

If your doctor prescribes medication, ask him or her what that's for.
Then ask about any natural ways of dealing with your pain or anxiety.
A Google search and You Tube will take you to web sites and free CDs or videos
that suggest natural ways to avoid pharmaceuticals.

 

[njoy]

Wow, your post generated some great responses! Just want to add that if your GP says you have fibromyalgia or arthritis or whatever, this does NOT mean learning about TMS work won't help you. Quite the opposite. Many conditions that medical doctors diagnose are actually TMS. Fibromyalgia, for one. I know because I was diagnosed with it and Dr. Sarno's book was immensely helpful. In fact, it vanished! Even conditions that have a physical component will often improve greatly when the psychological impact is acknowledged and dealt with. This is no small thing. In fact, it can make all the difference between a treatable problem and a problem that threatens your quality of life, work, family, etc..

One of the practitioners here (sorry, I dont remember who) suggests keeping a list of TMS successes and any sign that TMS is at work in your life. This will serve to bolster your confidence at those low moments when a part of you thinks, "This has got to be physical!" No, it doesn't. If TMS methods work (and they very likely will) that means "thinking psychological" is going to help you.

Did anyone tell you what SEP is? If not, here a link: http://www.tmswiki.org/ppd/Structured_Educational_Program

Another good starting place is Alan Gordon's program: http://www.tmswiki.org/ppd/TMS_Recovery_Program

I think you will find either very helpful. All the best and welcome to the forum.

 

[chickenbone]

Hi Helen,

You mentioned that you have been reluctant to see a doctor to rule out serious illness because you are afraid of finding out something bad. I have that also. Every time I go for a test of any kind, I fear that it will reveal something terrible, even if I am relatively sure nothing is seriously wrong and even knowing that I have TMS. This is a closely related mental condition known as hypochondria. Hypochondriacs have an underlying fear that there is something seriously wrong with their health. The mention of serious illnesses is often enough to send them into endless worry and rumination, imagining that they have a specific, terrible disease. They can be extremely fearful of any test or medical procedure. No one knows what really causes this, but generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder are closely related.

You might want to read a book called "Phantom Illness" by Carla Cantor and Brian Fallon. I think it is the most up-to-date book on the subject today. This book helped me understand myself.

 

[heleng]

Wow, your post generated some great responses! Just want to add that if your GP says you have fibromyalgia or arthritis or whatever, this does NOT mean learning about TMS work won't help you. Quite the opposite. Many conditions that medical doctors diagnose are actually TMS. Fibromyalgia, for one. I know because I was diagnosed with it and Dr. Sarno's book was immensely helpful. In fact, it vanished! Even conditions that have a physical component will often improve greatly when the psychological impact is acknowledged and dealt with. This is no small thing. In fact, it can make all the difference between a treatable problem and a problem that threatens your quality of life, work, family, etc..

One of the practitioners here (sorry, I dont remember who) suggests keeping a list of TMS successes and any sign that TMS is at work in your life. This will serve to bolster your confidence at those low moments when a part of you thinks, "This has got to be physical!" No, it doesn't. If TMS methods work (and they very likely will) that means "thinking psychological" is going to help you.

Did anyone tell you what SEP is? If not, here a link: http://www.tmswiki.org/ppd/Structured_Educational_Program

Another good starting place is Alan Gordon's program: http://www.tmswiki.org/ppd/TMS_Recovery_Program

I think you will find either very helpful. All the best and welcome to the forum.

Thanks so much for your post. I have no idea if my GP will be able to call my pains anything, I don't fit the arthritis diagnosis as I don't have the typical symptoms ( I know this as have spent ages googling them and have a friend with arthritis and she is really unable to move due to pain and swollen joints. I dont think its fibromyalgia as i dont have the tender points and I am mostly very energetic....I also spend too much time reading about what this might be and often get some relief but I still keep asking myself why do I get so many aches and pains that come and go and on bad days I get so fearful and cry a lot. I am learning so much from this forum but realise in order for this to work I have to give up looking for a definite cause and look beyond the purely physical symptoms and see the bigger picture. I know this will be a struggle but I am determined to give it a go. I will let you know what my GP says

Many thanks

Helen

 

[heleng]

Hi Helen,

You mentioned that you have been reluctant to see a doctor to rule out serious illness because you are afraid of finding out something bad. I have that also. Every time I go for a test of any kind, I fear that it will reveal something terrible, even if I am relatively sure nothing is seriously wrong and even knowing that I have TMS. This is a closely related mental condition known as hypochondria. Hypochondriacs have an underlying fear that there is something seriously wrong with their health. The mention of serious illnesses is often enough to send them into endless worry and rumination, imagining that they have a specific, terrible disease. They can be extremely fearful of any test or medical procedure. No one knows what really causes this, but generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder are closely related.

You might want to read a book called "Phantom Illness" by Carla Cantor and Brian Fallon. I think it is the most up-to-date book on the subject today. This book helped me understand myself.

Hey, thanks for your reply. I am the most terrible worrier and know I am a hypochondriac but pretend I am not. I am quite ashamed as I know this problem causes me so many anxieties. I feel at some times my mind is really unhelpful and keeps churning up a whole host of very unhelpful thoughts and emotions. I am daunted by how far I have to go but am tired of all this self sabotage and fear. I havent told anybody about these pains or my fears around them as at the heart of it I feel very ashamed of being this way, which suggests I have some awareness of this being a psychological issue rather than just a physical one.

Thanks for all the support

Helen

 

[heleng]

Hi Helen,

You sound like TMS. The litigious nature of society today (a great contributor to why TMS is epidemic in our advanced Western culture ), requires us to warn and admonish you to get a physical workup from a physician to exclude serious structural conditions that need treatment. They could also be due to TMS/karma, but still should be treated symptomatically through the miracles of the modern medical/pharmacal/industrial complex. Although I believe in TMS, I still get quarterly teeth cleanings, dental work and root canals when needed.

You sure sound like TMS and that you intuitively get it. SteveO, who has written a great TMS tome titled "THE GREAT PAIN DECEPTION" that I highly recommend adding to your TMS reading list, coined a word "tracordification" or the need to be social if I got him right. You have made the connection to the start of your painful dis-ease with the separation from your partner or main squeeze as we call them here in the Golden State--you made a good connection to the dis-connection. SteveO is also a pranayama yoga instructor so he has a lot of wind power :cigar:--get his book so he knows where his next glass of wine is coming from . He's diligently working on an audio version which would be great to listen to while commuting and another TMS book, since his editor cut his first book in half and left out all the juicy stuff and TMS dirt- -I can hardly wait for the movie or teleplay adaptation, which hopefully will appear on the Lifetime, Hallmark, Golf, Sci-fi and MTV channels. He hasn't had time to appear on Oprah with all he's doing, but if her producers send a town car to Ohio, and throw in the Presidential Suite at the Waldorf, we could continue with discussions, and that could make it a maybe.

That's enough flacking for my good buddy SteveO, (spelled Steven Ray Ozanich) and the title of his book if I didn't mention it is : "THE GREAT PAIN DECEPTION : FAULTY MEDICAL ADVICE IS MAKING US WORSE". Back to you Helen of Birmingham, I assume you're in England--although you could be in Alabama too. I've copied the TMS practitioners list from this site who are located in the UK for you. If you're going to get some TMS counseling, you'll get the most bang for your buck, pounds, quids or guineas by getting it from a TMS practitioner. In my opinion most shrinks I've known have NO interest in psychosomatic conditions (I've asked them and tried) and want to ally themselves with white-coats who have no interest whatsoever in it--if they can't "cure" you they can now get a referral fee from a chiroquackter, accupunk, or a pain clinic, many of which they now have in house or just down the hall from them.

Regarding YOGA, keep doing it, I feel it's complementary to TMS, especially the other seven limbs of it, after preparing the body for introspection through the , asanas. Western Yoga is all about the stretch , but the real deal YOGA includes all the other stuff that YOKES the mind and the body into the MINDBODY.

There are some TMS meet-up groups in the UK, and if you can't see a TMS practitioner in person phone and skyping can be just as good.

Cheers and G'luck!
tt

==============================================================

United Kingdom


Practitioner Liz DydeLiz Dyde, BACP (Therapist)
Lifeways Complementary Health Centre

Available via Phone
30 Albany Road
Stratford upon Avon
Warwickshire
CV37 6PG
Tel: 01789 295890
liz@lizdyde.com
Survey Response / Website / Profile Page





Practitioner Louise LevyLouise Levy (Therapist)
Louise has a Master's degree in Guidance Counseling and diplomas in both Clinical Advanced Hypnotherapy and Cognitive Behavioral Hypno-Psychotherapy (Hypno-CBT). Louise was one of the first practitioners to go through the SIRPA Practitioner Training Programme with Georgie Oldfield, MCSP, and became an Advanced Specialist of Chronic Pain in 2011. She says, “Working as a therapist means I am consulted on a range of conditions affecting the mind and the body. I am particularly passionate about supporting people with TMS and chronic pain as I myself suffered from severe TMS back pain for 12 years.” Louise offers both face to face and telephone consultations.

Available via Phone
Lily House
11/12 The Shrubberies
George Lane
South Woodford
London E18 1BD
Tel: 020 8530 8888
Tel: 07984 011429
Fax: 020 8530 5566
info@louiselevy.co.uk
TMS Wiki Profile / Survey Response / Website / Lily House Website
Main Wiki Page About Louise Levy
Insurance Accepted: NHS Complementary Health Registered Therapist (Funding through PCT)



Toireasa McCann, CABP (Therapist)
Integrative Body Psychotherapist
Clinics in London SW2 and NW6
07789 267171
voxnova1@yahoo.co.uk




Practitioner Georgie OldfieldGeorgina Oldfield, MCSP (Physiotherapist)
Georgie Oldfield said, "Despite being a Physiotherapist, Dr Sarno's concept and approach was not a surprise to me. For many years prior to coming across this work in 2007 I had been looking for the answer to the many inconsistencies I had been observing with my own patients. I had also already begun to realise that pain often did not appear to be related to the structural problems patients had been diagnosed with. Coming across TMS was an epiphany moment for me and has completely changed my whole understanding and therefore how I work. Having seen the remarkable and often life changing recoveries in my own patients, I am passionate about working with people with TMS/PPD and 100% of my time over the past few years has been developing this work and raising the profile in the UK.

Since developing SIRPA I continue to work in a clinical role working with people who suffer from TMS/PPD. Although based in Yorkshire I also run regular assessment clinics in London and Bristol. Through SIRPA I also run training courses for other regulated Health Professionals in order to help them integrate this approach into their own work. Our aim is to raise the profile of this work by increasing the awareness of stress illness to the public and Practitioners as well as the Medical world.”(Source)

Georgie also runs monthly clinics in London.

A physiotherapist is very similar to a doctor, in that they can make diagnoses and order medical tests. A physiotherapist in the UK is very similar to a Physical Therapist in the United States.

Available via Phone and Skype
19 Longley Lane
Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, UK
01484 452500
Website
Main Wiki Page About Georgie Oldfield

Survey Response / Q&A Answers / Forum Profile / DVD and CD
Miracles of Mindbody Medicine article
Information on the Stress Illness Recovery Practitioner's Association (SIRPA)
Insurance Accepted: Any plan that covers Physiotherapy costs, except BUPA.


Testimonials

Lettuce Dance said, "I eventually went to see Georgie Oldfield in Huddersfield in Yorkshire. It was a bit of a slog getting there, but it was well worth it. (Even filling out the pre-appointment assessment on my family, background and past illnesses was very revealing.)

I visited her in February, and felt an immediate improvement. For me, the fact that she comes from a physiotherapy background, and thoroughly understands the mechanics of one's body, was very helpful.

I chose to do her programme, which I followed in a fairly informal fashion, as I was bogged down with a big work project at the time. The programme included a series of follow-up appointments, which we did via Skype: these were really good. She went to great lengths to help me. I found her sympathetic and professional."




Practitioner Jane ParkinsonJane Parkinson, UKCP (Therapist)
Jane Parkinson is a registered psychoanalytic psychotherapist in the United Kingdom. She trained at the Bowlby Centre and has over twenty years of clinical experience, 7 of those years has involved patients with TMS. In October of 2012, she attended the PPDA Conference: When Stress Causes Pain, where she developed relationships with other TMS practitioners. Parkinson uses an Attachment-based form of psychotherapy that has at its core an understanding of the importance of relationships to human growth and development throughout life. In addition, she works with TMS physician Nick Straiton, and does conduct therapy sessions using Skype.(Source)

Available via Phone and Skype
Brighton, United Kingdom, BN1 3RR
Tel: 01273 739281
Website / Survey Response
Insurance Accepted: Bupa


Additional UK Practitioner
Rachel Stevens


Nicholas Straiton, MBBS (Physician)
Dr. Straiton is an English doctor based in Brighton. He says:
“I am a medical practitioner and registered osteopath who works in the NHS but also has a private practice where I treat patients suffering from musculo-skeletal disorders. For the last ten years I have been working in the NHS for the Back Pain Service at the local hospital. I have always been interested in psychosomatic medicine and a few years ago a psychotherapist colleague introduced me to Dr Sarno's books. His description of the frustration of working in a hospital environment where high tech investigations and treatment strategies fail to alleviate many people suffering from back pain mirrored exactly my own experience . I became fascinated by his approach and eventually went out to New York to sit in at his clinics at the Rusk institute in order to learn first hand the process that he uses to diagnose and treat patients with TMS. This experience was truly valuable and enriching to the degree that I would say that my practice has changed significantly since that time. I believe that many, but not all, of patients suffering with chronic back pain are manifesting emotional distress through a physical symptom and for any long lasting relief to be achieved the factors relevant to this distress need to be recognised and addressed.” (Source)

Available via Phone
1, Glover's Yard, 121, Havelock Road
Brighton, East Sussex BN1 6GN
01273 540303
Survey Response / Website
Insurance Accepted: Most major providers


Additional UK Practitioner
Honora Totman

I just realised I never answered your question, I am from Birmingham UK so am a Brit. Thanks for all the information you sent, am very appreciative

Helen