Puzzle I don’t quite understand...update

So, I’m going on three months of my new job and I love it!! Even though, I still have symptoms, pretty much daily, I don’t fear them anymore. In two weeks, we leave for Thailand and I’ve been doing what I can to stay ahead at work, so when I come back, I don’t have a backlog of stuff to accomplish. That’s been going well with relatively no stress. However, every Tuesday, I end up nauseated. In fact, I have a pattern of my symptoms that, like clockwork, happen every day. Monday, thankully, I don’t have much, but Tuesday is nausea, Wed., right shoulder pain, Thurs., left shoulder or rib pain, and Friday, neck pain. Sat., and Sun., can be a combination, but it’s usually mild. I just keep going, of course, but it’s frustrating and quite simply odd that I have these cycles.

Granted, there is some stress about the trip, my kids, the country, stuff like that, but the nausea usually only happens on a Tuesday. I end up taking ginger, peppermint, sometimes Pepto to get through my work-day. Has anyone dealt with this? I’ve been reading a whole lot on healing trauma. The book “Waking the Tiger” has been quite helpful, because most of my TMS is trauma-related. Still, I’ve never heard of this pattern in TMS. It’s usually a trigger of a traumatic memory or smell, taste, etc...but not a particular day of the week, every week. So, is it wise to talk to my therapist and dig into why it’s been happening on a Tuesday?

Any suggestions would be helpful. I’m not worried, per se, just curious as to what keeps fueling it. I’m really not that anxious, but it will just come out of the blue, anytime during that day. By night, I feel better, and by Wed., it’s gone again. Strange, eh? @plum @Tennis Tom @Steve Ozanich @Ellen @FredAmir @Alan Gordon LCSW

 

Hurray!!!

Jules, don't you think that this is simply about "conditioning" or "triggers" for which you may or may not ever discover the "roots" perfectly. In other words, the pattern has started, and there may now be no real explanation. I think what helps you though is knowing this pattern. I suggest you name each symptom for what it is: TMS in patterns. And reassure yourself that you'll be OK. And gently inquire as you're doing into what might be underlying it. The fact TMS shows up in all these ways on a regular basis makes me think it is pointing to a similar root experience which is camouflaging itself in order to fool or scare you. Rather than 5 different ones for each day of the week!

It seems to me you have made wonderful progress since I was last here in the spring. I am very happy for you.

 

I can't really add anything to Andy's reply. He's totally nailed it. I'm not sure you need do more digging either, but perhaps instead let things rest and allow insights to come if they will. TMS is doing what TMS does and the pattern is another form of distraction (which has been sufficiently successful to bring you here to post). The fact that TMS is behaving so oddly is a sign you have it by the short hairs. Keep on keeping on sweetheart xx

 

When I was a freshman in college, near the end of my first year, the same exact thing happened to me. This was before I knew about TMS, so as you can image, it was very, very distressing. I didn't party, never drank, never smoked, but without fail, every single Sunday night I would get violently ill! Vomiting, etc., the whole nine yards. I think it was an unconscious rebellion against responsibilities, and it worked, because I missed several Monday morning classes. Luckily my teacher was understanding. But it is definitely a matter of conditioning. I've been getting crazy nausea lately for no reason, so I feel your pain my friend.

Best of luck!

 

The others are right! And I guess you know yourself that this upcoming Thailand travel bothers you somehow. At least the fact that you try to be ahead of work bothers you ...
and I also thought: how funny this pattern, almost unbelievable. By the way: weekends are my trigger, Sunday morning the worst.

 

Is it because Sunday morning triggers the fact that work is the next day? This is what I don’t understand for me. I don’t typially have a problem on the weekends, it’s a Tuesday, not even Monday or Sunday. And yes, the Thailand trip does bother me, and the closer I get to the date does increase the symptoms; but, it’s just the fact that the nausea happens on Tuesdays and not any other day, so I’m thinking maybe something traumatic happened to me on a Tuesday that I have yet to processs. (I have processed many traumas already) It just seems weird that it’s never done this before, but I also understand this is a good thing, because it’s reallllly trying hard to distract me, since I no longer fear the symptoms.

 

Jules, my Sunday trigger is that I am not at work ... workaholic like .. Maybe there is a reason why Tuesday you have nausea - maybe not. Maybe just a random patter. And it’s established even mor as a pattern if you investigate into it. Maybe more focus on why this travel is bothering you so much? I can rembember there was an issue with earlier travels. Try to find out what you need to get over it!

 

Well, I think I know what it is now. I just got back from my therapist and she said she thought it was because the weekend allows you to recuperate for Monday, but then Tuesday comes and you realize you have four more days of work to get to the weekend again, and four more days of TMS with work. Also, I noticed the more crutches I have for the nausea, the more nausea I get. I now have an essential oil for nausea, on top of the ginger, peppermint, Zofran, and Pepto. My therapist said I need to reinforce to my brain that vomiting is nothing to fear and to “allow” it to happen if it’s going to. She thought that if I stop all control of it, the brain realizes it’s nothing to fear and it will stop the nausea - especially if I don’t have anything to take to keep perpetuating it.

Also, I am worried about this trip because my husband snores horribly, and we sleep in separate rooms at home, but at the hotel, we will be in the same room. Of course this worries me that I won’t get any sleep and end up resenting him the whole time. My therapist wants me to do exposure theapy for two weeks, so I can get used to the noise when we’re gone. Basically, I would keep my door open and turn on my white noise machine with ear plugs for a few days, then have him in the same room for a few hours, and then a few days after that, have him there for longer, until my brain and ears get used to the noise. I need to learn to tune it out, which is really hard for a PTSD person.

A little nervous about this, but I will try it and then come back and report my experience.

Thanks for your comment.

 

Jules, I'm highlighting this statement of yours because I think it is at the root of most people's lingering tms issues. The fear of the symptom keeps it going and taking or doing things for it feeds the fear.