Hi there
@hilbie - indeed, it's been a long time - hard to believe so many years have flown by!
Anyway I guess it's "nice" to be back, or at least I'm very grateful this place is still around
I certainly have conflicting emotions about seeing people with years of success, now coming back in these tough times. And there are a lot, so you are far from alone, believe me. Because we have to acknowledge that these are very tough times indeed, plus I can't even imagine the kinds of pressures that parents experience these days.
Have you gone back to read your old posts and responses? There aren't a lot, and it's great to see your positive responses. I expect you will be pleased to know that
@Ellen is still around with her wonderful advice and support!
he's right that I never heard RA discussed as part of TMS.
In fact, for many years, many prominent TMS doctors (I think even Dr Sarno?) have stated definitively that RA is not TMS.
WELL! I developed sudden-onset, late-in-life (I was 69) RA in 2020, as a result of several extremely dysfunctional stressors just as the pandemic was also contributing to massive worldwide stress. I found myself in
complete disagreement with this mindset, which blatantly writes off the autoimmune conditions as having any relationship to the mindbody connection.
Mind you, I consulted with David Schecter MD after my diagnosis, and he convinced me that I needed to take the medication or risk serious damage to my joints, heart, and possibly brain. In other words, the inflammatory response was a physiological reality and it had to be dealt with medically and ASAP. But he also said he's seen remissions in his TMS patients. And he certainly did not disagree with my belief that my RA was the result of stress. Not my diet, not genetics, and not some mysterious virus. Just good old fight or flight type stress - on massive overdrive.
Since 2020, we've been seeing a little bit of movement in the TMS/PPD community, which is finally starting to accept stress and emotional repression as a significant cause for the autoimmune conditions. Nicole Sachs, LCSW, is one of these practitioners, and she actually interviewed me this year, mostly focusing on my RA experience, and that episode aired on her podcast on June 7th.
Do I see the RA as a TMS failure? Of course - that's human nature. But I'd like to think I've forgiven myself (and I also took steps to push back on the stressors where I could, and eventually, very thankfully, eliminate two of them entirely). I also see my lack of symptoms since 2020 as a success, even though I'm still on a low/average dose of good old methotrexate, with no side effects. The only dietary change that made a noticeable difference was to cut way back on added sugars. I already had a very healthy whole foods diet with almost no red meat and not a lot of other meat (although I do love my dairy). Increasing exercise also makes me feel a lot better (four targeted classes per week in addition to walks, in case anyone is interested).
I would much rather exercise than meditate. I have a suspicion that meditation could actually help me achieve remission, so I'm more likely to be hard on myself for not meditating. That being said, emotional writing (aka journaling) is my go-to technique for setbacks, and it's a powerful one that works every time.
Now I think I need to get back into "recovery" again and to eat a burger as part of that.
Haha, I suffer from "red meat guilt" (both because of long term health warnings and the environmental consequences) but Damn! I do love a good burger every once in a while! Enjoy!
