Running as a trigger? What should I do?

[PeoplePleaser1]

So I am an athlete - have been exercising religiously for 20+ years (mostly running, yoga). I first experienced TMS 7 years ago after the birth of my son - lower back pain, bulging discs. I was told at the time that running is 'pounding' and it could hurt my discs and aggravate my pain so I stopped for awhile until I healed. I went back to running after several months of treatment by my chiro (did not know about TMS then...). After my recent TMS flare up, I stopped running for two months and was very sad about it. Really missed it. However, after reading Dr. Sarno's book and diagnosing myself with TMS, I went back to it, slowly, while completing the treatment program online. When I have run with my someone else, I was ok/no issues. But I have been going by myself a bit and when I am alone, I feel some fear which then turns into tension. For example, yesterday, I got up before my husband and kids woke up and thought "Great, some me time. I'll go for a run." Went for several miles and then felt tight/uncomfortable all day - like I took a step back. I guess I felt a twinge and then let my head run wild. I feel like I want to 'push through' and keep running bc ultimately, I know it's just TMS but I'm worried that I still have some fear and bc of that, I'm not making progress (or running is becoming my crutch). I've always depended on exercise as my stress reliever. Not sure what to do - help!

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

Hi, PeoplePleaser 1. One of TMSWiki's super supporters, Steve Ozanich, is a firm believer in the TMS pain healing benefits of exercise.

His book, The Great Pain Deception, tells of his long journey to recovering from his TMS pain. It's a very inspirational book full of great
advice on how exercise can heal us.

The book is being discussed chapter by chapter each Tuesday evening in a 1-hour call-in that you can join at 9 pm eastern time or 8 pm central), by phoning 1-347-817-7654 and then punching in the number 18311499. Eric "Herbie" Watson hosts the chat room
and you will read a posting about it tomorrow at TMSWiki.org/forum. This will be the third session about Ozanich's book, and the two previous sessions can be listened to at the web site about the call-ins. Steve himself called in last week and gave us wonderful personal thoughts on his book and healing through exercise.

So don't give up on running. Steve says the pain will eventually go away. I hope you can find someone to run with. Ask your neighbors or look around for someone else running when you do.

 

[Forest]

One of the most difficult things to overcome in TMS is the fear. We have programmed ourselves for so long to think that we are damaged and that we cannot do certain things. This message is so deeply ingrained in our mind, and it does take some time to overcome it. In my own case, my fear of my symptoms was much worse than my actual symptoms. What kept me from being active was primarily my fear of having a debilitating flare-up of pain.

How did I overcome this? The simple, yet challenging answer, is by accepting that my symptoms were benign. The reason this is and was so helpful is that once I accepted my symptoms were benign, if they flared-up I knew that there was nothing to worry about. The pain did not signal an actual injury, and I was not going to damage myself if I kept going. Sometimes it would increase some, but it always stabilized and eventually it began to gradually reduce.

It is interesting that you are able to run with someone and by symptom free, while running by yourself is more difficult. Perhaps when you are running by yourself you are thinking more, instead of simply being in the moment. Do you find that your mind is running and ruminating over different things when you are running? It may be very helpful to practice mindfulness while you running, by keeping your mind focused entirely on the task at hand and in the present. Notice the way the pavement feels on your feet, the breeze in your face, and the sounds surrounding you. When you can stay focused on the present, you will be distracting your mind from feeling afraid and worrying about what might happen.

 

[PeoplePleaser1]

Thanks Walt and Forest! This is great advice and I actually ran this morning and it was (a little) easier. I keep telling myself this is a process so it will take some time but I have to keep going. I do think my mind goes a little crazy when I'm running by myself so I focus more on the tightness/pain. I like the idea of being mindful during my runs. I am hoping I can continue to build over the next few weeks. Thanks again!

 

[Calum]

Hi peoplepleaser 1, I had some similar issues with running an a twinge in my back (my minor tms symptom). Have you tried positive affermations whilst running? If I experience a twinge I repeat over and over " my back is wonderfully strong, fantastically powerfull and epically enduring" over and over like a mantra until it goes away and usually it does!