Hello, I just need an advice, I have pain in both of my knees for 4 years!I been having a lot of stress due to my marriage , and sometimes my family had said is probably the stress but I dont know, I had read all Sarno books, Dr Schubiner, Alan Gordon, Dan Buglio, I understand the concept but my pain is so real and doesnt go away, only when I had another pain in my body is been away, back pain, tooth pain , a flu, but as soon as this pains goes away it comes back, the pain is walking and standing and the long I stand hurts more, I am scared , I am sad , I have to take care of my children and I am always suffering looking for a place to seat , all this is making me think is structural, I dont see much success stories with knee pain so I dont know what to think anymore , I am anxious , I have to work, I am a teacher , I just feel so sad,
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Alan has completed the new Pain Recovery Program. To read or share it, use this updated link: https://www.tmswiki.org/forum/painrecovery/
Cactusflower
Beloved Grand Eagle
Hey @Sunrise1
Not only is having a family, being a worrier, a person with anxiety, and marriages stressful, so is being a teacher - especially in these times. I am a retired teacher, I get it! There are many success stories dealing with knees.
Here's one
and here's another
and here's a physical therapist explaining why knee pain is more related to stress than to anything physical
Most important thing all TMS professionals (including Dr. Sarno) suggest is to get it checked out by your Doctor
No matter if there is a physical component or not, dealing with your stress will decrease symptoms. TMS can stick around in one place for a very long time - it coming or going is not an indicator that is a "structural" issue or not. Typically folks come to this forum and recognize they've dealt with TMS for a long time, and symptoms have "moved" or relocated and have come and gone..and then symptoms showed up again and eventually have found a place you simply feel you can't "ignore". It's got your attention, your anxiety and fear and the symptoms hang out there because they've got your attention, letting you know there's something you need to deal with.
Dr. Sarno says that what you need to deal with is inner rage - others like Schubiner and Schecter add other "hard" or difficult feelings and emotions as well as mindset, internal "self-talk" and conflicting core beliefs within your life - as well as the current feelings of sadness, feeling scared and "suffering" which is physical as well as mental.
Reading the books is one thing, but actually putting their suggestions into action is the way to begin to find a way out. Since you are a mother, I suggest that you might really like to read Nichole Sach's story and her method of journaling she calls "Journalspeak". She was a successful patient and even a protogee of Dr. Sarno ... and after having children she relapsed and learned to turn to some deeper work. The free program on this website (you can find it as the Structured Educational Program, scroll down the TMSWIKI.org page to find the text link) will teach you many skills to deal with TMS symptoms - just do one "lesson" every day (as you can, you have a very busy life - I myself broke up each of the lessons into two days work).
Let us know how it goes!
Not only is having a family, being a worrier, a person with anxiety, and marriages stressful, so is being a teacher - especially in these times. I am a retired teacher, I get it! There are many success stories dealing with knees.
Here's one
and here's another
and here's a physical therapist explaining why knee pain is more related to stress than to anything physical
Most important thing all TMS professionals (including Dr. Sarno) suggest is to get it checked out by your Doctor
No matter if there is a physical component or not, dealing with your stress will decrease symptoms. TMS can stick around in one place for a very long time - it coming or going is not an indicator that is a "structural" issue or not. Typically folks come to this forum and recognize they've dealt with TMS for a long time, and symptoms have "moved" or relocated and have come and gone..and then symptoms showed up again and eventually have found a place you simply feel you can't "ignore". It's got your attention, your anxiety and fear and the symptoms hang out there because they've got your attention, letting you know there's something you need to deal with.
Dr. Sarno says that what you need to deal with is inner rage - others like Schubiner and Schecter add other "hard" or difficult feelings and emotions as well as mindset, internal "self-talk" and conflicting core beliefs within your life - as well as the current feelings of sadness, feeling scared and "suffering" which is physical as well as mental.
Reading the books is one thing, but actually putting their suggestions into action is the way to begin to find a way out. Since you are a mother, I suggest that you might really like to read Nichole Sach's story and her method of journaling she calls "Journalspeak". She was a successful patient and even a protogee of Dr. Sarno ... and after having children she relapsed and learned to turn to some deeper work. The free program on this website (you can find it as the Structured Educational Program, scroll down the TMSWIKI.org page to find the text link) will teach you many skills to deal with TMS symptoms - just do one "lesson" every day (as you can, you have a very busy life - I myself broke up each of the lessons into two days work).
Let us know how it goes!
Thank you
for your response, what I dont understand is if I need to fix all my problems to feel better!
and is not easy , I take it day by day , all my family live out of the country, I been praying, getting advice, I am a worrier , very much! do I meed to change? I try but is not easy I used to excercise so much , run, go for walks because it feels good to me but now I dint do much because it hurts and I an afraid to hurt myself more, I been to the doctor , xrays look fine, bloodwork is fine, I have another appointment soon but doctors had said it could be this or that, is so confusing, I am
going to try to see a TMS doctor in New Jersey, I think that will help me, is the doubt , but recently I got this severe back pain for
6 weeks and it went away out of nowhere immediately follow pain in my knees again! very strange, Thank you for respond and give me hope, I will
look into those videos and also the program,
Thanks again
for your response, what I dont understand is if I need to fix all my problems to feel better!
and is not easy , I take it day by day , all my family live out of the country, I been praying, getting advice, I am a worrier , very much! do I meed to change? I try but is not easy I used to excercise so much , run, go for walks because it feels good to me but now I dint do much because it hurts and I an afraid to hurt myself more, I been to the doctor , xrays look fine, bloodwork is fine, I have another appointment soon but doctors had said it could be this or that, is so confusing, I amgoing to try to see a TMS doctor in New Jersey, I think that will help me, is the doubt , but recently I got this severe back pain for
6 weeks and it went away out of nowhere immediately follow pain in my knees again! very strange, Thank you for respond and give me hope, I will
look into those videos and also the program,
Thanks again
Cactusflower
Beloved Grand Eagle
1. Don’t talk about your pain with anyone anymore.
2. “fix” is not the word. There’s technically noting “wrong” with you if a doctor clears you from structural issues. You need to do the work Dr. Sarno lays out for us in his books. The SEP will help you.
The TMS doctor in New Jersey will be a great experience. You can wait and see what they say if you like. They will give you instruction on how they think you should proceed, what works for their patients.
The biggest thing is to stop talking about your symptoms with anyone except the doctors.
A good book for worrying and anxiety is any book by Claire Weekes. She tells you exactly how to deal with these thoughts.
Watch the videos and listen to the TMS doctor. It’s wonderful you can get to see someone!
2. “fix” is not the word. There’s technically noting “wrong” with you if a doctor clears you from structural issues. You need to do the work Dr. Sarno lays out for us in his books. The SEP will help you.
The TMS doctor in New Jersey will be a great experience. You can wait and see what they say if you like. They will give you instruction on how they think you should proceed, what works for their patients.
The biggest thing is to stop talking about your symptoms with anyone except the doctors.
A good book for worrying and anxiety is any book by Claire Weekes. She tells you exactly how to deal with these thoughts.
Watch the videos and listen to the TMS doctor. It’s wonderful you can get to see someone!
Ismail.2025
Newcomer
Hi all I been diagnosed with Degenerative disc disease about a year ago I get back spasm occasionally over the last four months it's been getting worse where I've had more frequent back spasms I have been to physio and they gave me exercises to do which I have done but my problem is I still fear that pain of back spasm to the point where I could only sit on certain chairs and I have not sat on my comfortable leather sofas for about one year I came across the book on TMS by Dr soro and it got me very interested there was one time the first time I went to physio or rather should I say I went to a Cairo practitioner if I told him I'm getting back spasms and the first thing that he said to me to stop thinking about it he done the massage and he done the other various things that he does that day came home I stopped thinking that I'm going to get a back spasm and remarkably for the whole like week I did not get no back spasm when I did get the back spasm I did not fear it just like he told me but after some time it comes and goes the pain but after some time the back spasm came again and I started to fear again doing certain movements so I just take painkillers every day but I don't have a lot of pain I just take the painkillers in case I get pain because of the fear of the pain and the pain is not that bad I don't have any pain that goes to my leg only just above my buttocks that is where the pain is the lower back and the pain is for two seconds
feduccini
Beloved Grand Eagle
No, you don't need to fix it all to recover from TMS. On the contrary, you need to accept it better, avoid rush this process, and have achievable goals from that, like the Serenity Prayer (grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference).
You're always changing. There are parts of you that will be left behind as you recover. We TMSers tend to have an identity that dwells in pain (victimization, negative bias, anxiety, need of control, impostor syndrome, internalized rage etc.). But it's not who we really are. Those are just defense mechanisms. By noticing these patterns you slowly change how you see yourself, it's inevitable. This may or may not bring a sense of not belonging in the world, sometimes called as "ego death", but it's just a cocoon phase.
JanAtheCPA
Beloved Grand Eagle
@Ismail.2025, it would be better if you navigated to the Support subforum and start your own thread instead of using a thread started by someone else.
Please try to use sentences with capital letters and periods and commas, and perhaps paragraphs so that your post is easier for people to read.
Finally, if you want help, you need to tell us what kind of help you want, or ask a specific question.
Please try to use sentences with capital letters and periods and commas, and perhaps paragraphs so that your post is easier for people to read.
Finally, if you want help, you need to tell us what kind of help you want, or ask a specific question.
Ismail.2025
Newcomer
Ok thank you