Hi Lauren,
Facing down and banishing a physical symptom, or even a mental symptom (such as an anxiety attack or a wave of depression) is not easy, but it can be done - with an
enormous effort of will power. I know, because I've done it, and I have done it for all types of sudden-onset and alarming symptoms. But it is HARD. You have to step back, disengage your emotions and especially your fear, in order to to become completely aware of what your primitive brain is trying to do to you. Then you have to make a decision that you are not buying into it, you have to fully commit to that decision, and you have to dig in your heels and fight back no matter how much you just want to give in to the symptom.
Again - been there, done that. I have two short posts that I wrote about two separate incidents that illustrate what worked each time. But I'm not going to lie - it's HARD. Because your brain reeeally wants you to just curl up, or flail around, moan and groan or cry and scream - anything that will keep you distracted from the awful thoughts and the dangerous emotions that it thinks you can't possibly survive acknowledging.
Anyway, I can't explain the process for this any better than I already did in these two posts:
https://www.tmswiki.org/forum/threads/still-working-on-it-recent-successful-incident.5547/#post-32979 (Still working on it - recent successful incident)
https://www.tmswiki.org/forum/bookmarks/608/view-item (Bookmark | TMS Forum (The Mindbody Syndrome))
And mind you, it's ironic, and such a TMS classic, that the one symptom I continue to have the hardest time with is a vague dizziness/brain fog/imbalance sensation. It's not sudden in its onset, it's not overwhelming, and, since I started doing this work, it's not even scary any more - but I started having it several years before I discovered Dr. Sarno and did the emotional work, and I simply seem to be unable to visualize what it feels like to not have it - even though there are actually plenty of times that I don't feel it. But I forget to be aware of those times until it hits again! Anyway, if it gets bad, I get out the pen and paper and I start writing - that almost always uncovers some little thing, and often brings relief. Right now, inspired by the work of
@Nicole J. Sachs LCSW, I'm trying to write a little bit every day, combined with a short meditation every day. Writing is a lot easier for me than meditating!
Good luck
~Jan
