Stomach Issues & TMS

[TrustIt]

Well I have been aware of TMS for about 8 years. I was dealing with crippling health anxiety before the back issue started.

I wasted a huge amount of time getting fixated on the worry of where the pain was coming from...was it structural or was it the neuroma? Basically I no longer worry about this and just apply the TMS principles and find this makes a big difference. I do notice SO many discrepancies with the back pain and it makes little sense.

Regarding the dizziness and daily headaches I woke up one morning and basically this went on for about a year...it was literally every day. It was like the traditional derealisation/depersonalisation where i just felt like I was living in a haze and floating along...this suddenly stopped totally out of the blue and was directly replaced with the IBS type symptoms and stomach gurgling and burning.

TBH, I was convinced that the upper scope would show gastritis or an ulcer but it was clear so it appears to be the usual functional dyspepsia thing as for the bowels they are still gurgling and stuff but nothing untoward was discovered. What was interesting recently was that we went on holiday on a cruise and for the first couple of days everything was the same but on the third day I felt totally fine, no rumbling or grumbling, no faux stomach pains, stool movements perfectly fine etc etc...all during this time I was eating exactly what I wanted and drinking alcohol which I rarely do at home. This went on the reminder of the holiday and I was excellent for about 8 days...I got home and within 48 hours the gurgling started back up and normal service resumed.

I've read TGPD which is great. TBH, I've read basically every book about TMS ever written but I came to the point where I just felt I had to commit and crack on rather than just research constantly...that is basically the point I'm at now.

Oh huckleberry... my story is so similar! I have gone thru almost every symptom you have...dizziness that wasn't really dizzyness, just a surreal spacey feeling that would come and go. Headaches. Back pain from a sneeze I thought was an injury. As I read TGPD, all those things just went away. THEN! Digestive issues popped up. Severe gurgling, bloating, varying toilet visits, gas and off and on pain from gas. Have been thru awful health anxiety googling everything...reading tms info has brought me back to sanity. I went thru a year of very restricted dieting that did no good and way too much $ spent on experimental suppliments. So much money is now being made on all the labels and fixes out there. Webinars, books, protocols, programs...aargh! So many have digestive issues these days. I don't wonder since the world is a VERY sressful place right now especially. Plus most people do eat horrible diets. All the practitioners are jumping on the wagon.

The digestive issues are all that is left of my tms symptoms thanks to Steve Ozanich, Dr. Sarno and the kind folks on this forum.

Here is my suggestion as it is what is working for me. Stop trying to find the perfect label for it. IBS as we know is just a name they use for something with no apparent physical cause. It isn't a real thing anyway. I am improving day by day. I have let go of my fear... and it was extreme at one time... of food and eat what i want now and for the pleasure of it. That is important! Before, I ate with apprehention and stress. Why wouldn't one have problems eating like this?!!
So hang in there. Look at your anxiety first and keep telling your brain that it doesn't need to find a name for something that isn't wrong in the first place. Keep me posted!

 

[TrustIt]

Cheers Walt. Yeah, the PPI that the GP prescribed is for excess stomach acid the theory being that stress/anxiety causes more acid to be made.

Had a really crappy day with this today. Stomach has been rumbling and growling all day and belly has felt really bloated and uncomfortable but not painful. I feel like I need a good burp but nothing wants to come up at all really. Just concerned how long this has been going on for as my understanding of IBS was a waxing and waning flare type thing whereas for me this has been pretty constant for months now. anyone else with a similar experience?

What I recently learned is that anxiety creates adrenalin and adrenalin decreases oxygen in the stomach and decreased oxygen, as we know, causes pain. Voila! TMS! This is helping me worry less about the ibs symptoms (mostly) and look more at the anxiety which I also am dealing with. I call that loop a culdesac from hell. I am getting a handle on it but all this mess in the world right now is not helping ANY of us! I'm done with doctors helping me at this point. I've seen them all, and they offered me the same things they offered you, along with xanax which I will not take.

 

[TrustIt]

Frustration!!! I have read all the books and come often to this forum but am seeing fewer and fewer posts. I hope it is still alive and well supported because it is desperately needed I think. My issue is digestion and anxiety. It's a loop. I am bored with food and still have some fear around it like it may be something I'm eating that's causing the pain and discomfort. I have nothing going on in my life that is obviously stressful, it just seems there for no reason.
So yesterday I had an extraordinary day! I felt the best I've felt in years. Motivated, lots of energy, happy and completely symptom free. It was wonderful. What happened?? I thought I had finally gotten the relief so many talk about here...a final acceptance. I had overcome my tms...I can't describe the ecstatic feeling I got to enjoy for many hours. Then this morning I'm right back in the old bullshit! Excuse the term but I'm so upset, It feels cruel that my mind would tease me like that. I do know this happens with tms but if anyone can offer an encouraging word even if it's been said a million times, I could use it right now. I've read every post about stomach issues and anxiety here I believe.

 

[Rene100]

Hi all.....a devestating life event caused my gut/bowels to become "animals in my body" and ive never been the same. Gastritis...crohns like symptoms...and last year...NOISES SO LOUD in my gut like "boiling water" or water dripping sounds" i cant eat or drink in public. I know its from acute anxiety as it happened the moment the event happened. But now....its triggered constantly by ANY stress no matter how small. If i do deep breathing...read Dr Sarno or get my .ind off it...it diminishes but never truly goes. I believe my subconscious triggered my entire digestive tract to be hyperactive soy mind would "not go to that place" where my agony is. Many times i feel the full curvature of my intestines as food travels through... that's how sensitive it is. Im going back for scopes but they never find anything much...sometimes a bit inflammation but docs say im clear. I believe as Dr Sarno say.....there no restrictions to what a mind will do to stop you from addressing debilitating emotional pain...rage..anger etc. Any of you had same intense gastro issues?

 

[riv44]

Well, it has been a long time since I have been to this forum. Sorry I have been missing in action. My back issues resolved enough and I am doing vigorous walking instead of the gym (pandemic related- no gym for me) but I am completely bamboozled by gastrointestinal issues. I have gastritis, and upper and lower gut problems. I know it's a Mind-Body issue. (TMS is something different- it means oxygen deprivation to the muscles) but I am trying to balance medical realities with what I know from my Sarno work. All my doctors give credit to MBS and the role of stress, but are concerned with real structural damage. I have cancelled a "gastric emptying study" (where you eat irradiated scrambled eggs and they spend 3 hours calculating motility) because I know it will give me no useful information. I get heartburn after most things and have been told to eat high fiber, low fiber, and whatever else. I bloat after meals. I love my GI doctor, but you know, the testing. The thing I meant to say is that I had a serious eating disorder over 40 years ago, and the gastric damage often shows up decades later in former bulimics. And yes, trauma and anxiety were at the root of all of these things, but at this point I throw my hands up. I am trying to work on the present, as the past to me is like, well- warmed over scrambled eggs. I try to remember to take all the heartburn and constipation medications, and also know that the dietary restrictions are keeping me focused on the wrong thing. I am trying to work through trauma by finding my voice now--there's not much more I can do with the past. I refuse to pathologies myself. So my thought now is that MindBody disorders and physical damage can go hand in hand. I can't mentalist the heartburn away. If I eat a minimal breakfast and then do my modern dance class (on Zoom, a lifesaver) I WILL get heartburn, badly. It just is what it is. I know it may become something else, but I would rather take antacids than have chronic back pain.

 

[riv44]

I'm still here, and hope the forum is doing well. I have too many things I am involved in these days, among them advocating for Safe Injection Facilities for people who use drugs. My city is getting really close to establishing one. I am on the Board of a Group Therapy Association, and it is also a serious mess. I still maintain my private practice on ZOOM. At the beginning of the pandemic I had bacterial pneumonia and "presumptive Covid, and had 3 days in the hospital. I checked myself out AMA, and recovered at home in bed for a month watching the whole Get Smart original tv show. I'm fine now, except a cough that strained my muscles. But I'm ok and I hope you are all safe and well.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

Whew, @riv44! It's wonderful to see you again after a long time, but I'm sorry you're struggling so much. I'm there with you in this shithole of a year - sudden-onset RA, which I'm convinced is 100% the result of stress, because nothing else really makes sense (I'm too old, and no one on either side of my family ever had an autoimmune condition). So I'm being a good patient and protecting my joints and heart with the medication, but I'm also trying (and it's not easy) to practice mindfulness and self-nurturing as well as exercise, which is hard when the fatigue hits. There are so many distractions (including various volunteer activities, one of which became super-stressful thanks to the pandemic) getting in the way, but I experience small glimmers of progress.

Here's hoping that 2021 will be brighter and better for the world in so many ways. I wish success for you too - keep us posted, okay?

~Jan

 

[riv44]

Sure thing. I am not struggling terribly. I will update you some more after my husband and I watch a movie. Happy New Year.
Rivkah

 

[Rene100]

Whew, @riv44! It's wonderful to see you again after a long time, but I'm sorry you're struggling so much. I'm there with you in this shithole of a year - sudden-onset RA, which I'm convinced is 100% the result of stress, because nothing else really makes sense (I'm too old, and no one on either side of my family ever had an autoimmune condition). So I'm being a good patient and protecting my joints and heart with the medication, but I'm also trying (and it's not easy) to practice mindfulness and self-nurturing as well as exercise, which is hard when the fatigue hits. There are so many distractions (including various volunteer activities, one of which became super-stressful thanks to the pandemic) getting in the way, but I experience small glimmers of progress.

Here's hoping that 2021 will be brighter and better for the world in so many ways. I wish success for you too - keep us posted, okay?

~Jan

 

[Rene100]

So my post doesnt warrant a reply? Thanks

 

[JanAtheCPA]

@Rene100 - the only observation I can really offer is that intense or mild (and I've certainly had relatively mild GI issues that are obviously TMS) I suspect that have answered the question yourself:

I believe as Dr Sarno say.....there no restrictions to what a mind will do to stop you from addressing debilitating emotional pain...rage..anger etc.

However, if you have an urgent question that you really want an answer to from people with the same symptoms, we recommending starting a new thread. Posting on an existing thread that's been going for a while and has become somewhat free-ranging won't necessarily result in a personal response!

 

[riv44]

Rene, These posts are all responses to you, though not specifically, but we are resonating with your symptoms. . I am concerned that you feel rejected and take it personally, which may be part of what causes you pain. Maybe. I am not making pronouncements about you, just struck that you feel ignored.. DOn't give up. I am not on here much any more, but like to check in. I am struggling with gastritis and esophagitis, and no medical regimen works- surprise. I amtrying to hold the idea that it is psychological when I know there is some physical damage. Or I think there is. But Sarno did cure my debilitating back pain, and I learned that spasms would go away if I didn't freak out over them. I go on rigorous walks and dance twice a week. A person I know who uses a walker said I could not have had "real" pain if I can dance. She didn't see me lying on the floor in agony, or having to ride a golf cart at one of my daughter's graduation, while all these older people power walked ahead. Do things to calm yourself and write about what you are feeling. That's my reply. We can't help everyone specifically within a short time period, but perhaps one of the Saturday checkins might be helpful to you.

 

[riv44]

What Jan said- I can feel the range and anger at feeling ignored, and yes, starting a new thread would get you a more immediate response, especially as a newbie.

 

[Rene100]

Dear all above....great advice....and i appreciate it!!!! Yes next time start new thread.....im 64 & not too good at technology so i appreciate your advice...its almost NYE so Happy New Year to all!!! Ps - Riv44.....i know re your pain....i had almost seizures few yrs ago i cdnt walk....that before Sarno.....i studied his work...seizures disappeared in about 2 weeks fyi

 

[fridaynotes]

I too, suffered from chronic back pain that completely went away after reading dr sarno’s book. and then a few years later acid reflux came about! it took a while to fully realize that it was TMS, but eventually it went away and neutralized when I came to the deep conclusion that it was TMS. only now recently is my shoulder really acting up, mimicking what seems like a slight rotator cuff issue. for a few weeks I was really panicked about it thinking that I wouldn’t be able to continue my career as an artist. but then it dawned upon me that it is classic TMS! since I realized that, the pain has begun to diminish as I start to really focus on what kind of emotions might be causing it. TMS recovery really is a multi layered journey!

 

[Rene100]

I too, suffered from chronic back pain that completely went away after reading dr sarno’s book. and then a few years later acid reflux came about! it took a while to fully realize that it was TMS, but eventually it went away and neutralized when I came to the deep conclusion that it was TMS. only now recently is my shoulder really acting up, mimicking what seems like a slight rotator cuff issue. for a few weeks I was really panicked about it thinking that I wouldn’t be able to continue my career as an artist. but then it dawned upon me that it is classic TMS! since I realized that, the pain has begun to diminish as I start to really focus on what kind of emotions might be causing it. TMS recovery really is a multi layered journey!

Funny enough... My shoulder also start act up recently....sounds nuts but i had to keep yelling to myself...to my subconscious...OH NO YOU DONT!!!!!! after 3 days...im fine........

 

[Nana]

Hi,

Talk about ironic, I google stomach/back pain rumbling/TMS and came across this post. Yes, googling tends to increase my pain Dramatically as I start to worry that I have every imaginable awful scary disease out there. Your symptoms sound very similar to mine, and yes I too have been thru every imaginable test out there. My Dr stated "Well, you have had what we call the Million Dollar work up and everything comes back as "unremarkable" I am not sure what else we can do for you...." The only thing that has ever shown up was a mild disc herniation in my thoracic area, but it was right at the point where my back pain originates T-8/T-9. I was very close to getting a micro discectomy but I just don't think that will solve the issue.

I have purchased and read Dr. Sarno's book however I haven't started journaling yet. I know that is a big part of the program. My issues all started about 7 years ago when I was hit with the perfect storm of issues. and stress. The company I worked for was going out of business (Capital markets firm) we had just bought a new house, our first child was starting college and I was told I had elevated liver enzymes due to my gallbladder. I didn't fit the normal profile of Female, Fat and forty. I am a fit male who just turned 40. I also was not a heavy drinker, which they said would have had a different enzyme that would have been elevated. Flash forward, I had my gall bladder out and my ALT remained elevated. They couldn't pin point the reasoning so I actually had a liver biopsy, which once again came back normal.

I furiously searched every website out there trying to determine what could possibly cause this. I think this was the first big mistake as I now can see that my current back pain started to mimic some of the scarier ones out there, which was chronic pancreatitis. This pain showed up after 6 months when i got the results of my liver biopsy showing it was normal yet my enzymes remained elevated. I had also started a new job with a not so friendly high pressure organization (Which I am still employed with) All the tests I had done upper/lower/MRI's Cat-scans/ultrasounds/MRCP (one of which was very invasive where they scope thru your lower intestinal track to look at your pancreas) all came back normal, yet I still get upper left back pain after eating. I have had shots, scopes, even a device that staples to you ear which somehow was supposed to quiet down my sympathetic nervous system. Nothing worked which made the pain worse.

I am still struggling with the pain, and when I first read Dr. Sarno's book I decided to give it a try and just "Ignore the pain" and return to my life before I started this awful journey. At first it seemed to work, I stopped with all of my self imposed dietary restrictions like milk, coffee, chocolate, alcohol (Still haven't gone back to that one yet) but in moderation. However my Sub-conscience is a clever asshole and I believe he is starting to creep doubt back into my mind, which is where I am right now. It sounds like you are as well. Even though I have never seen a single shred of evidence stating I have anything scary, somewhere deep inside my tissue terrorist is insisting that it I do.

Anyway, sorry for the long post but I do want you to know that I feel that allot of this is truly due to anxiety and TMS seems like a plausible explanation however I do need to further convincing, which I am sure will come with more education. Hope you are feeling better.

how r u doing? i also had my gallbladder removed .