Symptoms resolved only thirty minutes after using medicated cream?

[GhostlyMarie]

Hello again! I am back with another question about the behaviors of TMS symptoms (although you would think by now that I would already know how this goes but when you’re in it, it’s hard to view it from a third party perspective), haha.

okay, so. I am no stranger to TMS. I’m pretty sure I have been experiencing TMS for my entire life but I didn’t happen upon the concept of TMS until I developed pelvic pain in the form of Pudendal Neuralgia, Interstitial Cystitis, and Vulvodynia (all throwaway diagnoses that I never accepted as mine but were given to me by doctors and PTs who couldn’t figure me or my pain out). I have had all kinds of symptoms that have resolved and now I only have one symptom that comes and goes but doesn’t bother me anymore… UNTIL HALLOWEEN.

Recently, I had quit my high stress job and started at a moderately stressful workplace (from corporate back to customer service during the holidays, yay me!) and started to again get a nagging symptom (itching) that I have had in the past. The job change was stressful and I had been processing the things I went through while being at that job which I shouldn’t have had to go through. Anyway, the symptom came and went, I thought nothing of it. This happened on Halloween and then again on thanksgiving (symptom, I see you). I noticed it would only crop up on days that I had off or wore loose pants, but would settle down or go away completely if I wore jeans or was at work (didn’t make sense, I’m onto it). However, three days ago, the symptom came back, it stayed and got progressively worse over the past three days until today where the itch became a 10/10 discomfort. Oh man, I wanted to gnaw my skin off, it was so uncomfortable! Intuitively I feel like this situation was an extinction burst because I had been doing really good and when I’d have symptoms pop up, I wasn’t paying attention or dwelling on them; I went about my day until I realized they’d disappear. But today, it was severe. So, I thought “maybe I have a fungal thing going on?”, which I went to my cupboard, got an antifungal cream and put some on the affected area. I also had myself a good cry because I was so mad about this symptom cropping up after thinking I was better; I was sobbing and telling the sensation I didn’t need it and I don’t need my body to protect me from my emotions. After 30 minutes, the sensation reduced from a 10/10 to a 2/10, and three hours later, it’s gone. Like it never happened. After three days of fading in and out of severity, it just went poof. Vanished. Even when I touch the area, it feels normal.

now, I’m no doctor, but my logic is telling me that if I had inflammation, an infection, or a skin issue of some sort, it wouldn’t just vanish after one use of an over the counter antifungal cream. I’m having this feeling of “I knew it” and I wish I didn’t use the cream. Maybe if I had waited longer after my emotional release, the sensations would have let up lol When I was somatic tracking last night, the itch was jumping around from place to place so that should have been my clue.

however! My question is, is this a common occurrence with TMS? To use a medication and see symptom relief in a very short period of time? Not because I need help believing but because I am fascinated lol and I think this discussion may help others to add to their evidence list whilst going through their healing journey!

 

[Rabscuttle]

I wouldn’t look into it too much, be happy it’s gone and proud of yourself for the work you put into achieve this. You’re right anti fungal creams don’t work that fast, maybe you confused the nerves, or maybe it was all just a coincidence and it was on its way out. Regardless you got some major evidence!

awesome work!

 

[BloodMoon]

Some anti-fungal creams have an ingredient in them that stops itching pretty fast like that, but it would usually need to be reapplied to keep the itching down while the other ingredients in the cream, that work more slowly, deal with treating the fungus and any inflammation that the fungus is causing. Other anti-fungal creams don't have a specific ingredient to quell itching as the ingredient that deals with the fungus/inflammation has the side effect of relieving the itching too, but that relief from the itching usually takes a few days (not 30 minutes). So, you're right, it doesn't sound like you had a fungal infection/inflammation.

 

[GhostlyMarie]

So, you're right, it doesn't sound like you had a fungal infection/inflammation.

I have a weird history with stuff like this happening. When I used to get chronic headaches, they’d go away ten minutes after taking ibuprofen or when I had knee pain, icy hot would relieve my symptoms completely in under 20 minutes. So this happening made me super suspicious too. My nervous system just does weird stuff and my doctors think I’m crazy. Haha. They hate to see me coming.

 

[JanAtheCPA]

I wish I didn’t use the cream. Maybe if I had waited longer after my emotional release, the sensations would have let up

Maybe. But so what? Seriously, who the f*** cares how you brought your immune system response back to normal? You're the only one beating yourself up for this!

The way I look at it, and also the way I do this work, is that you simply harnessed the power of the placebo effect to guide your brain into calming down the particular nervous system neurons or pathways that it erroneously employed in a moment of stress.

Remember that the process is that your brain needed to quickly create a familiar and distressing symptom which would send you scuttling back to the safety of your cave and out of whatever life-threatening danger you sensed that must have caused your stress in the first place.

Except we know that's not what really happens. Our modern stresses don't keep traveling past our hiding place and leave us in safety, because they never existed as tangible physical threats to begin with. They keep lurking in our thoughts so that our rumination keeps the stress going and we remain safely cowering in fear.

BUT, you didn't let that happen! And when you recognized the value of the emotional release that you had, you simply helped out your brain by using this benign substance to take the edge off and to visualize how and where to calm down the immune system response almost immediately so that you could actually absorb the emotional experience without distraction.

It's a tool, that's all. I say that anything that temporarily takes the edge off while you recover your equanimity is worth employing. After all, you've advanced well beyond the days when you might have kept applying the cream out of fear, right?

It's all good!

 

[GhostlyMarie]

After all, you've advanced well beyond the days when you might have kept applying it out of fear, right?

It's all good!

Yes! Exactly. This is one thing along my journey that I still sometimes grapple with which is the “all or nothing” approach where I, for some reason, am hard on myself if I employ things like using a cream to influence the placebo effect. I am currently healing from this in therapy but it definitely got the best of me today! After I used the cream, I felt bad about myself, thinking things like “I resorted back to using medication, I’m a failure”, “I’m teaching my brain there’s something to fix by using this cream”, and started overthinking it. After some reflection, meditation and self compassion work, I am back to my baseline of knowing that I am okay and I did what I thought was best to help soothe my hypersensitive nervous system. I totally agree though! Who cares that I used the cream? It worked and I’ve been completely fine for the rest of the day. My brain fell back into safety and I am grateful for that!

 

[JanAtheCPA]

I keep diclofenac gel on hand for occasional RA flares in my hands or wrists, but I use far less than suggested, I usually only apply it once to take the immediate edge off my very short-lived flares, and my rheumatologist assured me I could totally ignore the instructions to keep using it for two weeks. It takes me long after the supposed expiration date to finish a tube, at which point the last doses could very well be 100% placebo

 

[Fal]

If i was a doctor and i told you that this cream or tablet was going to take the pain or issue away (even if its not even a real tablet or cream) i can guarentee you it will go away because YOU think its helping you. The placebo effect...

 

[BloodMoon]

When I used to get chronic headaches, they’d go away ten minutes after taking ibuprofen or when I had knee pain, icy hot would relieve my symptoms completely in under 20 minutes.

Reminds me of my mother-in-law who was feeling very depressed after she moved house (for no apparent reason as she wanted to move house and where she moved to was fine)... She didn't want to take prescription meds so she opted to take St John's Wort instead which has anti-depressant properties (I believe that in Germany doctors actually prescribe it for depression, but in the UK it's sold over-the-counter, no prescription required)... 2 days later she wasn't depressed anymore at all -- no one had told her that it takes between 3 to 6 weeks for it to work fully! Placebo effect.