To run or not to run

[cherrybomb]

Hello guys, can anyone tell me is the structured edu program. based on the Sarno lectures he gave to his patients ?
Does anyone have access to these lectures ?
I'm very eager to start the programme but think I need help in overcoming fear of increased pain . I've stuck little affirmations all around my home - "I am breaking the pain habit, activity is freeing me , just do it!" and so on but the TMS is very severe I have a diagnosis of fibro and have just been offered morphine patches for pain levels it's hell ! But I am getting better !

Should I just throw caution to the wind and go for a run ? (not ran in 4 yrs) or should I watch the lectures read more stuff ??

Thanks in advance
Cx

 

[Forest]

Hi Cherrybomb,

It really depends on you, and where you are at. If you feel really confident and want to run, then go for it. Of course, if you haven't ran in four years, you may need to build up your stamina and strength before you run a marathon. You could always start out by walking/running around the block, just to see how it feels. There is a great Sarno quote from Healing Back Pain where he says, "Perhaps the most important (but most difficult) thing that patients must do is to resume all physical activity, including the most vigorous." Being active can be hard at first, but there really is nothing that builds up your confidence in the approach and in yourself than physical activity. I know for me, exercising, and even walking more, helped me more than pretty much anything else.

The Structured Program on our site is not based on Sarno's lectures. It is made up of a variety of techniques that other TMSers used to get better. It was written entirely by peers, for peers. If you are interested in the lectures then check out the interview with Nicole Sachs, LCSW. She was actually on Sarno's Alumni Panel and shared her own success story. It is very moving! There are a lot of other success stories in our media section that are worth to watch.

 

[cherrybomb]

Hey thanks forest I'll check those out . Yes I want to do vigorous activity , just do it . But when I tried before pre TMS knowledge it sent me back to an unbearably physically painful place . I'm not sure what my next step would be if that happened again . have others gotten worse with activity then to get better ? I'm confident it's TMS but Im fearful of any programming just cranking pain up as in the past after exertion .

I think the structured program here is a great idea .

Perhaps I should see a TMS doctor I think probably getting officially diagnosed with it would be a massive confidence boost x

 

[BruceMC]

Hi Cherrybomb: I walked and hurt for quite a while until one evening I thought my TMS sciatic pain had subsided enough to see what breaking my gate and running a little would do. Still hurt, but not really that bad, so I went back to walking, but mostly riding my bike. Now, it hurts a bit walking, but riding the bike is just great. No pain at all afterwards and much more mobility too. I think, based on my own experience, that gradually returning to full pain-free activity is the best route. Whenever you do some form of exercise that doesn't make you hurt afterwards, by all means emphasize that kind of activity. In this game, success builds on success. Also, try to be spontaneous instead of bull-headed about your exercise regime. When it feels right and you want to, do it. Don't set up a structure where you're constantly trying to monitor improvement. What Alan Gordon says about "outcome independence" is really, really true. Improvement will occur when you aren't aware of it and watching it all the time. Like three months ago, I hobbled from one weight station to another, with stiff legs and awkward movements. Now, I notice that I flow normally around the weight room, moving around the machines and getting on and off the benches. The point being that I never noticed the improvement as it was occurring, but it was happening nonetheless. This may sounds really mumbo jumbo, but you have to realize that you're dealing with deeply repressed emotional patterns in your own psychology, not structural problems in your anatomy. TMS symptoms recede according to their own time-line, not as a result of willed activity. But you can't hurt yourself trying to run, so try it and see what happens. Then, try again when you're not thinking about improving or getting instant results.

Of course, this is all based on my own experience, which may not conform to your own. But I believe others before have noticed these things too. I should note too that you shouldn't go back to physical exercise, as Dr Sarno insists, until you pain is gone or almost gone. I still have pain, but it's only a memory of what it was like when my TMS was acute. So there's a fine line you have to walk until you think the pain has subsided enough to let you resume exercise.

 

[gailnyc]

I'm pretty sure Dr. Sarno says to go back to physical activity *once your pain is gone or nearly gone*. If you go back too soon your fear might cause the pain to increase, which will cause your fear to increase, and the cycle is started again.

You mention in another post that you are nearly housebound. Why not start with smaller steps than going on a run? Take a walk around the block. After doing this for a week, your confidence will be increased (and perhaps your pain decreased) and you can take a longer walk, working up to a run.

 

[EricMd]

I was convinced after reading Sarno's books I had TMS on a rational basis. I was fortunate that I had some temporary relief just from reading which helped me believe I had TMS. Unfortunately, change takes time to sink in. I have questioned my belief in my TMS at times. I tripped walking out of work a few weeks ago, and the first thing I thought about was my back. I guess my belief was not as complete as I thought it was. I would start slow and build on your successes. I was very excited by the diagnosis of TMS because I did not have to fear that I would hurt my back by lifting or activity. I was soon doing the activities that "triggered" my pain in the first place. Good luck. There is a 5k (or more) in your future.

 

[Stella]

Believe it or not my physical therapist helped me last summer. She introduced me to Sarno. I told her I just had to walk. She helped give me the confidence. She said walk slow, shorten your stride, walk on a flat surface, stretch... today I walk 4-6 miles each day very fast, up hills and down. I feel like I am walking on a cloud. You can do this too.

 

[cherrybomb]

thanks guys,
all good tips, and a good reminder bruce about not tracking results i have been doing that! my pain is lesss severe but i am on tons pain meds still and yes have spent 4 yrs stuck in house most days. But im really challenging my fear, i went to a friends house for food the other night (not done this in yrs) and although i felt bloody awful @ the start of night i ignored it and went anyway and it eased! i even walked home

symptoms though are changing too lots more pins needles, dizziness, twitching and it moving around my body i have never noticed these before, i know its my mind trying its hardest to distract me but i just try and focus on a part of me that feels great x

 

[BruceMC]

I tripped walking out of work a few weeks ago, and the first thing I thought about was my back.

EricMD, I've noticed that a lot of my TMS back pain-sciatica episodes have begun with exactly that kind of tripping you experienced. I think it's because "drop foot" is a very low-grade TMS symptom associated with those conditions. It can signal that a TMS episode is beginning. IOWs: The trip doesn't cause the subsequent episode of back pain as much as it is really the first symptom that the psycho-social-biological condition is starting to manifest due to stressors building up in your life. Interesting how it occurred when you were "walking out of work" too. Often such little matters that usually go unnoticed can give you clues about the psychological symbolism behind the onset of TMS.

 

[gailnyc]

symptoms though are changing too lots more pins needles, dizziness, twitching and it moving around my body i have never noticed these before, i know its my mind trying its hardest to distract me but i just try and focus on a part of me that feels great x

Ugh, yes, this is so hard, but remember that when your pain changes shape it's the symptom imperative and it means you are doing well. Also it's more evidence that it is indeed TMS.

Hang in there!