Train ourselves not to be afraid of the pain

Train ourselves not to be afraid of the pain.

How do we do that? By use of the affirmations? Knowing that the pain is caused by your mind? Pain is caused by repressed feelings? Do we ignore the pain, is that not be afraid? Or maybe understanding that yes, there is pain now, but it will get better.

Hope you can help. I'm sure this subject has been approached before, but I do best with steps that I can actually do, and not just statements.

Pain and fear is the hardest for me. Fear that symptoms will come back and be even worse. But, from what I've read... That's putting importance and emphasis on my pain... Something I shouldn't do.

 

Hi Becky,
You are right, the fear piece is big for any number of reasons when dealing with TMS, most of which you are experiencing directly now. And you have some good approaches right off the bat. It is the greatest distraction, greater than pain, according to Dr. Sarno. So in a sense, it is a TMS symptom, and can be approached this way, using "think psychologically:" What would I be feeling if this fear was not present? What am I feeling below this fear right now? Just asking those questions you can appreciate the power or fear's distraction. It isn't easy to feel beneath the fear! Knowing its power to distract may also help you to more easily dismiss it as a distraction.

Some have suggested "cultivating a disinterested stance about the fear." Oh yeah, there's that fear thing again trying to scare me, what else is new?

Observing it, and not getting sucked in is huge, but not easy. This is where meditation and learning to witness can help build the right skills. The ability to witness, feel, and not be engulfed by fear it is an important part of the TMS cure. Learning to observe and not "believe" is the essence of this approach. You can start by watching any thoughts that come up, and not engaging in them, and then work your way to the more difficult ones like anxiety, fear, and the pain itself. This all do-able with practice, and practice is needed.

Here is a great article that explores some methods to use:
http://www.unlearnyourpain.com/blog...ng-and-overcoming-fear/#more-33http://http://

Andy B.