God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain

By Eric Watson and Walter Oleksy
Published in 2014
Available at Amazon.com in paperback format and Kindle format

Cover of God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain

Overview

God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain: Proven Techniques and Faith Can Heal You describes Walter Oleksy and Eric Watson's recoveries from TMS (back pain) and the important role faith had in both their journeys. Alternating between Walt and Eric's perspectives, God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain describes in detail both authors' journey battling their chronic back pain from onset to recovery; how faith and spirituality tied into their recoveries; and the techniques the authors used to overcome their TMS.

Introduction: Pain-Free for Life, Meditation Techniques, the "Inner Child"
Eric's Journey - 1: I Get Clobbered / The Fear Factor
Walt's Journey - 1: I, Too, Get Clobbered
Eric's Journey - 2: Acceptance, Affirmations, Awareness, Anxiety, Re-framing and Re-conditioning
Walt's Journey - 2: “It Woiks!” Journaling, Trouble Sleeping? Deep Breathing
Eric's Journey - 3: Acceptance, Awareness, Mindfulness, Knowledge, Stressors, Physical Activity
Walt's Journey - 3: Journaling - 1: “The Good : Old Days”
Eric's Journey - 4: Imaging, Focusing, NLP Swishing, Reconsolidation, Reprogrammed Dreams, Arsenal of Healing, Belief Systems
Walt's Journey - 4: Journaling - 2: “The Girls I Left Behind Me” Laugh It Off, Laughter Yoga, A Sex Break
Eric's Journey - 5: “The Glow of the Faithful” and “The Visit” About Perceptions, Knowledge Therapy, How to Know it's TMS
Walt's Journey - 5: Journaling 3 - “Of Love and Sauerkraut”
Eric's Journey - 6: Law of Attraction, Affirmations, Visualizations, Anxiety and Panic Attacks, Time-Line Therapy
Walt's Journey - 6: Journaling - 5: “The Whale That Got Away”
Eric's Journey - 7: I Get Clobbered Again. What Causes TMS, Fear, “The Inner Child,” Summary of TMS Healing Techniques
Walt's Journey - 7: Tapping, Flipping, Matrix Reimprinting, Meditation
Eric's Journey - 8: Visualization and Meditation, The Colors of Fear, Reprogramming Anger
Walt's Journey - 8: Live in the Present Moment
Eric's Journey - 9: Miracles in My Life
Walt's Journey - 9: The End Game
Eric's Journey - 10: Affirmations Work
Walt's Journey - 10: Faith and Spirituality, Power of Prayer in Healing, Fear and Faith
TMS P.S.: The Best Plan for TMS Healing, The Faith Factor

Healing Concepts

Interspersed throughout the book, Walt and Eric add a variety of “healing concepts” that were important in their own recovery. These include not only specific techniques or exercises but also particular mindsets. Some of these concepts are based in other therapies such as Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and Emotion Freedom Technique (EFT).

Major healing concepts found throughout the book include (but are not limited to):

Acceptance
Affirmations
Awareness
Deep breathing
Faith (religious, spiritual, or non-denominational belief)
Flipping
Forgiveness
Laughter
Meditation
Mindfulness
Imagery and visualization
Journaling
Reconsolidation
Reframing
Tapping
Visualization

The Faith Aspect

“People of all faiths or none are welcome here.” -- Introduction

Though both Eric and Walt are Christian (Walt is Catholic; Eric is Baptist), their book focuses not on religion but on spirituality and the underlying theme of belief. However, in writing their individual journeys, both identified their relationship with God as a crucial part of their healing process. As Eric wrote in the introduction, “Walt and I both also added the spiritual element to our healing, asking God to help us become pain-free, and we believe that was a very important part in our healing.”

About the Authors

Eric Watson

Born and raised in Georgia, Eric Watson describes himself as “a roofer by trade and, by calling, a Southern preacher” (p. 11, God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain). Eric's TMS manifested as chronic back pain and sciatica, starting when he was fifteen years old and lasting for twenty-five years. Eric overcame these 25 years when he fully believed that not only that his pain was psychological (rather than structural), but that he had control over it and did not have to accept the pain any longer.

Eric is an active and beloved member of the Peer Network's discussion forum, where he goes by the username “Eric "Herbie" Watson” . As of August 2013, Eric has also been moderating the Tuesday night call-in discussion group.

Some Links

Walter Oleksy

Main Article: Walter Oleksy

Walter Oleksy

A longtime resident of Chicago, Walter Oleksy is former reporter and editor for the Chicago Tribune and currently works as a freelance writer of both fiction and nonfiction books for all ages. Walt developed TMS, manifesting as back pain, at 82 years old. At the advice of a friend, he read John Sarno's Healing Back Pain, following the twelve daily reminders to reinforce that his pain was psychological, not physical. Walt was able to overcome his back pain by fully accepting that 100% of his pain was from repressed emotions. As he discusses in God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain, he found deep breathing, laughter, and journaling to be particularly helpful in his healing journey.

Like Eric, Walt is also highly active on Peer Network's discussion forum, where he has accumulated the most likes.

Some Links

Read the Book

God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain is currently available at Amazon.com as a paperback and Kindle (e-book).

Read the first five chapters of God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain for free! Choose your format:

Online Discussions of God Does Not Want You to Be in Pain

This book is a frequent topic of discussion in the Peer Network's mindbody syndrome discussion forum. Below are a few discussion threads about the book.

Nuggets from God Does Not Want You To Be In Pain. Thread started on May 24, 2014 by nowtimecoach.
Free chapters from Herbie and Walt's book: This thread is the first announcement of Walt and Eric's book to the forum community. Thread started on April 3, 2014 by Forest.
See the threads for the podcast, below, for chapter by chapter discussions of the chapters.

Series of podcast appearances with the authors

Beginning April 8, 2014, the TMS Wiki's weekly podcast held a recorded book discussion group for 12 weeks (concluding on July 8, 2014), going through all 22 chapters of the book. Links to the official threads and the audio recordings follow. The official threads contain chapter by chapter discussions of the book.

April 8, 2014: Introduction
Official Thread