Hi...
I'm new to this forum but I have been reading the posts quite a bit.
My story (briefly)...
I've had chronic migraines with nausea for over 6 years now. I started like everyone else, going to a neurologist and just recently (January) had surgery performed to remove the nerves in my "trigger" areas. I've been through all drug therapies and every type of alternative treatment available to no avail.

After a bit of prompting from a family member I read through one of Sarno's book "the Mindbody Prescription". It helped quite a bit with the pain. At the same time, I wanted to stop taking the painkiller Nucynta. I've been on some kind of painkiller for the last 4 years. I was taking 200-300 mg of nucynta with 4-6 excedrin migraines daily. It's been 3 weeks since I stopped taking the drug and now I'm finding myself extremely anxious and depressed. I'm trying to approach the depression/anxiety the same way as the migraine pain but it just doesn't seem to work. I feel very despondent and the lack of interest in work and music(I'm a musician) is overwhelming. My problem is I don't know if I transferred the pain over to depression/anxiety or if this is a physical withdrawal from the Nucynta. I can't seem to find anyone that is familiar with that particular narcotic. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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SO it seems that we have this Inner Child, this Inner Primal Urge, to be selfish, obscene, irresponsible, to be spontaneous and have fun and be creative. And when this is denied by our Inner Perfectionist, that Inner Child/Animal builds up unconscious rage in us, which in turn creates TMS. This seems to suggest, to me, that we must, of course, listen to this Inner Child and its needs. It needs to be expressed, it needs to be felt, and it needs to basically play a more CONSCIOUS role in our lives.

So, that, then, leads me to my current dilemma: on the one hand, we now know that we need to allow ourselves to embrace this Inner Primal Force within us. But we also know that we must often opt instead to practice generosity and good will and responsibility in order to interact harmoniously and prosperously with our world. So is this REALLY the state of things: that the essential nature of our humanity is to be in constant conflict with ourselves? Does it always REALLY have to be a win-lose or a lose-win situation between the Inner Adult and the Inner Child, like Sarno suggests? I find that hard to believe, and perhaps you do, too, if you are at all like me and hold a belief in there being a benevolent design behind the mystery of this Universe.

I appreciate insights from others on this.

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Hello, everybody. Last Monday, I bit into a small bone in some chicken. It really jarred my mouth. 2 teeth in the area where I bit down have been sore ever since, though not constantly. I had x-rays done Wednesday by a woman I felt to be a good dentist; she said both the x-rays and the actual teeth looked fine. But I'm continuing to experience discomfort, and this is a repeat of a pattern I've been thru 5 times: starting when I was 23, I had a series of root canals on various teeth that had begun bothering me (usually after biting into something hard). EVERY ONE of those teeth eventually started hurting again after the root canal, even though repeated x-rays failed to detect any fracture until months, even years after the pain started. Every one of those root canals ultimately 'failed', either by cracking (below the gumline) or becoming infected, so I've lost 5 teeth and had to replace each of them, at great expense. It probably doesn't help that I clench my teeth at night (and probably at times of stress during the day), although I have worn a nightguard for over 15 years. I desperately do not want to either get a root canal (which will inevitably fail) or have either of these teeth extracted and have to go thru that horror again. I am still struggling to accept that my chronic pain is TMS - in fact, I'm about to start psychotherapy for TMS - and because there was an actual injury here (i.e., the "bad bite"), I'm having a really hard time with this particular instance. It is possible that, in the past, I got unnecessary root canals out of desperation to stop discomfort that might have been caused either by night-time clenching or TMS. Finally, what makes this especially difficult is that I know, from experience, that dental x-rays are not all that reliable; that there can be microscopic cracks that can take years to detect. Meantime, I suffer and get multiple x-rays and worry. Anyone have any feedback? Thanks!

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I've read in most places that inform people of TMS that it's important to first seek a diagnosis from a doctor first before assuming that yours is a case of TMS. But aren't these the same doctors that are perpetuating the misinformation as to the cause of pain? Why would we go seek the advice of a doctor that doesn't believe in TMS and would rather make money off you from surgery and spinal adjustments? Of course, seeking a one-on-one counsel with a TMS practitioner is ideal, but it's not practical in many situations, such as mine, where I don't know of any in the area.

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Hi,
I have been in chronic back pain (no sciatica) for around 2 years that is progressively getting worse.
An MRI has shown a minor disc bulge at L5/S1 with no nerve root compression. I am 31 years old and first "injured" my back at age 18. The pain i am experiencing has become so bad i am now completely restricted and cant do any sport or even go for a long walk.I used to be very athletic but all that has ended for me.Doctors here have always told me i would degenerate more and more as i aged,which has resulted in 12 years of non-stop fear of further injuring my back. I have tried physio, Chiro, Oseopathy, Yoga and seen multiple doctors over the last couple of years all to little or zero improvement. I have read Sarno's HBP and have MBP on order. I believe i show all the signs of having TMS and am desperate to get a diagnosis but live in Australia where it seems no physicians diagnose? Can someone please give any advice on a diagnosis of TMS when faced with my situation?

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Hi there. I'm not sure if you are familiar with him, but I've been reading a book by Fred Amir called "Rapid Recovery from Back and Neck Pain." It helped me to quickly get over TMS about seven years ago in my wrist. But now I've been experiencing a relapse for the past 8 months or so that is proving to be much more stubborn. I've been weeding out sources of tension in my life and that's helping, along with working with the guidelines in this book. It's mostly better. I can resume most normal activity, provided I keep a strong focus on images and affirmations of strength. But it's still there to the point where it's very distracting and frustrating for me and it doesn't seem to be letting up anymore.

Part of my concern is largely that when I visualize myself using my hand and wrist, such as playing guitar, I feel physical pain. I can't help but think, then, that I'm just further creating an association in my brain between playing the guitar and feeling that pain. I've tried a variety of affirmations to go with the visualizations, with only fleeting success. So I only spend a minute or two visualizing (twice a day) when I do, which may not be enough. How should I proceed?

Thanks!!!
Kyle

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I have had back pain for the past 4 years located on the right side going down my glute. Initial MRI's showed herniated disc at L4/L5 with some level of deterioration in the lumbar spine. I had seen a physiatrist who prescribed physical therapy followed by 3 spinal injections which each provided temporary relief. Also did trigger point injections which did not help either. Over the last few years i have seen a chiropractor, had acupuncture, massage etc. About 2 years ago I discovered John Sarno and read Healing Back Pain and Mind Body prescription. I really saw myself in the descriptions of the syndrome but did not get better. I bought the DVD of Dr. Sarno's lecture and did not get better. I read Monte Huffle's book and tried to follow that and did not get better.

Last December I went to a neurologist and had another MRI taken which showed a synovial cyst on the right side at L5/S1 which I was told was pressing on a nerve and was consistent with my pain. I had 2 attempts at aspirating the cyst which was unsuccessful followed by surgery in July to remove the cyst. Unfortunately, 3 months out from surgery I am still experiencing my original pain and am wondering whether it is time to reconsider TMS. But if understanding TMS before did not help, I'm skeptical it will help now.

Any advice would be appreciated.

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Hi,
Im onto my second Sarno book and am new to the TMS theory. I show so many TMS signs im convinced i suffer from it.
Living in Australia i dont have access to a TMS MD and have many questions that need answering and hope an expert can give their opinion on some of the things that are confusing me as i start on this journey. I have had chronic back pain for around 2 years with a minor disc bulge with no nerve root compression at L5 level. I have no sciatica and doctors/Physios,Chiro's etc have no real answers as to why i am experiencing so much pain off a relatively normal MRI result.The pain is so bad now i cant run or play sport. I still try to keep as active as possible and do at least 2 hours of yoga a week. My main question before i start one of the treatment programs is pain after certain activities. For instance i dont usually get sore after yoga unless i really push myself...This then leads to the thinking that the pain is worsened by pushing "the injury" more than i should. Another pain increase has occurred today after a boating trip at sea yesterday in rough conditions where i was bounced knocked around the boat which always leaves me feeling sore and feeling like a physical injury has been inflamed rather than a mental one. Im not sore while doing these,usually the pain increases the day after. So my question is how come these things create more pain? I dont consciously expect that they will create more pain,but the next day the pain worsens? Can TMS pain be worsened by certain activities? For instance if someone had severe TMS back pain then did something like lift something heavy or do something you would expect to flare up a "bad back" does this still mean that its TMS pain or would pain after a activity indicate a physical injury and rule out TMS?
I would really appreciate an experts advice on this.
Thank you.

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Hi there,
I am a recovered TMS suffererer due to the fantastic work of Dr John Sarno! I read his book 'Healing Back Pain,' at a time when I had almost given up hope and it enabled me to ditch the TMS and resume a fully active lifestyle including unrestricted weight training, travel and anything else that I felt like doing. Reading that book was one of the best decisions I ever made!
The reason for my e-mail is that a few years after the TMS went away, I developed Meniere's Syndrome for which I have been on Serc medication for the previous 10 years. I have, however, noticed numerous similarities in the type of disorder that Meniere's is and my previous experience with TMS. Firstly, the disorder is never clearly diagnosed by a physician, but is made on symptoms alone and lack of explanation of another serious medical disorder to explain it. Secondly, stress or anxiety about the symptoms almost always exasperates them. Thirdly, oxygen deprivation to the inner ears in Meniere's seems to be a cause of fluid levels increasing, thus inducing vertigo and nausea. And finally, there has not been any clear cut evidence that diet modifications eg salt reduction ect has any benefit on the condition, other than a placebo.
I would be really interested to hear your thoughts. I try to ignore the condition as much as possible but at times of a flair up (such as at the moment!), a better understanding of the psychological element involved could really bring me to the next stage in overcoming it. Thanks so much!

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I am 99% sure I have TMS. I fit the personality type and all that jazz. I am currently on my 3rd week of Sarno's plan for pain/numbness in the wrists. This is due to intense work on the computer (my personality made it intense). I have seen some improvement! Hope to see more!
But here is my issue - I can't get it out of my head that I was working with REALLY poor posture and ergonomics for years! I mean working on a laptop on my bed for hours - curled up. I mean my wrists were almost always curled! That can't be good. Could it be physical? Although, I admit, doctors can't find anything wrong, and my hands work pretty good except for a few activities (computer, phone, remote control).
Any success stories like this??? I need to get over this little doubt hump

Thanks for this site!!!!!!!

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