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Shary
147 Posts |
 Posted - 08/16/2007 : 13:31:20
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...to straighten out some misconceptions before I'm gone permanently. Then the naysayers can pick this apart ad infinitum and Shawn can go back to practicing crystal ball medicine unopposed.
First off, I did try purist Sarno techniques. I have all the literature and I've read most of it several times. (We are talking a period of over two years here--a fair chance in anybody's book). That didn't work so I tried various combinations. That didn't work either. Back to purist Sarno. Still no luck...or maybe it DID work inasmuch as it could. The thing is, once psychological problems spill over into the realm of the physical body, more than psychological thinking may be necessary to effect a cure. I believe this to be true in cases of longstanding TMS pain. In such cases, muscle weakness and degeneration can occur due to lack of use; poor postural habits can develop in an effort to minimize pain; and various behavioral problems can develop, such as a fear of certain activities.
If knowledge alone is going to work, it should be a case of, Oh...now I know what this is and why I got it--and the pain should disappear in a matter of days or a few weeks. It shouldn't take months or years, during which time you fret over whether you have enough belief, or, conversely, whether you might be trying too hard--or fearing that someone who disagrees with you might shatter your own tenuous hold on that belief. If it does NOT go away in a reasonable amount of time, it may be due to other factors exacerbating the problem and not a question of belief.
I will always be TMS-prone, but the pain won't be coming back because I now know how to prevent it. As in the case of stress-related ulcers, the real value of knowledge therapy may lie in its ability to prevent a problem rather than cure one.
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westcoastram
97 Posts |
Posted - 08/16/2007 : 13:53:25
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Shary,
I haven't participated in your conversations so I don't know all the ins and outs. If this is what worked for you... so be it AND GREAT... you're not in pain any more.
I, for one, am glad you're not in pain any more. If it ever comes back and the combo of physical and psychological doesn't work... perhaps you'll be willing to try a purely psychological approach or see a health professional with knowledge of TMS.
Best of luck to you (if you're feeling good, doubt there's much of a reason to stick around anyways!)
Cheers.
WCR |
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Webdan65
USA
182 Posts |
Posted - 08/16/2007 : 15:07:01
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IT'S NOT JUST BELIEF...
Shary:
Congrats - I am also very glad that you are pain free - regardless of how you got there. Seriously, I hope everyone in pain can get relief. It really is frustrating that the majority of the population won't even consider this approach.
Regarding your note, you did make a point that it should take days or weeks once you have belief. Unfortunately (as Sarno points out) that it takes more than just conscious belief, knowledge or intellectual understanding to banish your symptoms. It takes the idea "sinking into your subconscious" for it to work. Depending upon the amount of repressed emotions the person is dealing with, it will take varying amounts of time and work to get relief.
Everyone is different. What works for you or.. what you perceive to have worked for you... will be different than what works for others.
Personally - I went from being stuck on a hardwood floor for 14 hours straight unable to barely roll over - let alone stand up, another three days in bed, the rest of the first week in pain... to going golfing 9 days later with NO physical work at all. Knowledge, journaling, reading, inner reflection got the job done.
Bottom line is that as much as you feel physical work is what put you over the top, it wasn't required for me or from what I've read most of Sarno's patients. If it worked for you great, congrats! By the way - the physical work is NOT recommended by Sarno because it keeps you focused on the body whereas he staunchly believes this problem is originated and cured in the MIND.
Exercise for the benefit of exercise and a healthy body is fine - later. But it's not part of the cure and the focus on the body can slow the process down.
Again, if it worked for you - congrats.
Perhaps this is why you were frustrated with the Purist approach. Because it is NOT a simple matter of belief. I wish it were that easy. You likely thought that once you said "I believe" that the pain would vanish. That works for VERY few of the noted "book cures". For most of us, it's a matter of doing the WORK. Difficult emotional work.
Belief is simply step one. Emotional work is the rest of it.
I got through chronic pain 8 years ago with a purist Sarno approach....and despite my current "belief" and even considerable "knowledge" of TMS - it still took me a solid month of EMOTIONAL work, reading, journaling and inner reflection to get rid of the pain this time around. Again - with NO physical work.
I didn't mean to pick your post apart - but just offering the readers here my view on what worked for me....since you seem so intent on hammering home one more time "before you dissapear for good" - that the physical aspects and physical "work" should not be ignored.
My take - the emotions should not be ignored. Journal, think psychological, ignore the pain, resume physical activity, no fear. Just my 2 cents...well, maybe 12 cents with this LONG post. LOL
Seriously - congrats on conquering your pain! We should all be so lucky!
Dan |
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Penny
USA
364 Posts |
Posted - 08/17/2007 : 15:40:57
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quote:
Originally posted by Shary
I will always be TMS-prone, but the pain won't be coming back because I now know how to prevent it. As in the case of stress-related ulcers, the real value of knowledge therapy may lie in its ability to prevent a problem rather than cure one.
Hi Shary,
I don't think that Sarno or most of us here say that knowledge alone will work. It's knowledge PLUS completely ignoring the symptoms. That's the combination that has seemed to work for many here. Pressing thru the physical pain and doing the laundry or going to work ANYWAY regardless of pain.
Some of your posts have had an intensity that maybe I misinterpreted as "anger. I often found myself wondering if you had a ton of anger in you that was not being fully expressed and was ultimately contributing to your pain. I also got the feeling that you felt misunderstood here, and wondered if you generally feel misunderstood in your life too? Feeling misunderstood myself, I have realized that my perceptions of other people's impression of me is a HUGE TMS source and causes me a lot of pain.
If you get angry or defensive with people's replies here, I challenge you to ask yourself what you are really reacting to, and why?
Good luck and I really hope you stay pain free!
>|< Penny
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Edited by - Penny on 08/17/2007 15:42:59 |
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shawnsmith
Czech Republic
2048 Posts |
Posted - 08/17/2007 : 17:48:30
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Good bye Shary
*******
Sarno-ize it!
Read chapter 4 of Dr. Sarno's "The Divided Mind." It's all you need to know in order to recover. |
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stanfr
USA
268 Posts |
Posted - 08/17/2007 : 18:46:15
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I think we should put Shawn and Shary in a ring with huge boxing gloves and have at it, sell tickets; im sure the proceeds would be huge (id pay big bucks for it). I should get a large chunk of the revenue since i thought of the idea  oh--i put my $ on Shary 
(just kiddin Shawn ,please don't hit me--i wear glasses)
The resulting melee would be great TMS therapy for everyone.
Seriously, Shary implicitly makes a point that is an important one, and one which it seems some want to ignore. There is trouble with perspective when it comes to TMS theory/psychosomatic theory. Sarno's message is only a couple decades old. We're not talking centuries here, folks. And, unfortunately, the mainstream scientific community has been rather slow to respond, so information is still pretty sparse, and largely anectdotal. We all (myself included) wan't to generalize based on our personal experience. History tells us this is a very dangerous way of thinking!
Finally, Sarno himself recently has made it quite clear that mindbody is just that: MINDBODY and not mind-body.
This expressly acknowleges that the body can have an effect on the mind. Why isn't this fully explored?? Quite simple: because this is cutting-edge stuff. Sarno is old, he's made his claim to fame, and he's not about to jeapordize it by opening up a huge can of worms and speculating. But that shouldn't prevent the rest of us from carrying on his good work by asking the tough questions. my 3 cents. |
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art
1903 Posts |
Posted - 08/17/2007 : 20:39:26
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quote:
Some of your posts have had an intensity that maybe I misinterpreted as "anger. I often found myself wondering if you had a ton of anger in you that was not being fully expressed and was ultimately contributing to your pain. I also got the feeling that you felt misunderstood here, and wondered if you generally feel misunderstood in your life too? Feeling misunderstood myself, I have realized that my perceptions of other people's impression of me is a HUGE TMS source and causes me a lot of pain.
From practically the day Shary arrived, from her first posts, I've had a strong impression of an angry woman...It seems there's always a battle of some sort being waged, punctuated by announcements of leaving the board, then returning to the board, now if I'm reading this right, a leaving of the board once again...
For those who don't seem to get better, I generally see lots of anger in combination with an inability, or a refusal, to accept Dr. Sarno's principals..
SHary, I haven't read the details of your recovery, and how they may or may not have departed from the traditional TMS approach, but whatever they are, I'm happy for you...And I wish you the best in the future...There's usually more than one way to skin a cat, to use a phrase I don't like much..
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Just a few comments...
