RLS and TMS
Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2020 6:17 pm
Hi all,
So I came across this site tmswiki.org (see https://www.tmswiki.org/w/index.php?pag ... drome_Wiki), and am curious to know if other RLS folks have gone down this rabbit hole as well. It's almost a shrine to this New York-based pain doctor (Dr Sarno), who promoted emotional-based rather than physical-based explanations of pain. He is no longer alive but there are a number of practitioners who continue his work. He was not well loved by his more traditional medical colleagues but had a dedicated cadre of patients and sold a LOT of books.
There is some decent science to back up the Sarno-like ideas that, in chronic pain states: (i) pain does not correlate with physical injury (back pain with no slipped disc in one person; no back pain despite slipped disk in another person, etc) and (ii) descending (brain to tissue) pain pathways can be learned and self-reinforce, in the absence of a "problem" in the tissues -- so potentially such pathways could also be "unlearned". Of course, how this all applies to RLS (or not) is a whole other question.
I think Sarno's idea of detachment from the pain is very useful -- basically just mindfulness in different wording. On a slightly lower tier for me, the idea (badly paraphrased by me) that you can manifest less pain by rejecting that there is a physical explanation and thus thinking your way out of it -- I'm open to that part, though somewhat skeptical and I think it can easily slide into victim blaming. Finally, the more psychoanalytical stuff leaves me a bit cold (i.e., I don't think my pain is driven by unresolved conflict).
I'm curious if others with RLS have looked into TMS or Sarno as a way of coping with their symptoms, and whether you have had any positive (or negative) experiences related to it. Or if you have other suggestions on how to cope mentally with symptoms. I seem to be somewhat stable in terms of a drug regimen now (gabapentin + Mirapex), so am looking more seriously into any useful mental / non-pharmaceutical coping strategies.
all the best,
William
So I came across this site tmswiki.org (see https://www.tmswiki.org/w/index.php?pag ... drome_Wiki), and am curious to know if other RLS folks have gone down this rabbit hole as well. It's almost a shrine to this New York-based pain doctor (Dr Sarno), who promoted emotional-based rather than physical-based explanations of pain. He is no longer alive but there are a number of practitioners who continue his work. He was not well loved by his more traditional medical colleagues but had a dedicated cadre of patients and sold a LOT of books.
There is some decent science to back up the Sarno-like ideas that, in chronic pain states: (i) pain does not correlate with physical injury (back pain with no slipped disc in one person; no back pain despite slipped disk in another person, etc) and (ii) descending (brain to tissue) pain pathways can be learned and self-reinforce, in the absence of a "problem" in the tissues -- so potentially such pathways could also be "unlearned". Of course, how this all applies to RLS (or not) is a whole other question.
I think Sarno's idea of detachment from the pain is very useful -- basically just mindfulness in different wording. On a slightly lower tier for me, the idea (badly paraphrased by me) that you can manifest less pain by rejecting that there is a physical explanation and thus thinking your way out of it -- I'm open to that part, though somewhat skeptical and I think it can easily slide into victim blaming. Finally, the more psychoanalytical stuff leaves me a bit cold (i.e., I don't think my pain is driven by unresolved conflict).
I'm curious if others with RLS have looked into TMS or Sarno as a way of coping with their symptoms, and whether you have had any positive (or negative) experiences related to it. Or if you have other suggestions on how to cope mentally with symptoms. I seem to be somewhat stable in terms of a drug regimen now (gabapentin + Mirapex), so am looking more seriously into any useful mental / non-pharmaceutical coping strategies.
all the best,
William