Back pain: the mind over matter approach

Journalist Tony Schwartz cured his back pain by using the methods of Dr. John E. Sarno (now retired). In 1987 Schwartz had spent a year in “relentless pain, visiting orthopedists and chiropractors, osteopaths and acupuncturists, trying yoga, physical therapy and bed rest, all to no avail.” He attended Sarno’s workshop and learned that, with rare exceptions, back pain has no structural basis. Instead, it is caused by feelings, such as anxiety or anger, that you unconsciously shift from your awareness to the muscles in your lower back. It is "almost always a consequence of muscle spasm that prompts pain, which leads to fear, and then more spasm, and eventually creates a vicious cycle of pain.” Essentially, Schwartz learned there was nothing to worry about except the fear itself.

Using Dr. Sarno’s “talking cure,” Schwartz was completely free of back pain for 25 years. Then it came back. It started with a twinge, then kept getting worse. “It lodged in my lower back, and I could feel the sciatica all the way down to my knee. Within a week, I couldn’t walk more than 100 yards without severe pain.” Assuming it was the same as his earlier diagnosis, he thought about current anxieties in his life, trying to remind himself that the pain was “essentially harmless—much the way any muscle spasm is.” But days passed and he became preoccupied with his pain and could feel his fear intensifying. After about 10 days, he went to see Dr. Sarno’s successor who told him, “You’re going to be fine.”

Even though the pain was severe, Schwartz decided to face his fear and started to resume his walking and jogging. He started walking just three minutes on the treadmill, even though it hurt a lot. But he was determined not to quit. Each day, even though the pain was significant, he felt more confident that he could bear it. Each day the pain was excruciating at first, but he found that the longer he ran, the more the pain receded. Even though it would reappear when he tried to walk, “the pain no longer prompted much fear.” After about five weeks, the pain had disappeared.

Schwartz reports that he’s sent “dozens of people to Dr. Sarno, including ones who had suffered from back pain for years, had visible herniated discs on their MRI scans, and in some cases, had gone through multiple surgeries. Nearly all of them had the same experience I did: complete relief.”

Next week: Chiropractic--sometimes just what's needed

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