Health

Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection

Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection

  • Downloads：1487
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-08-18 06:57:04
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：John E. Sarno
  • ISBN：0446392308
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

“Dr。 Sarno saved me from a life of pain。” — Howard Stern
 
The New York Times bestseller that has helped thousands leverage the mind-body connection to heal lower back pain and live pain free—without drugs， surgery， or physical therapy。
 
Offering a surprising， noninvasive solution to an epidemic of pain， Dr。 John E。 Sarno’s research on TMS （Tension Myoneural Syndrome） reveals that stress， anxiety and other psychological factors， not structural abnormalities， are the root cause of chronic pain。
 
TMS develops as a result of repressed emotions which trigger tension in the body and deprive muscles and nerves of oxygen。 The solution？ Recognize the emotional roots of your TMS and sever the connection between mental and physical pain。
 
With Dr。 Sarno’s expert guidance you will learn:
How the mind-body connection can permanently heal shoulder， neck， and lower back pain
How accepting negative emotions like anger， anxiety， fear， or grief can reverse physical symptoms
How we condition ourselves to think back pain is inevitable
Why you should resume physical activity as soon as possible
Sharing case histories and the results of his extensive， groundbreaking research， Dr。 Sarno’s life-changing insights show readers how to banish back pain and reclaim their lives for good。 

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Reviews

Balaji N Chidambaram ，

Thank you so much for the wonderful book。

Yehudit Reishtein ，

The approach to back pain is both novel and helpful。 When I can relax enough to breath slowly and analyze where tension is coming form ， his ideas are very helpful。 When I explained his premise and approach to someone else with bad back and hip pain， she called me several days later that it was really helping her， and she had ordered the book。It is down graded because I found it poorly organized。

Gregory Brokaw ，

Read it。 It’s no woo-woo。 It deals with what most of think of as “my back is out”。

Becky Emerick ，

This book was intriguing。 Written from a secular perspective， the author connects our own repressed anger and anxiety with our back pain。 I haven’t formed any conclusions， but I think he is on to something！ I just wish there had been more practical steps of “Now what？” So we just acknowledge we are healthy， and then we are well？ I wish there were a part 2 to this book。

Ali Peikon ，

Interesting if you’re someone who struggles with chronic back or neck pain or migraines。 Some good reframes and tools

Dan Tasse ，

I hate this book， it's bad， he should not be allowed to write books。 But he， uh， might be kinda right。I can summarize the book in one sentence: "your back pain is probably all in your head and if you just ignore it you'll feel better。" He then expounds on this in so many ways: labeling the scientific-sounding "TMS"， describing case studies of patients who had TMS， describing lots of other problems that are secretly actually TMS， complaining about how The Establishment hates his ideas， etc。This i I hate this book， it's bad， he should not be allowed to write books。 But he， uh， might be kinda right。I can summarize the book in one sentence: "your back pain is probably all in your head and if you just ignore it you'll feel better。" He then expounds on this in so many ways: labeling the scientific-sounding "TMS"， describing case studies of patients who had TMS， describing lots of other problems that are secretly actually TMS， complaining about how The Establishment hates his ideas， etc。This is so obnoxious， right？ I hate it。 And yet！He's identified one problem， at least: we don't know what to do about lots of types of pain。 And in 1991， maybe he was one of the earlier people to identify this。 While he only roughly describes his cure methods， the basic idea is "stop reinforcing the idea that you have back pain， and that might help cure your back pain。" This goes against the standard US healthcare system plan （if you have good insurance） of "keep trying and billing for random stuff because maybe *this* next thing will work。"It seems to be working for me so far。 At least as well as doing 20 min/day of back exercises has been working。 Obviously it's not the case for everyone （an injury， since healed， started my back pain; if it was still there， I shouldn't ignore it！） but seems like a good thing to try for "persistent pain when you've ruled out structural issues。" 。。。more

Natalie Mikkelson ，

I think this might be one of the most important books I've ever read。 Dr Sarno was an absolute ledge I think this might be one of the most important books I've ever read。 Dr Sarno was an absolute ledge 。。。more

Deda Sab ，

Read it years ago when I suffered the worst of back pain due to a herniation in one of my discs。 Fast forward 4 years now， I'm almost pain free。 I still get back pain during that time of the month， or when I carry heavy stuff， but nothing as serious as it used to be。 I almost believed doctors who told me that I wouldn't be able to function as I used to due to my back's "injury" and I even thought I wouldn't be able to walk if I lived my life normally。 May god bless Dr。 Sarno for this book becaus Read it years ago when I suffered the worst of back pain due to a herniation in one of my discs。 Fast forward 4 years now， I'm almost pain free。 I still get back pain during that time of the month， or when I carry heavy stuff， but nothing as serious as it used to be。 I almost believed doctors who told me that I wouldn't be able to function as I used to due to my back's "injury" and I even thought I wouldn't be able to walk if I lived my life normally。 May god bless Dr。 Sarno for this book because it really changed my life to the best， thank good I read it when I needed it the most。 。。。more

Vojta ，

Written like a sale flyer offering vacuum cleaners。 Very repetitive。 Claiming that most of the pain around your back， limbs， and to some extent your head as well can be caused by emotional stress that the brain tries to hide behind the pain。 The form of writing is a bit awkward at times， but the content/message is clear and it can actually be quite surprising （and simple！）。 I do believe that our minds often play trickery with us， especially when they are exposed to negative emotions for a long t Written like a sale flyer offering vacuum cleaners。 Very repetitive。 Claiming that most of the pain around your back， limbs， and to some extent your head as well can be caused by emotional stress that the brain tries to hide behind the pain。 The form of writing is a bit awkward at times， but the content/message is clear and it can actually be quite surprising （and simple！）。 I do believe that our minds often play trickery with us， especially when they are exposed to negative emotions for a long time 。。。 and I do believe this book can help a lot of people - hopefully including me （working on it）。 。。。more

Prasad Mahadik ，

I was quite sceptical of the psychological aspect of pain， but after reading this， some of the reasons for my pain surfaced and it helped me quite a bit。 Its a shame that the mind and body connection hasn't been followed up by the medical community by large。 I was quite sceptical of the psychological aspect of pain， but after reading this， some of the reasons for my pain surfaced and it helped me quite a bit。 Its a shame that the mind and body connection hasn't been followed up by the medical community by large。 。。。more

Alan Spinrad ，

After trying everything else， except surgery， this book suggests an alternative approach to my chronic back pain。 Im game。

Eric ，

Lots of good info that makes me want to do further exploration。 The book is quite repetitive A useful work， but it could have used some better editing。

Chloé Grace ，

Quick and easy read， it was just a 3 hour audiobook。 I listened to the one read by the author。 I think this could have easily been an hour long podcast， but I see the value in the idea that TMS/back pain is ultimately harmless and triggered by repressed emotions （especially anger）。

Liz ，

Interesting。 I think there’s validity to the mind-body connection when it comes to chronic pain。 I also believe that Dr。 Sarno oversimplified where pain originates & how to cure it。 The studies he shares are very outdated - focusing on those done in the 1980s。 It would be nice to have some updated ones。

Natalie ，

this book changed my life！ i got recommended it after someone recognised what seemed like inconsistent moments of experiencing severe back pain vs not。 since reading the book and practicing the recovery techniques， i’ve been pain free。 would encourage anyone who feels like their back pain will never dissipate to read this。

Stacey ，

I agree that there is a mind-body connection， but this is not the book to learn about it。 This reads like a repetitive high school paper where the writer is just trying to hit a minimum word count。 And he did no research other than his own opinion and some personal accounts from his own patients。 According to Sarno， all pain is in your head and can be relieved by acknowledging your feelings。 And every single problem comes back to being TMS。 🙄

Christy ，

Lots of filler， but generally helpful to remind me that so many times my body is reacting and making me aware of emotional things。

Jimelle Mader ，

If you have chronic pain of any type you should check this out。 Many have recovered just from reading this book！ I personally found his book called Mindbody Prescription easier to read and relate to。 Either is an introduction to a different way of looking at chronic pain。 A way that actually works very well！

Sonja ，

Very good information for those dealing with chronic pain。 The author points out the mind-body connection of pain， focusing on repressed emotions， especially repressed anger and how recognizing that releases the pain。 If you think that makes no sense， then read the book to find out how he gets to that conclusion and how he's successfully used this RCA （root cause analysis） to relieve thousands of people of back pain as well as other chronic pain。 Docked one star because it was a little repetitiv Very good information for those dealing with chronic pain。 The author points out the mind-body connection of pain， focusing on repressed emotions， especially repressed anger and how recognizing that releases the pain。 If you think that makes no sense， then read the book to find out how he gets to that conclusion and how he's successfully used this RCA （root cause analysis） to relieve thousands of people of back pain as well as other chronic pain。 Docked one star because it was a little repetitive at times。 。。。more

April ，

Acknowledging the mind/body connection and working through the emotions does work。 My sister stopped her ankylosing spondylitis in its tracks by doing mind/body work。 That was after nearly a decade of doctors visits， Mayo Clinic， holistic/functional and alternative medicine， bodywork， dietary shifts， unanswered questions etc。 Even though I know Dr。 Sarno's methods do in fact work， I was hoping that this book would describe the process in a bit more detail。 Dr。 Sarno is cited by many bloggers and Acknowledging the mind/body connection and working through the emotions does work。 My sister stopped her ankylosing spondylitis in its tracks by doing mind/body work。 That was after nearly a decade of doctors visits， Mayo Clinic， holistic/functional and alternative medicine， bodywork， dietary shifts， unanswered questions etc。 Even though I know Dr。 Sarno's methods do in fact work， I was hoping that this book would describe the process in a bit more detail。 Dr。 Sarno is cited by many bloggers and youtube'rs however， so there's plenty of places to get additional info on doing the work。 The channel， "Pain Free You" is especially good， and Nicole J。 Sachs， LCSW （also on YouTube） does a great job of detailing the process of journaling to relieve physical pain。 。。。more

Elle Moser ，

While the book could be written better， the Information is worth its weight in gold。 My back pain is 90% gone as I practice techniques given and do the homework to shift my thinking and redirect my unconscious mind。

Lucy Dacus ，

There's a reason so many people recommended this to me， I think it may help me avoid back surgery， fingers crossed。 I really recommend to people who have chronic back/neck/limb/nerve pain and have found no helpful fixes so far。 There's a reason so many people recommended this to me， I think it may help me avoid back surgery， fingers crossed。 I really recommend to people who have chronic back/neck/limb/nerve pain and have found no helpful fixes so far。 。。。more

Bea ，

Excellent discussion of TMS。

Julie Grace Immink ，

I'm not falling apartI'm not falling apartI'm not falling apart I'm not falling apartI'm not falling apartI'm not falling apart 。。。more

David Clouse ，

This was not what I was expecting， but I actually really enjoyed it。 Basically， Dr。 Sarno boils down a lot of back pain （and other pains） to psychological and emotional problems that we have repressed and refuse to acknowledge （primarily anger， stress， and anxiety）。 Many things doctors say require surgery or other forms of being inactive/hoping to recover only further exacerbates the problem。 Repressing emotions can lead our body to not want to deal with them so instead of painful emotions erupt This was not what I was expecting， but I actually really enjoyed it。 Basically， Dr。 Sarno boils down a lot of back pain （and other pains） to psychological and emotional problems that we have repressed and refuse to acknowledge （primarily anger， stress， and anxiety）。 Many things doctors say require surgery or other forms of being inactive/hoping to recover only further exacerbates the problem。 Repressing emotions can lead our body to not want to deal with them so instead of painful emotions erupting， it triggers painful physical conditions primarily through a lack of oxygen to whatever part of the body is ailed。 。。。more

Suzanne ，

Since I don’t have any back pain or the other ailments talked about， I just skimmed the book。 I am already familiar with the mind-body connections。

Delrene ，

If you have suffered from "chronic" anything， I highly recommend you read this book - immediately！ If you have suffered from "chronic" anything， I highly recommend you read this book - immediately！ 。。。more

robert ，

excelente book It was a good book with a lot of information regarding back pain。 I realized that so many things that I was told they were bad， are not really that bad …

Karen Maxwell ，

Very interesting book。 I still have back pain but I learned why and how to prevent it。

TessaCollinsMilligan ，

The work of Dr。 Sarno has had a profound impact on my life。 It has been sorcery， some real divine intervention shit。 As many other people have experienced， learning about his work alone cured my chronic back and leg pain。 This actually happened BEFORE I read this book， as I learned about this work through an amazing app called Curable， where people are continuing Dr。Sarnos legacy of curing chronic pain through mind body principles。 Sure this book was dry in the middle， the cover looks like a dat The work of Dr。 Sarno has had a profound impact on my life。 It has been sorcery， some real divine intervention shit。 As many other people have experienced， learning about his work alone cured my chronic back and leg pain。 This actually happened BEFORE I read this book， as I learned about this work through an amazing app called Curable， where people are continuing Dr。Sarnos legacy of curing chronic pain through mind body principles。 Sure this book was dry in the middle， the cover looks like a dated soft porn novel you would find in the airport bookstore， and I often read it purposefully so I could fall asleep faster。 But the work speaks for itself。 （Although I probably recommend the app more， with a good thorough skim of this book。）。 Read on if you want to hear another cliché cure story。I quite literally suffered for years with chronic back pain， which changed my life from joyful， active， strong， outgoing， athletic， ambitious， to a very depressed ball of sad pain。 I couldn’t walk a flat quarter mile without fear， couldn’t sit at all， was told to not do yoga， swim using my legs （？？？）， hike， bend over， etc （the list goes on from there） and pretty much thought my life was over at the ripe age of 22。 I did every possible treatment under the sun （acupuncture， electric shock therapy， physical therapy for ages， ultrasound heat therapy， icing， heating， anti inflammatory medications， creams， balms， all the supplements， walking， massage， cupping， and more）。 Nothing helped and even when there was improvement， it was unstable and I always had FEAR。 I found Curable while at a very low point， crying in bed thinking i was doomed forever， googling what if any yoga poses I could do。 The app showed up and i started immediately。 It was like a freaking light switched。 As soon as I started the app program I was 100% better。 Wtf。 It has been about 4 months now and I have had almost no pain at all。 The best part is I have had no FEAR （and i have fought hard to beat back the learned fear I’ve acquired）。 I have sat on 11 hour flights （thought impossible）， washed my face leaning over sinks （！ Big moves）， I have hiked， swam， biked， gotten back into yoga， lifted heavy shit， washed dishes， gone skiing， and sat a lot！ （Sitting is a lovely thing to be physically able to do again）。 I haven’t even been diligent about doing the apps mental exercises （which are great）， it is just the initial knowledge of what is going on that has stopped my pain （like with many others）。 Get the app， read the book， have an open mind， help yourself 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0