When I was flat on my back with pain from a spasm in my iliopsoas, I read the books by John Sarno, MD. One of which, Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection, I mentioned in my post on reducing stress

Actually, they were recommended to me by a friend who also suffered back pain.

She thought his arguments were persuasive.

What are they?

He argues that back pain is caused by Tension Myositis Syndrome (TMS).

Doctors love to name things.

Translating from the latin, it means muscle tension.

He argues that emotions, especially anger, create muscle tension that doesn’t release.

Now, I am skeptical of arguments like that but let me tell you two stories that were told to me.

I worked on the trading desk of a large hedge fund in NY. Another trader told me that a friend of his had to find a yoga class where there were very few people because he would break into tears when he did pigeon pose.

And not from the pain of the pose!

Somehow, that hip opening pose released some emotions that made him cry.

Another story: A very hardnosed woman, a yoga teacher, told me that she was getting a massage once, when suddenly she remembered something that happened when she was eight years old.

More than thirty years ago!

She remembered that she was climbing up the side of her house in Buffalo when her sister and a friend were throwing things at her.

A painful memory.

So maybe it is possible that memories and emotions are stored in the muscles.

Go to the Amazon page where Sarno’s books are reviewed and read the reviews. It is pretty interesting.

The link to the Amazon page is:

Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection

Tell me your story in the comments below.