An evidence-based review of published literature finds support for the premise that feeling good may be good for your health…“We all age. It is how we age, however, that determines the quality of our lives,” said Anthony Ong, Ph.D., of Cornell University, author of the review article. The data he reviews suggest that positive emotions may be a powerful antidote to stress, pain, and illness.

The list of ailments connected to stress is staggeringly diverse and includes everything from the common cold and lower-back pain to Alzheimer’s disease, major depressive disorder, and heart attack. Stress hollows out our bones and atrophies our muscles. It triggers adult-onset diabetes and is a leading cause of male impotence. In fact, numerous studies of human longevity in developed countries have found that psychosocial factors such as stress are the single most important variable in determining the length of a life.

Anxious attachment was positively associated with a wider range of health conditions, including some defined primarily by pain and several involving the cardiovascular system (e.g., stroke, heart attack or high blood pressure).

When I saw this patient again a few weeks later, her pain had gone from a nine out of ten to a zero to one out of ten. She was making plans for future vacations, hotel beds, school, and other activities she had long denied herself due to pain–all after only two months.

“For most patients, psychological factors as well as beliefs, attitudes, and health literacy will also come into play,” he says. “We can tell patients to stay active, for example, but if they don’t believe exercise will help or if they fear activity will make their condition worse, they aren’t going to do it.”

Sarno lives.

Hueftle, a TMS Coach and Hypnotherapist, has also put together a full TMS course, The Master Practice, available through his website, RunningPain.com.  No word on that yet–let me know how it goes.

Fibromyalgia is a complex and chronic pain syndrome which causes generalized pain and deep exhaustion, among other symptoms. It is a serious public health problem, more usual among adult women, and causes significant negative psychological effects. In fact, 35 percent of affected patients suffer from depression and anxiety.

A TMS/stress illness doc might want to look into which came first…

Previous studies have demonstrated the beneficial psychological and biological effects of singing, with associated feelings of relaxation, energy and joy. An inter-university Swedish study has set out to test whether there were any additional stress-related benefits from choir singing in comparison with other group activities…

(Via GoodTherapy.org.)

Several workbooks, which’ll help you through the writing process are listed. Two chronic pain-specific, journaling-heavy titles: Unlearn Your Pain (Dr. Howard Schubiner) and The MindBody Workbook (Dr. David Schechter).

I have seen a big explosion in chronic back pain and arthritis, and what I realized is that people have very limited self-help options. In the medical system, unfortunately, many health care providers do what they are trained to do. They push you into prescription medications which have side effects or suggest tons of medical procedures.