Stressed out? Your back pain could be related to your high levels of stress

Your current psychological state could be causing you back pain, according Dr John Sarno, a physician and professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at New York University.

Where stress can have both emotional and physical effects on the body, Dr Sarno has popularized the idea of stress-related back pain as a psychosomatics illness.

Known as Tension Myositis Syndrome (TMS), he describes the process as a mechanism whereby emotional tension is pushed out of awareness by the mind into the unconscious.

Unconscious tension causes changes to the body’s nervous system, which results in constricted blood vessels, reduced blood flow to muscles, tendons and ligaments in the back and decreased levels of oxygen, in turn aggravating muscle tension, spasm and back pain.

The study of the body’s response to stress and the resulting back pain proves that in Dr Sarno’s formulation of TMS, the back pain is not attributed to medical or physical factors, but to the individual’s current conscious and unconscious psychological state.

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Similarly, the Pfizer Nerve Pain and Relationships Report identified that 46 percent of individuals living with nerve pain believe that their condition contributed to previous relationships ending.

Leading pain specialist, Professor Robert Helme, explained that pain can often reduce an individuals quality of life, thereby resulting in relationship stress and reduced quality of sleep.

The diagnosis of stress-related back pain is most commonly made after a thorough medical history and physical examination. Where common characteristics of stress-related back pain include sleep disturbance and fatigue, back and/or neck pain, diffuse muscle aches and muscle tender points, Dr Sarno suggests the history onset of TMS can vary significantly between patients.

It is not uncommon for those who experience stress-related back pain to experience an initial incident such as back strain or injury, however an identifying characteristic of TMS sees the discomfort continue as the result of emotional factors long after the injury has healed.

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As additional research is conducted about the relationship between stress and back pain, there are a variety of theories that address the correct way to treat the condition. Dr Sarno’s approach emphasizes that the psychological and emotional factors are the primary cause of pain, thereby focusing on the cause of tension to help return the individual to a fully functional level.

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If you think you are suffering from stress-related back pain, please visit your health care professional.

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