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theses

Chronic pain is a national health epidemic and chronic back pain is one of the most common pain symptoms. Research suggests it is insufficient to explain chronic back pain as being predominantly due to structural issues of the spine. The theory of Tension Myositis Syndrome (TMS) offers an alternative explanation for the etiology of back and other somatic pain, namely, that pain serves a distracting function against repressed, negative emotions. Anecdotally, hundreds if not thousands of individuals have experienced a significant reduction in pain following the principles of TMS treatment as outlined by the medical doctor John Sarno. However, there is a dearth of high-quality research on the treatment of TMS and using a TMS-informed approach in psychotherapy. The purpose of this study is to examine the potential efficacy of a psychotherapy integrating the theory and treatment of TMS with Control Mastery Theory, a psychodynamically-influenced and empirically supported psychotherapy model. The study analyzes the 44-session treatment of “James”, who, was experiencing significant chronic back and other somatic pain and had been told by medical doctors that structural issues were not the cause of his pain. A battery of self-report quantitative pain measurements was used. James’ quantitative results and qualitative self-report indicated his pain did not decrease throughout the course of treatment, despite evidence suggesting a strong therapeutic alliance and James fitting almost all of the personality characteristics common among TMS patients. A psychodynamic explanation of the results is offered, incorporating the results of the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure. Recommendations are made for future chronic pain psychotherapy treatment and research.

ETD_9307

Psy.D.

Includes bibliographical references

doi:10.7282/t3-4bdp-bf35

ETD doctoral

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