{"id":32326,"date":"2026-10-28T21:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T02:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wholehealthchicago.com\/blog\/?p=32326"},"modified":"2026-10-28T10:59:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T15:59:08","slug":"your-chronic-symptoms-are-likely-deep-in-your-biography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wholehealthchicago.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/28\/your-chronic-symptoms-are-likely-deep-in-your-biography","title":{"rendered":"YOUR CHRONIC SYMPTOMS ARE LIKELY DEEP IN YOUR BIOGRAPHY"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Decades ago, when I was first piecing together what has now become WholeHealth Chicago, I listened to a talk by Carolyn Myss, Ph.D. author of, \u201cWhy People Don\u2019t Heal and How They Can.<\/a>\u201d From her, I heard \u201cyour biography determines your biology.\u201d Later, I read the works of Dr. John Sarno, a specialist in physical medicine who said that most chronic back and neck pain was created by the brain itself to distract a person from repressed emotional issues like anger, anxiety, or guilt. This meant that all fibromyalgia was psychosomatic in origin. <\/strong>While still practicing, Dr. Sarno provided major relief to both Howard Stern and Larry David, who had chronic pain for years and became outspoken admirers of his work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physicians, especially orthopedic surgeons, were not pleased with this, especially when he estimated that well over 60% of back surgeries were completely unnecessary. This number, by the way, has been confirmed in repeated studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I wrote my book, \u201cHealing Fibromyalgia\u201d (dedicated to Dr. Myss) I had some biographical examples. It was well known then that 70-88% of \u2018fibro\u2019 patients relate some form of childhood abuse, and you can envision the protective stance of a child tightening her muscles anticipating the blow to fall. Years later, long after the abuser is gone, carrying that posture through life as fibromyalgia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of my patients related how his fibro had been in remission for years, decided to \u2018forget and forgive\u2019 the abusing stepfather who lived in Seattle. As he drove westward, his pain began to steadily worsen. At the city limits of Seattle, it was unbearable. He stopped, said aloud, \u201cHaven\u2019t I learned anything?\u201d turned around, headed home and immediately felt his muscles loosening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now you might ask quite reasonably, \u201cwhere did this pain come from?\u201d \u201cwhat\u2019s the \u2018root cause\u2019\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u2018root cause\u2019 is your brain, busily creating not just pleasant thoughts (like what you\u2019ll make for dinner) or even unpleasant ones (keep those to yourself) but a slew that you are unaware of in the guise of \u2018symptoms\u2019 that might last and last and last and drive you c-r-a-z-y.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a list (brace yourselves) of what are generally recognized as Mind-Body Symptoms. Generally long-term, accompanied by \u2018negative\u2019 tests (\u201cwe can\u2019t find anything wrong\u201d), multiple practitioners and specialists. Sometimes the symptoms are disabling, usually not. Sometimes years are spent pursuing a wrong path (back surgery, useless meds, a wrong diagnosis <candida, mold, Lyme>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here we go—-<\/p>\n\n\n\n