Sophrology & self-hypnosis

Sophrology & self-hypnosis to fight chronic pain: A journey from excruciating & debilitating pain, to a normal life! For those of you out there who are suffering from chronic pain, I would like to share my story. Although I suspect there are very good chances, this will work for you, I am no doctor or specialist, I cannot guaranty any results.... Back in April 2010, I suffered a significant back injury that damaged...my spinal discs on levels L4/L5, L5/S1, C6/C7..the discs were absolutely crushed and protruding, leaking and pressing on my nerves, permanently damaging them, irritating them and giving me absolutely excruciating pain in lower back with totally numbness in both legs and feet to the extend I could barely walk.... 3 years later, 3 Gps, 17 specialists, I was on 120mg of oxycontin a day, 700mg of Lyrica day, and I was getting a dozen of panadeine forte too ...Those were numbing me like an agro zombie, but the pain was there, I just could not react to it...although my feet and legs will freak everybody out, as they seemed to have a mind of their own and move ...a lot, specially when I was sleeping...I was told my condition will degenerate even further and I will be in a wheelchair within a couple of years... This got me to contact some of the best spinal injuries teams overseas... The best German, French, Thai and Chinese spinal specialist teams...Each came back with a different solution from partial to complete spinal fusion, discs replacements and stem cell therapy...all saying their solution was the best and all costing arms and legs! I would have had to sell the familly house...no way! All they wanted was to create business for their department $$$$$$! I was in a very depressed and dark place contemplating the worse...when I received a call from my sister ex...he heard about my misery and decided to share a secret... He started to talk about being able to control the chronic pain using Sophrology / self hypnosis... I was still on heavy doses of meds and I told him where to go! It took me weeks to remember that conversation...I started to look into Sophrology and self-hypnosis...too complicated for my brain function at the time...it was impaired by constant excruciating pain as well as a permanent fog, from the medications, stopping me from making real decisions and understanding things... Anyway I did happen to have some moment of " lucidity" ...I attempted few things ( sophrology) I read on the net...they were not working, it was absolutely frustrating!...I gave up...then tried again days later...and again... Without realising it...I was climbing out of my grave, I was starting to have positive thoughts... While the pain was there, I could feel some improvement in my mood...but to make sure I need to stop the medications... And I did an ABSOLUTELY STUPID thing...no one should do that! Never ever ever...always consult your doctor before altering your medication dosages.... Not thinking right and wanting immediate result, i decided to move myself in the guest room, self contained room with own bathroom , kitchen and laundry. I stocked up, told the wife and lock myself in... I decided to stop all medications...cold turkey..at once! What I was taking created a dependency! I knew, I ll go through withdrawal, but i never experience this before.... 5 days of HELL... as soon as my meds were due, my body started to crave for some...first the legs felt like they wanted to run on their own,then the shaking, hot and cold sweet, absolute restless...despite the pain, I needed to move...and I did move, vomit, curl on the floor in pain...I was angry, violent as I punched holes in the walls...I could not sleep! I could not keep anything in my stomach...I was drinking liters of electrolytes.... After 5 days, I collapsed on the bed, woke up 24 hours later...exhausted, alive but very weak. When I told my doctor, He did not believe me at first then when he understood I was telling the truth, he told me how much of an idiot I was...I could have easily died! Stopping these medications at once was absolutely a NO! NO! I was not craving meds but my lower back was hurting like hell... I meditated, placing myself in a self-hypnosis state, a trance, starting by controlling my breathing...not easy with the pain, but possible! Keep at it! You 'll get there... From my experience, it helped me, " accepting" the pain, turn the pain in a positive feeling...hard to explain in words...not pleasure but into "feel well feeling"...from there, gradually, I was able to " distance" myself from that "feel well feeling" to the point it was almost not there...with only the random stabbing pain from the damaged nerves that was still coming...anytime...randomly, but the chronic pain was under control... With the chronic pain under control, I started to walk slowly around my backyard for a couple of week...the pain was increasing but I was able to " box it away"...,I started carrying 500g of sand in bags in each hand...then 1kg, 2kg, 3kg, 5 kg...in 3 months, I was able to walk non stop for 30 minutes carrying 5kg in each hand!, I was able to walk 1 hour on the treadmill... 6 years after my accident, I started to work again, 2 years later I was hiking 30kms without a problem! AIcan tell you I do truly, really appreciate the fact that I can walk...it allows me to hike naked! What happened? Were those 17 specialists and specialised teams wrong? Is it the power of the mind over body / over the pain? Or is Sophrology and self-hypnosis a real treatment? Or is it simply nature!? Allowing me to adapt?! I cannot answer as I ll be buyist...You have to make your own deductions/ decisions... All I know is that, I am not in a wheelchair! Those few initial trials on Sophrology were not successful in a way that was suppressing the pain, BUT it was a success in the way it created positive thoughts in me!...that was the catalyst to my miraculous recovery!