Healing Back Pain - The Mindbody Syndrome (TMS) by John Sarno MD

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 02:11:02 +0000

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00:00 Introduction / Disclaimer
01:15 The Manifestations of TMS
55:33 The Psychology of TMS
01:37:30 The Physiology of TMS
01:55:33 The Traditional (Conventional) Diagnoses
02:26:41 The Traditional (Conventional) Treatments
02:48:33 The Treatment of TMS
03:19:31 Mind and Body

This is John Sarno's seminal work Healing Back Pain, originally published in 1991. Here, Sarno proposes his chronic pain theory The Mindbody Syndrome (TMS) which shifted the paradigm from pain management to pain resolution for many thousands of people. In 2021 a pilot clinical trial at Harvard University (https://tinyurl.com/2enudtvt) put Sarno's theory to the test: 75% of participants completed the trial pain free or almost completely pain free compared to 18%-25% in the "usual care" groups, therefore making it the most successful pain clinical trial ever conducted.

The mindbody approach presented by Sarno, which has been advanced by practitioners such as Howard Schubiner, has helped people resolve complex syndromes beyond pain. This approach has been used successfully for chronic fatigue syndrome, protracted withdrawal from prescription drugs, and far more. In 2023 a Harvard University study saw this approach successfully used for Long COVID without tissue damage (https://tinyurl.com/yx3jxt3d)

Sarno suggested listening to either the "treatment" or "psychology" chapters of one his books once a day when engaging in this approach.

May this book serve you as it's served so many of us, including myself.