I don't know if it was the book, a placebo effect, or something else, but I got better after reading that.
Ironically, I solved my RSI issue after coming across a book on HN. Everyone seemed to recommend the Mind Body Prescription, and after trying it, it did the trick.
https://www.amazon.com/Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body-Pa...
Edit: I've been wanting to try this project for several years now: https://www.ctrl-labs.com. I think something like this is the solution moving forward vs voice coding.
>I suffered from chronic pain that was starting to seriously interfere with my life for a couple of years. I could find neither a cause nor non-invasive solution till I read The Mind-Body Prescription[0]. It quickly and completely fixed my problem. I actually learned about the book here on HN: I'm usually a very skeptical person, but enough self-proclaimed skeptics (who were embarrassed to admit they even read it) claimed success with it that I decided to check it out.
I highly recommend reading it (with an open mind) if you're suffering from a chronic ailment that lacks an obvious physical cause. I used it for chronic pain, but the author claims success with just about any other type of "catch-all" diagnosis that doctors make when they're stumped, like IBD.
BTW: the doctor is an American psychiatrist with a long career, so it's not your usual alternative medical book. But I consider it "alternative medicine" in that it's based on similar principles as some other alternative medicines and the theory does not seem to have any sort of acceptance in the western medical community. (The author cites his evidence, and provides his explanation for why the medical community rejects that sort of evidence.)
The book The Mind-Body Prescription[1] by Dr. Sarno covers this exact topic, and made a huge impact on my life and the life of a friend of mine. It's a worthwhile read for scientifically-minded skeptics who are feeling frustrated that doctors seem stumped by their chronic pain/illness. I had a worsening pain that jeopardized my ability to work a desk job, and that book resolved it in a matter of weeks.
[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17899992
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body-Pa...
https://www.amazon.com/Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body-Pa...
I actually learned about the book here on HN: I'm usually a very skeptical person, but enough self-proclaimed skeptics (who were embarrassed to admit they even read it) claimed success with it that I decided to check it out.
I highly recommend reading it (with an open mind) if you're suffering from a chronic ailment that lacks an obvious physical cause. I used it for chronic pain, but the author claims success with just about any other type of "catch-all" diagnosis that doctors make when they're stumped, like IBD.
BTW: the doctor is an American psychiatrist with a long career, so it's not your usual alternative medical book. But I consider it "alternative medicine" in that it's based on similar principles as some other alternative medicines and the theory does not seem to have any sort of acceptance in the western medical community. (The author cites his evidence, and provides his explanation for why the medical community rejects that sort of evidence.)
Similar to the vomiting poster, I had/have a longtime chronic nerve pain issue in my arms and legs that this book was tremendously helpful in managing. While fixing bad posture and a variety of other things helped, this book helped me get to the point where most days I'm in no pain.
Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre http://www.amazon.com/Existentialism-Dostoevsky-Sartre-Revis...
A Kierkegaard Anthology http://www.amazon.com/Kierkegaard-Anthology-Soren/dp/0691019...
Party of One: The Loner's Manifesto by Anneli Rufus http://www.annelirufus.com/partyofone/
The Mindbody Prescription by John E. Sarno http://www.amazon.com/The-Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body...
http://aaroniba.net/articles/tmp/how-i-cured-my-rsi-pain.htm...
which recommends
http://www.amazon.com/Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body-Pai...
It's the only thing that could cure my constant RSI/chronic pain after years of trying everything, and in the book he talks about fibromyalgia.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body...
The idea of psychogenic disorders would have normally have sounded like esoteric BS to me, but I ended up picking up the book at the recommendation of an ex-Google coder who went through all the same things that I did. I'm glad I did; for 15$, I completely cured myself after years of trying everything else (physiotherapy, standing desk, stretching exercises, working out, various books on RSI, ergonomic chairs, keyboards, mouses, trackpads, switching hands, etc, etc), and it turns out the book takes a very scientific approach to these conditions, even if it admits that there's a lot we still don't understand about exactly how our minds work and how they can affect our bodies (it's kind of an engineering approach -- we figured out something that works, now we need to figure out why).
Highly recommended to all those of you suffering from constant back pain, neck pain, RSI, etc.
The Mindbody Prescription [1] and The Divided Mind [2] are two of his books.
My interest in this started with the motivation to get some relief for the RSI-like symptoms and it's been part of my recovery for a few weeks together with the improved ergonomics.
[1] http://www.amazon.com/The-Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body...
[2] http://www.amazon.com/The-Divided-Mind-Epidemic-Disorders/dp...
http://www.amazon.com/Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body-Pai...
+ Hedonic adaption: Hedonic adaption is special psychological effects that explains about how we perceive about happiness. Even after a big happy moment, our level of happiness do down quickly. We adapt our perception to our current situations. So it's like nothing will last forever. Hedonic adaption is both good and bad. It makes us adapt quickly with any situations. It keeps us safe. So we should appreciate it and learn how to make use of this effect rather than blaming it. Learns to attend with everything you do even it's bad, explore something news. It will help you deal with bad effects of hedonic adaptation.
+ Mindfulness: Do some mindfulness exercise. We feel stress because our mind think we're having problems. Our mind made up our feelings to keep us safe [7]. It's good for us. Mindfulness help us understand more about feeling and more enjoy the moment.
+ Mind body connection: Your health affects your mental, and your mental will affect your health. To me, it's not because some spiritual belief, but it's how systems work [3] [4]. Our body, our mind are systems. They are part of bigger system. They connect each others and interact with each other, sending some feedback. So try to improve both your health and your mental. Try to improve your health diet, do exercises and taking care of our thoughts and feelings.
+ We aren't rational. Our thinking system is optimal but it has limitations [3]. It has a lot of problems (cognitive biases). Learn to appreciate and find a way to make it better. For example, we can adapt. We update our belief overtime. Try to make new better habits[5]. Make small steps.
+ There isn't perfect things. Every systems aren't perfect. Our immune system, our cognitive system, organizations, data structures, design patterns,... Appreciate what works, what not and improve it.
Some interesting books, articles you might interest:
[1] https://www.plantinghappiness.co.uk/hedonic-adaptation/
[2] https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-Kahneman/dp...
[3] https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Systems-Donella-H-Meadows/dp...
[4] https://www.amazon.com/Mindbody-Prescription-Healing-Body-Pa...
[5] https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits
[6] https://www.coursera.org/learn/the-science-of-well-being
[7] https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Insecurity-Message-Age-Anxiety...