I am going to have a massage tomorrow. I have started to try and address my general body being tense.

I wondered what supplements help general tension in our shoulders, and necks...any great things people use?
I bought Calcium and magesium...today. extra magesium, for the muscles.
I do take meds. Celexa and xanax, so I always must check to see if the meds conflict with herbs etc.
I have had some dizziness lately but it is actually subsiding. It was in relation to a neck out of alignment and also some residue mucous from a virus.
Hope to hear if anyone takes supplements, herbs, or homeopathic and gets general good results for muscle tension.
;)
~dagmar

Perhaps a daily regimen of mild stretching at different intervals would benefit you, with attention to posture. No fancy equipment is needed. Search the stretches.
Ps; Remember to not over stretch and to hold the stretch for a few seconds then slowly return to normal position then as you stretch the opposite side, do so in the same way. If it is done to quickly it could cause more problems and not be an effective stretch.

:bouncing:

Perhaps a daily regimen of mild stretching at different intervals would benefit you, with attention to posture. No fancy equipment is needed. Search the stretches.
Ps; Remember to not over stretch and to hold the stretch for a few seconds then slowly return to normal position then as you stretch the opposite side, do so in the same way. If it is done to quickly it could cause more problems and not be an effective stretch.

:bouncing:

Good idea, about the stretching. I use to take a great stretching class, yoga, and chi gong. Maybe it is time again, to start up. Also any good supplements? I always think it is nutritional, as I am older now 48 years old. The body still gets alot of exercise, but I have always been a more tense person. :eek:
~dagmar

ps; forgot to mention, I take a cal/mag, valerian root & omega 3, herbal teas etc.

Would you mind a suggestion from just an occasional visitor to this board?
Get your thyroid checked. I have low thyroid function, and extremely tight neck and shoulder muscles are my most troublesome symptom. Nothing will relax them if your thyroid hormones aren't at the right levels.

Would you mind a suggestion from just an occasional visitor to this board?
Get your thyroid checked. I have low thyroid function, and extremely tight neck and shoulder muscles are my most troublesome symptom. Nothing will relax them if your thyroid hormones aren't at the right levels.

Interesting, I never thought to have this done. I do have panic disorder with some mild OCD, so I would think my tension is more of a nervous disorder, otherwize I am pretty healthy.
But I guess this is something to think about. Is it simply a matter of a blood test? Or one you fast over night for? :confused:
~dagmar

Hi again,
It is a simple blood draw, no need to fast. The two essential tests for screening would be TSH and Free T4, at the least. Some doctors will refuse to do anything but TSH, but that truly won't tell the whole story about your thyroid health.
BTW, panic disorder is a known symptom of thyroid disease. All of the body's systems, physical and mental, can be affected by the thyroid's malfunction.

I've had terrible shoulder and neck stiffness for years. I too thought it was simply the way I exhibit tension. Massages, chiropractor adjustments, and anti-inflammatories did nothing to improve it. When my TD was finally diagnosed and I began to take thyroid hormone, it got 80% better. Once I achieve my optimal dose, I expect it will disappear entirely.

Hi again,I've had terrible shoulder and neck stiffness for years. I too thought it was simply the way I exhibit tension. Massages, chiropractor adjustments, and anti-inflammatories did nothing to improve it. When my TD was finally diagnosed and I began to take thyroid hormone, it got 80% better. Once I achieve my optimal dose, I expect it will disappear entirely.

I can't imagine you went for the throid test just because of muscle tension. I wonder if you had other symptoms of a thyroid problem? What were they?
I wonder if I have any others...that sound familar. Hope to hear back from you.
~dagmar

dagmarharris

I had problems with a stiff neck years ago. What I did is do a neck exercise I read about some where. The exercise is to sit up straight and drop your chin as close to your chest as you can without straining. Then roll your head over to your right shoulder without straining, roll your head to your back without straining, roll your head over to your left shoulder without straining, and finally roll your head back to your chest without straining. Do that 3 times and then reverse direction and do the roll the opposite way 3 times. It's very important not to strain when do this. It took me several weeks of doing this exercise 2 or 3 times a day for my neck to loosen up. This is somewhat equivalent to getting a chiropractic neck adjustment. It just takes some time to work, but once it worked, my neck felt great.

You might try one of the herbs, feverfew or standardized devil's claw, for several weeks to see if one or the other will help. Feverfew's claim to fame is that, after taking it for several weeks, migraine sufferers have fewer migraines and some people who also had arthritis noticed a vast improvement in the amount of pain they had. Devil's claw is an anti-inflammatory mainly, but it may help with your stiffness.

You might try one of the herbs, feverfew or standardized devil's claw, for several weeks to see if one or the other will help. Feverfew's claim to fame is that, after taking it for several weeks, migraine sufferers have fewer migraines and some people who also had arthritis noticed a vast improvement in the amount of pain they had. Devil's claw is an anti-inflammatory mainly, but it may help with your stiffness.

Dagmar writes:
Thanks for the neck stretch idea. For the shoulder muscles...have you heard of a good combination tha has valerian and passion flower herb, hops...in it with some vitamins, like B, for extra help? I think we are not to suppose to tell product names. I saw one on the internet with the idea of "calm" in it. But you have to order it, so I am off to the health food store for a search.
About the devils's claw. I saw something that has overall structural system support in it...but it was in tablet form..with the devil's claw, too.
I like a capsule better....
does anyone also agree that capsules work better than pills?
I even take advil in capsule form! I just think capsules work better?
~dagmar

[QUOTE=dagmarharris]Dagmar writes:
... so I am off to the health food store for a search.

I did okay. I got a product that sounds good. It was recommended by the worker there. It is also Andrew Weil....recommended. I like his books.
One product inhibits the COX-2 enzyme, and reduces inflamation. It is also good for healthy joint function.
The other product is for every day stress, adrenal and immune.
I hope this is a good start!
I am also thinking of going back to doing Yoga in a class environment. :)
~dagmar

Hello again, Dagmar.
Rather than post a lot of thyroid information on this board and be off-topic, why don't you take a look at these two threads from the Thyroid Disorders Healthboard.
...Our Stories (http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/Forum118/HTML/000045.html)
Information Archive (http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/Forum118/HTML/000005.html)
The Information Archive tells a lot about other symptoms from severe to subtle and how to obtain a diagnosis. Mainstream doctors are woefully uneducated when it comes to thyroid issues, and most of us on that board have run into our share of bad doctors.

Anyway, if the alternative methods the other posters shared with you don't help your pain and stiffness, at least consider the possibility of hypothyroidism. And visit us on the thyroid board if you have other questions.
Good luck!

Celebrex (cox 2 inhibitor) has helped reduce pain so have considered taking the natural cox 2 inhibitor as an alternative to it...I think going back to the yoga class will be a good thing! Take Care :)