Anxiety-induced muscle twitching

bertie6

Hi there,

I started having knee pain and aches in my back, stomach, legs, and also spasming in my calves. After having gone to two doctors and a physical therapist, they couldnt really find the causes to my symptoms. I went through a pretty bad personal time recently with a loss of a loved one. I very much do think that this was caused by my high anxiety during that time. This was back in February, it is May now and i still do get the aches and pains, but not as severe as they were and not as much as I had them before. I do hope that they will go away soon. I will be checking in with doctors when needed just in case. Maybe to put your mind at ease, you might want to check with your doctor. Meanwhile, hopefully your anxiety is much reduced now, and if it isnt, I wish you the best of luck in doing that. I am still working on that myself. I am sure that my improved mental health will result in improved physical health as well. Best of Luck=) --Rose

hry33

to veryworried,
has a doc told you its caused by anxiety? if so learning how to relax and exercising more will help a lot

beta blocker meds reduce twitching, the shakes, jelly legs, blushing, sweating, etc and go well with xanax, they can also reduce your blood pressure so doc needs to monitor it

lammys

Stress and Anxiety CAN cause everything you're mentioning. Considering we're not Dr's we can't verify it in your particular case, but chances are if you've been under a lot of stress, this is the cause. I also have been experiencing muscle cramps, muscle spasms, and twitching. After several visits the Urgent Care I was told I was full of anxiety and needed to learn to relax. After visiting a few chiropractors I learned that stressing myself out does make your body physiologically change!!!! In my particular case I had segmental dysfunction, also known as subluxation. This can happen anywhere in your spine and what happens is tight muscles around spinal joints dislocate, pinching nerves, causing pain, spasms, loss of sensation, numbness, even bowel problems. Luckily chiropractic adjustments will eventually retrain your muscles to relax as well as keep the joints in place.
Point of my story, stress CAN and WILL manifest in your body, and muscles fall victim very easily. Try to stretch more often, drink lots of water, and have good posture, especially while on the phone (don't tweek your neck to the left or right to hold up the phone), while sitting at a computer (try to loosen up your shoulders not keeping them tight and "shrugged")...etc...Keep us posted!

veryworriedguy

Well, I visited a neurologist to be sure and have undergone a battery of neurological exams to make sure it isn't something else causing the tingling/twitching all over. I've done an MRI, CT Scan, blood tests, an EMG, Nerve Conduction Study, VEP (Visual Evoke Potential)...and all appeared to be normal which pretty much ruled out Multple Sclerosis, ALS, and Parkinsons. The last remaining test is a Spinal Tap which I will do next week (thank goodness, cause I have been pokes and prodded more than enough this week already).

Anyway, I'm almost certain my symptoms were caused by anxiety/depression due to a rough period in my life that had been on-going for several months. I've moved past that now and have been more relaxed lately, but the symptoms haven't stopped at all which is what concerns me. So I'm just wondering if the tingling/twitching will eventually go away if I am able to control my mood?? And if so, how long does it normally take before your body returns to normal?? Should I have seen improvement the past week or so when I have been fairly relaxed?? Or does it take longer then that??

Thanks for your help...its much appreciated.

lammys

I'm glad to hear all your tests have come out normal. I wish you luck with your upcoming test. I'll keep you in my prayers.

I've been working on my recovery for almost 2 months now. I've been getting a massage every week along with chiropractic adjustments. Thankfully my muscles are feeling better, but I'm still not 100%. I am much more relaxed now than I was before, but I still find myself having rough patches along the way. A few weeks back I too was curious how much longer this was going to take to go away, so I asked my chiro. According to my chiropractor, my body just needs time to catch up, he said it could be months, but it will get better! Hope this helps! Keep us posted!

carrielynn

VeryWorriedGuy,

I went through something like this last year and I thought I might also have some kind of muscle disease, ALS, etc. The best thing I ever did was see a biofeedback therapist (she's also a neurofeedback therapist). She connected electrodes to various muscle groups and showed me on a computer screen just how tense my muscles were, and then she showed me how to relax those muscles. Relaxing them felt very out of control to me... so basically I was using the tension as a way of being "in control."

What happens is that after a long period of intense stress and anxiety, your body basically "resets" itself at a higher tension level. You think it's normal -- you don't notice just how tense your muscles are. But you do notice the after effects, such as the aching, tingling, etc.

You can reset your body back to a normal level, but it takes time, just as the others have said. My therapist had me buy a timer watch and set it to go off every 10 minutes. (I bought a vibrating timer watch from Global Assistive Devices -- no-one can tell when it goes off but you.) When it went off, I relaxed my muscles (as she showed me during our weekly sessions) for just 5 seconds. I wore this watch every day for about 6 months. Initially (after a few days) I felt worse because of lactic acid release, but after about 2 weeks of doing this, I started feeling so much better. A year since I started doing this and I can tell now when things bother me because I notice the tension -- I have more mindfulness and awareness.

I wish you luck. It's not fun to deal with the anxiety and stress... it can be a living hell.

--CarrieLynn