Anxiety sore muscles

10 Most Common Physical Symptoms of Anxiety : Intrepid Mental Wellness, PLLC: Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners

10 Most Common Physical Symptoms of Anxiety

Anxiety and panic disorders can produce a wide range of distressing physical symptoms. Many people are unaware that their symptoms are caused by anxiety, which can make the problem worse, as many people worry that their symptoms are caused by an underlying disease, leading to further anxiety. This vicious circle can be broken by learning about anxiety and being able to recognize the physical symptoms. Here are the 10 most common physical symptoms of anxiety.

Fatigue

Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms associated with anxiety, panic disorder, chronic stress, depression and other mental health disorders. Chronic anxiety leaves the body and mind in a constant state of tension and high alertness. The mind is constantly scanning the external and internal environment for threats, leading to emotional distress and physical tension. This constant state of high alertness leads to mental and physical exhaustion, which will often persist even after a long sleep.

Increased Heart Rate

Anxiety is a natural response to danger and is needed for humans to survive. High levels of anxiety trigger changes in the body to help prepare for dealing with threats and danger, also known as the fight or flight response. However, if you're living with chronic anxiety, your body and mind are often unable to tell the difference between real and imagined dangers, which means that the fight or flight response may be continually active. One of the first changes to occur during the fight or flight response is an increase in heart rate.

Heart Palpitations

Heart palpitations are often one of the most distressing symptoms associated with anxiety, as they can feel scary and many people worry that they are having a heart attack, particularly when palpitations are combined with chest pain. Heart palpitations can feel like your heart is pounding, fluttering, beating too fast or missing beats. Some people can even feel their heart beating in their throat, neck or head. While heart palpitations can be scary, they usually pass within a few seconds.

Shortness of Breath

Shortness of breath is another distressing symptom that leads many people to worry that they are having a heart attack, choking or experiencing problems with their lungs. Shortness of breath is usually caused by breathing too quickly (hyperventilation), as the body is inhaling too much oxygen and exhaling too much carbon dioxide. Hyperventilation will not harm you, but you may feel as if you are choking, have a lump in your throat or are unable to take in enough air.

Dizziness

Feeling dizzy, faint or unsteady is often the result of hyperventilation, although it may also be caused by other issues related to anxiety, such as muscle tension in the neck and shoulders. Many people feel lightheaded and worry that they might pass out during a panic attack, but some people with an anxiety disorder also experience chronic dizziness and problems with balance.

Muscle Aches

Muscle aches and joint pain can be caused by tension, as well as general poor health. Anxiety causes the muscles to tense up, which can lead to pain and stiffness in almost any area of the body. Constant stress and worry can also prevent the immune system from working properly, leading to decreased resistance to infection and disease. Infection increases inflammation in the body, which can cause a range of symptoms, including joint pain.

Muscle Weakness

Another common symptom of chronic anxiety is weakness in the muscles, most commonly experienced in the legs and sometimes the arms. During the fight or flight response, the body is preparing to take action against danger. One of the ways in which the body prepares for this action is to redirect blood flow to the areas most needed, including the legs, which are needed to run away from danger. Increased blood flow to the legs can make them feel weak, tingly or like jelly.

Headaches

Headaches and migraines are often caused by tension, particularly in the neck and shoulders. Teeth grinding, facial tension, poor posture and hyperventilation can also cause headaches and migraines. Sharp pain, a dull ache or a feeling of pressure around the head and eyes are common symptoms associated with anxiety. As anxiety can also upset the balance of hormones in the body, some women notice an increase in migraines, as they can be triggered by changes in hormones.

Digestive Discomfort

Excess gas, bloating, stomach cramps, acid indigestion, heartburn, constipation and diarrhea can all be caused by stress and anxiety. Several digestive problems, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), have been linked to chronic stress and mental health problems. Anxiety can also increase the symptoms of food intolerance and sensitivities in some people.

Tingling Sensations

Pins and needles, tingling and numbness are common symptoms that mostly affect the extremities, but can also be experienced anywhere in the body. Tingling of the lips, face and arms can be particularly distressing, as many people worry they are having a stroke. Odd sensations in the body, including tingling and numbness, are usually the result of hyperventilation, but can also be caused by physical tension.

Anxiety can cause a wide range of distressing physical symptoms, but recognizing and accepting that these symptoms are temporary and harmless helps to alleviate fears and prevent further anxiety. The most common physical symptoms of anxiety include fatigue, increased heart rate, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, muscle aches, muscle weakness, headaches, digestion, discomfort and tingling sensations.

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How to Minimize Muscle Aches Associated with Anxiety

Muscle aches are one of the most well-known symptoms of anxiety and stress. It often seems that after an extended period of stress, the body tenses and muscles begin to develop uncomfortable symptoms.

These types of muscle aches are usually a minor inconvenience, but others find that they can become a tremendous problem, making them severely uncomfortable and possibly leading to behavioral changes.

Why Muscles Ache

Anxiety exacerbates long-term stress and the release of adrenaline from your fight or flight system. These responses affect the muscles and the way your body interacts with them.

When you have anxiety, you cause many issues that lead to muscle tension:

As adrenaline pumps through your body, your blood vessels constrict. That causes your muscles not to receive the blood flow they need, which in turn causes them stress that leads to tension and aches.
Your body is also sending messages to your muscles to prepare to fight or flee. Then, when no fighting or fleeing occurs, your muscles get fatigued and stressed. This also leads to tension.
Anxiety affects your hormones, which are chemical messengers that your body uses to send signals to your muscles and nerves, as well as neurotransmitters which provide a similar action straight from your brain. When these are off balance as a result of anxiety, aching is possible.

Not all muscle aches come straight from your body's reactions to stress either. Some of them come from the way you, yourself, respond when you're stressed. For example, many people with anxiety end up slouching more, or avoiding exercise, or sleeping longer. All of these can actually lead to muscle aches and tension themselves, simply because the changes in behaviors stretch and push on your muscles.

As you can see, there are many reasons that anxiety causes muscle tension, and all of that muscle tension can lead to muscle aches.

How to Stop Anxiety Muscle Aches

As soon as your muscles start to ache, treatment is not unlike muscle aches from exercise or injury. These aches are simply your muscle's way of rebuilding themselves and ensuring they're in the best of health. So if you want, you can treat these aches using many of the same tactics that you would use to treat any of those aches, such as:

Hot shower
Over the counter painkillers
Stretching

Loosening up your muscles can be very effective at relieving some of the tension that you feel which in turn will decrease the aches that you experience. Some solutions that are specific to anxiety include:

Massage It's not clear exactly why massage also seems to help with anxiety, but it's likely that the stress-release activity combined with the good feelings you get in your muscles after the massage is over has anxiety reduction benefits.
Exercise Exercise may create muscle aches in some ways, but over time it will improve your muscle's ability to respond to stress, and should decrease your anxiety as well. Exercise can be very effective for controlling muscle tension.
Yoga Yoga is, of course, a form of exercise. But many people find that yoga seems to have its own benefits for anxiety symptoms, especially muscle tension. Yoga can help improve muscle movement and stretch them out to decrease future tension.

One of the most important things is to keep in mind is that you need to make sure you don't let your muscle aches overcome you. Ideally, you need to stay active, fight through it, and do your best to make sure that you're still taking steps to control your anxiety.

Summary:
Anxiety causes muscle tension, muscle fatigue, and several other issues that all link back to anxiety. Hot showers, stretching, massages, and pain killers – the same treatments one would use for any type of muscle aches – can decrease some of the discomfort. Because muscle aches are caused by anxiety, only reducing anxiety can provide some relief.

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Persistent aching pain in the muscles

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Moscow, st. Partizanskaya, 41

Kuntsevsky
medical and rehabilitation center.

Muscle pain or myalgia is a rather unpleasant symptom that brings inconvenience and anguish to its owner. It has a pulling or spastic character. Such pain can be caused by excessive physical exertion or prolonged incorrect body position and be harmless, or signal the development of a serious illness. The Kuntsevo Medical and Rehabilitation Center specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases that cause similar symptoms.

Causes of occurrence

Among the main causes of muscle pain are:

heavy physical exertion;
injuries;
being in a position that disrupts circulation;
flat feet or overweight;
walking in high heels;
diseases of the joints;
disorders of the musculoskeletal system;
violations of metabolic processes;
inflammatory processes;
injuries: bruises, sprains, damage to bones and joints;
bacteria, viruses and parasites as a source of intoxication;
chronic fatigue;
vitamin B deficiency.

Attention! The exact causes of persistent aching pains in the muscles will help to find out qualified specialists of the Kuntsevo Medical and Rehabilitation Center, which has modern diagnostic equipment.

Classification

There are several types of muscle pain:

fibromyalgia - spasms in fibrous muscles, ligaments and tendons;
myalgia - pain throughout the muscles;
myositis - dull pain in the muscles after overexertion or due to inflammation;
pain after sports training.

Pathologies

Pathological pain in the muscles, requiring a mandatory visit to a specialist, is expressed as follows:

constant or chronic pain;
jerking nature of the disease;
pain appeared after training, but does not go away after rest;
soft tissue redness or swelling is observed;
observed concomitant symptoms in the form of fever, shortness of breath, rash, urinary retention.

Important! If at least one of the above conditions occurs, it is recommended to contact a specialist.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis of the causes of pain in the muscles consists of the following main steps:

medical examination;
collection of analyzes;
Ultrasound of muscles;
for a more detailed study, the doctor may recommend an MRI of soft tissues.

Kuntsevo Center offers all types of modern diagnostics: MRI, ultrasound, laboratory tests that can identify the causes of pathological muscle pain and prescribe adequate treatment.

Which doctor treats

Neurologists, rheumatologists or surgeons treat and diagnose these symptoms.

All people have occasional muscle pain. If your muscles hurt after playing sports or after a long period of activity, this is nothing strange and nothing to worry about.

IMPORTANT! However, if you notice a long-term aching pain in the muscles that does not go away for a long period of time, this is an occasion to consult a specialist.

Self-treatment is not a way out of the situation, because there can be many reasons for the development of a symptom, ranging from trauma to chronic inflammatory processes. Make an appointment with the neurologist of our center to understand the causes of the symptom, choose the right and effective treatment tactics!

Types of treatment

Depending on the cause of muscle pain, the following types of treatment are used:

medication;
massage;
exercise therapy;
surgical treatment in severe cases.

Rehabilitation

The rehabilitation period is characterized by the passage of massage procedures, therapeutic exercises, nutrition adjustments in the presence of excess weight.

Lifestyle recommendations

As a preventive measure for myalgia of various origins, it is important to avoid heavy physical exertion and stress, not to overcool, to cure infectious diseases to the end and lead a healthy lifestyle.

Aching pain in the muscles is quite common, sometimes it is harmless and disappears soon, but sometimes it is the result of serious diseases that require control and treatment. Highly qualified specialists of the Kuntsevo Medical and Rehabilitation Center are ready to provide timely and high-quality assistance in resolving this issue.

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Muscle pain: causes and symptoms. Diagnosis, prevention and treatment

Author, editor and medical expert - Klimovich Elina Valerievna.

Editor and medical expert - Harutyunyan Mariam Harutyunovna

Views: 426 908

The date of the last update: 10/26/2022 G.

Average reading time: 9 minutes

Content:

Causes
Diseases of the spine and joints
Stress
SARS and influenza
Other causes
Features of myalgia
Diagnosis of muscle pain
Methods of treatment of myalgia

Our whole life is in motion, and movement involves the work of approximately 400 skeletal muscles ¹ , which, moreover, make up 40-45% of body weight ³ . Therefore, it is not surprising that every person during his life experiences muscle pain repeatedly in different parts of the body - neck, back, lower back and limbs ¹ .

Muscle pain, or, scientifically, myalgia ⁵ , periodically occurs in 54% of women and 45% of men of working age - from 27 to 50 years, but such a complaint is not uncommon even in children ¹ . Myalgia may be mild or very severe, intolerable ¹ , depending on its cause.

Causes of muscle pain

Due to the large number of nerve endings, muscle tissue is sensitive to any damage or irritation. In response, she secretes substances that stimulate pain ^4.5 . There are a lot of factors that provoke muscle irritation. We will describe the most common below.

Muscle fatigue

In our technological age, many people are gradually forming a new "bad habit". Spending most of the day in front of a computer screen or holding mobile gadgets in our hands, we may not even notice that we are sitting in a completely uncomfortable and unnatural position. Especially "goes" to the muscles of the shoulder girdle, neck, back and right arm, which is constantly on the computer mouse of office workers ¹ . Staying in one position for a long time or stereotyped movements can lead to overstrain of the muscles involved in the work, which we feel as soreness ¹ .

Exercise

Body aches after exercise can occur in both untrained people and professional athletes ⁸ . And the cause of discomfort is the accumulation of under-oxidized metabolic products in muscle cells, in particular, excessive amounts of lactic acid (lactate) cause pain ² . Less often, microtrauma becomes the cause, but this can only be observed if the rules of training are violated ⁸ .

Muscle soreness due to overwork does not occur immediately, but after a few hours or within 1-2 days after training or unusual physical activity and disappears within a week ⁸ .

Injuries

Severe pain can be caused by tearing of muscle fibers and tendons. This usually happens if the load is excessive, and the muscles are not prepared for it ¹ . But they can also be damaged by sudden movements ³ . In contrast to the "ache" in muscle overwork, pain due to injury occurs immediately, at the peak of the load ³ .

It should be remembered that even a small, but untreated injury can cause even more pronounced sprain ³ . Therefore, if you experience pain during exercise, be sure to consult a doctor to rule out a serious injury.

Muscle inflammation

Inflammatory process in muscle tissue (myositis) can occur due to hypothermia, infection or accumulation of toxic substances ^16.17 . Sometimes inflammation is limited to one muscle group. When muscles ache all over the body, this can be a sign of autoimmune diseases and other serious illnesses ⁷ .

Diseases of the spine and joints

Muscles respond to dysfunction of the joints associated with them ⁴ and vertebrae ⁵ . Therefore, myalgia is one of the symptoms of diseases of the spine ^5,11 and the joints of the extremities ⁴ . For example, with osteochondrosis or scoliosis (curvature of the spine), pain in the neck, chest or lower back is associated with overstrain of the paravertebral muscles ^5.11 . And in advanced cases, when the vertebra compresses the nerve root coming out of the spinal cord, the pain can "give" to the arm or leg ¹¹ .

Often, myalgia in osteochondrosis is combined with a feeling of numbness or "crawling". At the moment of acute pain, the person freezes, taking a forced position ¹¹ .

Stress

Prolonged emotional stress affects the activity of brain regions involved in pain control. No muscle damage can be detected, but nevertheless, the person complains of discomfort or soreness, which is most often chronic ¹¹ .

ARVI and influenza

Aches in muscles and joints with colds and flu ⁹ - the result of exposure to muscle receptors of bacteria, viruses and substances that are formed in tissues during infection ¹⁰ . Simultaneously with muscle pain, body temperature usually rises and symptoms of damage to various parts of the respiratory tract occur: runny nose, cough and sore throat ⁹ .

Other causes

Almost any disease of the internal organs can lead to myalgia ¹¹ . When any organ is affected, it creates pain impulses, which are partially transmitted to the muscles located nearby ¹¹ .

Myalgia can also be caused by:

endocrine diseases, for example, deficiency of thyroid hormones ^16.7 ;
vascular pathologies that disrupt the nutrition of the muscles of the limbs ^15.16 ;
chronic fatigue syndrome ⁷ ;
violation of the balance of trace elements in the body ¹⁶ ;
taking cholesterol-lowering drugs ¹² .

Features of myalgia

Muscle pain, usually deep ⁶ . Acute myalgia is protective in nature, because it causes reactions aimed at eliminating the damaging factor ¹¹ . Such reactions include, for example, muscle spasm ⁴ . But despite the protective nature, there is almost always a risk that the pain will become chronic ¹¹ . There are 2 main causes of chronicity:

Hypersensitivity. In response to irritation, substances are released in the muscle that support inflammation. They further irritate the pain receptors in the muscles. In response to frequent signals, the central nervous system lowers the pain threshold, so we can feel pain in the muscle even if it is not strongly irritated ¹¹ .
Spasm. When pain and spasm persist, a vicious circle is formed: pain causes spasm, and spasm maintains pain ^{1.5, 11} .

Diagnosis of muscle pain

Determining why myalgia occurs is not always easy. Only a doctor can understand the causes and choose a treatment that helps get rid of the disturbing symptoms or alleviate them. To find out the cause of myalgia, the doctor conducts a comprehensive examination, including a neurological one, prescribes laboratory tests, ultrasound, computed tomography and other research methods ³ .

Myalgia is treated by different specialists. Depending on its cause, a traumatologist, rheumatologist, neurologist or endocrinologist can help you.

Treatments for myalgia

Treatment of muscle pain includes non-drug and drug treatments ^5.13 . In each case, the doctor selects individual methods of therapy.

One of the main tasks is pain relief ^5.13 . In the fight against pain, doctors are guided by the "pain ladder" developed by the World Health Organization (WHO). It recommends the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as the first step or step in the treatment of mild to moderate pain ⁶ such as MOTRIN® ¹⁴ . The drug is approved for use by adults and adolescents over 15 years of age ¹⁴ .

The active substance of MOTRIN® - naproxen - has analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic effects. The drug can be used as part of a complex treatment of mild to moderate muscle pain associated with trauma, inflammation and diseases of the musculoskeletal system ¹⁴ . One dose of MOTRIN® is enough for up to 12 hours ¹⁴ . The drug can be used up to 5 days ¹⁴ .

It is imperative to consult a doctor, as symptomatic treatment and taking painkillers do not replace the main therapy of the disease ⁵ . If acute pain persists, your doctor may use other methods of pain relief ¹³ .

Non-drug treatments for myalgia include ¹³ :

manual therapy;
massage;
acupuncture;
transcutaneous electrical stimulation;
post-isometric relaxation;
physiotherapy exercises.

These treatments aim to relax tight muscles and relieve the spasm that causes pain, breaking the vicious circle ¹³ .

Myalgia can disrupt the usual rhythm of life, interfere with work and rest.

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