Tingling and anxiety

Can anxiety cause numbness?

Anxiety and panic can both result in numbness and tingling. When a person feels anxious about their health, these symptoms may worsen their anxiety.

When a psychological issue underlies physical problems, doctors call the symptoms psychogenic. Usually, psychogenic numbness is not dangerous and typically gets better with anxiety treatment.

In this article, we explain how anxiety and panic attacks may lead to numbness. We also discuss some other common symptoms of anxiety and when to contact a doctor.

People with anxiety disorders experience physical symptoms as well as emotional and psychological ones. Numbness and tingling are among the most common complaints.

While people who experience this type of numbness usually notice it in the hands or feet, it can occur anywhere in the body.

In some people with anxiety, numbness can initiate an intense cycle of numbness and anxiety. This happens when a person notices the numbness, has a panic attack as a result, and then feels even more anxious and numb.

Some people also note additional symptoms, such as a rapid heart rate, that may further compound the anxiety and numbness.

Anxiety can cause numbness in several ways.

During moments of panic, the blood vessels constrict, increasing heart rate and blood pressure. This reduces blood flow to different body parts — the hands and feet in particular — potentially causing tingling, numbness, or a cold feeling.

Feeling anxious also changes behavior. A person may unconsciously tense their muscles, which may lead to unusual or numb muscle sensations.

Some people respond to intense fear by “freezing.” This may cause them to hold their bodies in a position that would otherwise be uncomfortable, such as sitting on a foot or with their legs tightly crossed. This can trigger numbness and tingling.

Moreover, people who self-medicate their anxiety may experience numbness as a result of using drugs or alcohol. Some drugs may cause temporary numbness when a person is experiencing the feeling of being “high. ”

Additionally, excessive use of alcohol can cause alcoholic neuropathy, which occurs when alcohol has damaged the peripheral nerves. This in turn may lead to numbness and tingling that persists even when a person is no longer feeling anxious.

Some evidence suggests that, in rare cases, certain antianxiety medications may also lead to numbness. A 2004 study details the case of a person experiencing numbness who was taking a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant that some people use for anxiety.

Numbness from anxiety occurs due to the anxiety itself. It is therefore essential to treat the underlying cause of the anxiety and not the symptoms.

Some treatment options include:

antianxiety medication
psychotherapy
self-care strategies, such as getting exercise or reducing exposure to stress
grounding or breathing exercises to help a person regain a sense of control
support from family and friends
education about anxiety, including how it may cause feelings of numbness

It is important to note that people with anxiety can also have other conditions that result in numbness or tingling. Therefore, if the anxiety gets better and the numbness does not, or if the numbness is constant, a person should seek medical attention for the numbness as a separate issue.

Some other potential causes of numbness include:

nerve damage due to an injury or conditions such as diabetes
spinal cord or head injuries
circulation issues
carpal tunnel syndrome
nutritional deficiencies
certain medications, such as chemotherapy agents

Learn more about treatment for anxiety here.

Numbness is not a medical emergency unless a person experiences other symptoms, such as chest pain that does not get better when the anxiety eases.

Similarly, anxiety can feel like an emergency, but the feeling of panic usually goes away on its own. While chronic anxiety can have a negative impact on a person’s health and quality of life, a panic attack in itself is not fatal.

However, a person should contact a doctor if:

their anxiety improves but the numbness does not
the anxiety interferes with their daily life or relationships
the numbness follows an injury, is constant, or seems to be getting worse
home treatment does not work
the anxiety medication is not effective or stops working
the anxiety or numbness occurs after a person started taking a new medication

Numbness is not the only manifestation of anxiety. Other symptoms include:

dizziness
shortness of breath
a rapid heart rate or a feeling that the heart is skipping a beat
pain or tension
a feeling of cold
shakiness
brain fog
inability to focus
fear
intrusive thoughts
preoccupation with dying or other potentially scary notions
trouble sleeping
inability to relax

The specific pattern of anxiety a person experiences often depends on the diagnosis.

For example, people with generalized anxiety may feel anxious or have physical symptoms. Those with panic disorder may experience sudden bursts of intense physical anxiety that is so severe that it feels like they are dying.

People with post-traumatic stress disorder, on the other hand, may have flashbacks, nightmares, or intrusive memories.

Learn more about the signs and symptoms of anxiety here.

Numbness is a common symptom of anxiety. That a person experiences it does not necessarily indicate the existence of an underlying condition.

It is advisable to focus on addressing the causes of the anxiety and seek treatment for it.

However, if the numbness persists even when the anxiety eases, a person should consult a doctor to rule out other potential causes.

Why It Happens and How to Deal

Anxiety conditions — whether that’s panic disorder, phobias, or generalized anxiety — involve plenty of different symptoms, and not all of them are emotional.

Your symptoms could include physical concerns like muscle tension, an upset stomach, chills, and headaches along with emotional distress such as rumination, worry, and racing thoughts.

Something else you might notice? Numbness and tingling in various parts of your body. This can be pretty unnerving, especially if you’re already feeling anxious.

Luckily, if you’re numbness isn’t an anxiety symptom, it’s usually not anything serious.

Common causes of numbness other than anxiety include:

sitting or standing in the same position for a long period of time
insect bites
rashes
low levels of vitamin B-12, potassium, calcium, or sodium
medication side effects
alcohol use

Why does numbness show up as an anxiety symptom for some people? How can you tell whether it relates to anxiety or something else? Should you be seeing a doctor ASAP? We’ve got you covered.

You can experience anxiety-related numbness in a lot of ways.

For some, it feels like pins and needles — that prickling you get when a body part “falls asleep.” It can also just feel like a complete loss of sensation in one part of your body.

You might also notice other sensations, like:

tingles
the prickling of your hairs standing up
a mild burning feeling

While numbness can affect just about any part of your body, it often involves your legs, arms, hands, and feet.

The sensation doesn’t necessarily spread through the entire body part, though. You might only notice it in your fingertips or toes, for example.

It can also show up along your scalp or the back of your neck. It can also show up in your face. Some people even experience tingling and numbness on the tip of their tongue, for example.

Finally, numbness might appear on one or both sides of your body or show up in a few different places. It won’t necessarily follow a specific pattern.

Anxiety-related numbness happens for two main reasons.

The fight-or-flight response

Anxiety happens when you feel threatened or stressed.

To handle this perceived threat, your body responds with what’s known as the fight-or-flight response.

Your brain begins sending signals to the rest of your body right away, telling it to get ready to face the threat or escape from it.

One important part of these preparations is an increase in blood flow to your muscles and important organs, or the areas of your body that would provide the most support for fighting or fleeing.

Where does that blood come from?

Your extremities, or the parts of your body that aren’t as essential to a fight-or-flight situation. This rapid flow of blood away from your hands and feet can often cause temporary numbness.

Hyperventilation

If you live with anxiety, you might have some experience with how it can affect your breathing.

When you feel very anxious, you might find yourself breathing rapidly or irregularly. Even though this might not last very long, it can still decrease the amount of carbon dioxide in your blood.

In response, your blood vessels begin to constrict, and your body shuts off blood flow to less essential areas of your body, like your extremities, in order to keep blood flowing where you need it most.

As blood flows away from your fingers, toes, and face, these areas may feel numb or tingly.

If hyperventilation continues, the loss of blood flow to your brain can cause more significant numbness in your extremities and eventually a loss of consciousness.

It’s also worth noting that anxiety can often increase sensitivity to physical and emotional reactions — other people’s reactions, yes, but also your own.
Some people with anxiety, particularly health anxiety, might notice numbness and tingling that happens for a perfectly ordinary reason, like sitting still too long, but see it as something more serious.
This response is pretty common, but it can still frighten you and worsen your anxiety.

If your anxiety sometimes manifests itself in numbness, there are a few things you can try in the moment for relief.

Get moving

Regular physical activity can go a long way toward improving anxiety-related emotional distress. Getting up and moving around can also help you calm down when you suddenly feel very anxious.

Moving your body can help distract you from the cause of your anxiety, for one. But exercise also gets your blood flowing, and it can help your breathing return to normal, too.

You might not feel up to an intense workout, but you can try:

brisk walking
a light jog
some simple stretches
running in place
dancing to your favorite song

Try breathing exercises

Belly (diaphragmatic) breathing and other types of deep breathing help many people manage anxiety and stress in the moment.

Deep breathing can help with numbness, too, since these sensations often happen when you have trouble breathing.

Belly breathing 101

If you don’t know how to breathe from your belly, here’s how to practice:

Sit down.
Lean forward with your elbows resting on your knees.
Take a few slow, natural breaths.

You’ll automatically breathe from your belly when sitting like this, so this can help you get familiar with the feel of belly breathing.

You can also try resting one hand on your stomach while breathing. If your stomach expands with each breath, you’re doing it right.

If you make a habit of practicing belly breathing whenever you feel anxious, you can help prevent that pesky fight-or-flight response from taking over.

Find more breathing exercises for anxiety here.

Do something relaxing

If you’re working on a task that’s making you anxious, try distracting yourself with a low-key, enjoyable activity that can also help take your mind off whatever’s contributing to your anxiety.

If you feel like you can’t step away, keep in mind that even a quick 10- or 15-minute break can help you reset. You can go back to the stressor later when you feel more equipped to handle it in a productive way.

Try these calming activities:

watch a funny or soothing video
listen to relaxing music
call a friend or loved one
have a cup of tea or a favorite beverage
spend some time in nature

As your immediate anxiety passes, the numbness probably will, too.

Try not to worry

Easier said than done, right? But worrying about numbness can sometimes make it worse.

If you often experience numbness with anxiety (and then begin to worry even more about the source of the numbness), try tracking the sensations.

Maybe you’re feeling a little anxious right now. Try a grounding exercise or other coping strategy to manage those immediate feelings, but pay attention to the numbness. How does it feel? Where is it located?

Once you get to feeling a little calmer, note whether the numbness has also passed.

If you only experience it along with anxiety, you probably don’t need to be too concerned.

If it comes up when you don’t actively feel anxious, note how you do feel in a journal. Any other emotional or physical symptoms?

Keeping a log of any patterns in the numbness can help you (and your healthcare provider) get more information about what’s going on.

Numbness doesn’t always suggest a serious health concern, but in some cases, it could be a sign of something else going on.

It’s wise to make an appointment with your healthcare provider if you experience numbness that:

lingers or keeps coming back
gets worse over time
happens when you make specific movements, such as typing or writing
doesn’t seem to have a clear cause

It’s especially important to talk to your healthcare provider right away if numbness happens suddenly or after head trauma, or affects a large part of your body (such as your entire leg instead of just your toes).

You’ll want to get emergency assistance if you experience numbness along with:

dizziness
sudden, intense head pain
muscle weakness
disorientation
trouble speaking

Here’s one final thing to keep in mind: The best way to relieve anxiety-relates numbness is to address the anxiety itself.

While coping strategies can help a lot, if you live with persistent, severe anxiety, support from a trained therapist can be helpful.

Therapy can help you begin exploring and addressing underlying causes of anxiety, which can lead to improvements in all of your symptoms.

If you notice your anxiety symptoms have started affecting your relationships, physical health, or quality of life, it may be a good time to reach out for help.

Our guide to affordable therapy can help.

It’s not uncommon to experience numbness as an anxiety symptom, so while tingling sensations can feel pretty unsettling, there’s usually no need to worry.

If the numbness keeps coming back or happens with other physical symptoms, you’ll probably want to check in with your healthcare provider.

It never hurts to seek professional support for emotional distress, either —therapy provides a judgment-free space where you can get guidance on actionable strategies to manage anxiety symptoms.

Crystal Raypole has previously worked as a writer and editor for GoodTherapy. Her fields of interest include Asian languages and literature, Japanese translation, cooking, natural sciences, sex positivity, and mental health. In particular, she’s committed to helping decrease stigma around mental health issues.

I can't think of anything else: how anxiety affects our lives and performance

What is anxiety and why it occurs

It is normal to be nervous before an important working meeting or the launch of a new project. This is how the body responds to stress in difficult situations. But if anxiety becomes constant, drowns out all other sensations and you can’t cope with it, this can be a problem.

Anxiety is a complex and prolonged emotional state experienced by a person when he evaluates future situations and events as unfavorable. Healthy (productive) anxiety is not static and is always future-oriented. It does not interfere, but helps: to anticipate a real problem, mobilize resources, find a solution. And disappears along with the occasion.

If the feeling of anxiety gets out of control, accompanies you all the time, regardless of the life situation, and it cannot be substantiated, this is already an anxiety disorder. This state paralyzes any activity or makes it very difficult. For example, you procrastinate before sending an email or preparing a report because you are afraid that the results of your work are not perfect. A chain reaction of anxious thoughts starts in your head: what if you disappoint the team, get criticism from the manager, lose a bonus or even a job and can not find anything in return. Unhealthy (unproductive) anxiety snowballs, and often this form of anxiety can be the first sign of burnout.

Typically, the most common fears that trigger a chain of anxious thoughts are relationships with colleagues, appraisals, participation in work meetings and conferences, public speaking and presentations, deadlines, and financial problems.

Anxiety is aggravated by the syndrome of lost profits (FOMO from fear of missing out). It seems to us that the endless notifications that come to the screens of phones and computers, online courses, networking events and posts of colleagues on social networks, etc. promise career opportunities that should not be missed. In addition, there is a feeling that people around you manage to do everything better than you: build a career and family, pump up the press, go on vacation several times a year. And if you don’t chase after all this, a colleague will steal your chair and position. As a result, instead of acting, a person is lost.

Unproductive anxiety can also be a manifestation of general anxiety disorder, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other syndromes. A specialist should diagnose the cause: here one cannot do without psychological help, and in some cases even without medication.

Anxiety can be a problem not only for employees themselves, but for the economy as a whole. According to the American organization Center for Workplace Mental Health, the indirect costs associated with anxiety disorders cost employers $4 billion annually. Canadian researcher Henry Harder, who works on mental health issues in the professional environment, estimates that 30% of workers with anxiety disorder are less productive than other colleagues.

Mechanisms and symptoms of anxiety

A number of studies show that the amygdala (amygdala, or amygdala), a symmetrical complex of nuclei in the medial temporal lobes, is a central link in the formation of anxiety and anxiety disorder.

Acute or chronic stress can lead to functional and anatomical changes in the amygdala and damage it. As a result, a person develops unreasonable anxiety, anxiety disorder, PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), etc.

It is important to listen to your body's signals, because unreasonable anxiety does not only manifest itself on an emotional or cognitive level. Also, the heartbeat may become more frequent, it can be difficult for a person to sit in one place, people feel pain and tightness in the chest, sweating increases, nausea and diarrhea occur. Some feel numbness and tingling of the limbs, weakness, muscle tension, fever and dizziness. On an emotional level, people are nervous, irritated, they feel they are in danger, and they have a strong desire to avoid a frightening situation. At the level of consciousness - randomness of thoughts, excessive focus on what worries, the inability to think about anything else.

Is it possible to stop worrying altogether?

It is impossible not to feel anxiety at all. And it’s not necessary, because, as we found out above, healthy anxiety helps us activate resources to achieve our goals. But it is possible to ease the collision with her.

If you experience the symptoms described above, the first thing to do is to conduct a medical check to make sure there are no endocrine, neurological or psychiatric disorders. You can also try a few simple and working practices: limit your consumption of news and social networks, go in for sports, use breathing techniques, study specialized literature.

For example, if you reduce the consumption of social networks by just 30 minutes a day, you can trace positive changes in mood, follows from data from the University of Pennsylvania in the USA. Physical activity helps fight anxiety and depression. We produce dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin, resulting in a better mood. Moreover, sports can have an effect comparable to psychotherapeutic intervention, as evidenced by a number of studies on depressive disorders. In this case, it is not the intensity that is important, but the regularity - for example, a daily 20-30-minute walk in the fresh air.

Work on your breath. Deep and slow inhalation and exhalation activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the rest mode. One common practice is the 4-7-8 breathing technique, which involves inhaling for 4 seconds, holding your breath for 7 seconds, and then exhaling for 8 seconds. The main thing here is to feel how the lungs fill up and keep a slow, measured rhythm for several minutes.

There are many self-help books available from professional psychotherapists to help you learn more about anxiety and how to deal with it. Among them are the books of Robert Leahy - "Freedom from Anxiety", "The Cure for Nerves", David Burns - "Mood Therapy", as well as David A. Clarke and the creator of cognitive psychotherapy, Aaron Beck - "Anxiety and Anxiety".

More and more companies are realizing the importance of supporting the mental health of their employees and are implementing psychological assistance programs. Ask your HR department what resources are available in your company. For example, these can be webinars and useful articles, as well as free or partially compensated by the employer consultations with a psychologist.

You can deal with anxiety on your own, which does not limit your life, does not greatly affect important areas, such as career, family and relationships. If you notice that the anxiety lasts for a long time, you cannot calm down, you are attacked by restless thoughts, sleep is disturbed and life becomes difficult, you should seek help from a specialist.

Heart anxiety - For a healthy lifestyle! - Articles - Center of Modern Cardiology

Very often people complain of pain in the heart, but it turns out that the stomach hurts, suffers from osteochondrosis or stress has led to the development of depression. And the development of a heart attack is not recognized, they are attributed to the same stomach, osteochondrosis or even toothache. How to figure it out? Let's try to help.

angina pectoris. That was the name in the old days of the disease that we now call angina pectoris. A heart attack usually begins with a pressing or burning pain in the center of the chest (doctors say "behind the sternum") during exercise or stress, although it can develop at rest.

The pain is quite intense, can radiate to the lower jaw, shoulders and arms (more often to the left, but possibly both), to the neck, throat and back. Sometimes it disguises itself as bursting pains in the same areas or pains in the stomach (upper abdomen - epigastrium), simulating an intestinal disorder. The pain disappears at rest in a few minutes, and if you put a nitroglycerin tablet under the tongue (or spray a spray containing nitroglycerin) - almost instantly.

If such pain lasts longer than 20-30 minutes and its intensity increases, the development of a heart attack is not excluded. Timely assistance significantly reduces the risk of dying from a heart attack, so you need to call an ambulance team as soon as possible. Recording an ECG in a heart attack almost always helps to make a diagnosis.

Heart attack cancelled. Very often, young women come to the doctor with complaints of pain in the heart. How could it be otherwise, because through the heart we pass all our troubles, worries and joys. In this case, there is usually no cause for alarm.

In young women, "heart pain" is often functional, meaning it is not caused by angina. Female sex hormones protect blood vessels from the formation of atherosclerotic plaques. And if you look, “heart” pains bother women not in the area where “angina pectoris” likes to settle, but in the left half of the chest, in the armpit or under the left breast. They are, as a rule, in the nature of discomfort, stabbing or aching pain, and can last from half an hour to several hours or even days.

These feelings arise for various reasons. Stress, sleep deprivation, overwork, premenstrual periods…and, as a result, an anxiety or depressive disorder. The skeletal muscles are tense, on the shoulders they are compacted into painful lumps - “lumps of nerves”! Sometimes it is enough to have a short, but good rest, pleasant emotions.

In more serious cases, you have to seek help from a neurologist , a psychotherapist. Remember: the longer the depression lasts, the more difficult it is for the doctor to completely relieve you of discomfort, sleep disturbances and bad mood. However, in addition to stress, other reasons can lead to pain in the “heart area”.

"Bouquet of diseases". Osteochondrosis, a disease of sedentary people, leads to pinching of the nerve roots and the development of pain. If the thoracic spine is involved, then it is the heart that falls under the patient's suspicion - it pricks and pierces, lies on the chest with a lump or stone, catches with inhalations and sharp turns of the body, and aches for hours.

If such sensations occur during intense excitement, then the full impression of a heart attack can be formed. But the true cause of the pain in this case is the tension of the muscles of the neck and back. Unlike an attack of angina, which is quickly relieved by nitroglycerin, pain medications, massage, kneading the back with hydromassage jets can help, shock wave therapy. During examination, changes in the vertebrae can be found on an x-ray of the spine. But the ECG, even at the time of the most intense neuralgic pain, will be normal.

Chest pain may occur during a cold if it is complicated by bronchitis. Coughing can add discomfort, since already on the second day of a hacking cough, in addition to the bronchi, pectoral muscles will add to the pain. If the cold is complicated by pneumonia and pleurisy, then with a deep breath and exhalation, changes in pain can be noticed. The pain increases with inhalation, when the lungs straighten and “rub” against the inflamed pleura, and decreases with exhalation.

The doctor will recommend an x-ray of the lungs, listen with a phonendoscope for wheezing in the lungs.

Do not forget about the stomach, pancreas and gallbladder. A common cause of chest pain is intercostal neuralgia, herpes zoster, and in women - mastopathy. Regular palpations of the mammary glands must be carried out by women after 30-35 years, and if there is pain or induration, consult a doctor who will most likely refer you to an ultrasound of the mammary glands and mammography.

Gender matters, because it is in women that “heart pain” during examination turns out to be a mask of other diseases, and in men over 40 any “gastritis, an attack of osteochondrosis or a sore tooth” can turn out to be a first-time developed heart attack. A timely visit to the doctor is necessary if the heart is at risk.

On the other hand, all chest pains should not be “blamed” on a poor heart either.

Let's try to figure it out, analyze our feelings and try to distinguish between an attack that can threaten health and functional pain.
- Stitching or aching pain in the left side of the chest, which does not give anywhere?
- The pain begins and goes away gradually, lasts a long time, for hours, and even days, if you are stressed?
- Physical activity does not cause or increase discomfort in the heart area, and sometimes even relieves it?
- The pain does not go away after taking nitroglycerin, but subsides with sedatives?

If you answered “yes” to most of the questions, you probably don't have to worry about your heart.

Learn more