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5 Tips To Relieve Neck And Shoulder Muscle Tension From Anxiety

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The anxiety you feel when stress is a part of your everyday life can be overwhelming. Physical discomfort—especially feelings of tension in your neck and shoulder—is a common part of this state of mind.

Stiffness from muscle tension can mean difficulty sleeping. It can also affect how you carry out your daily activities like working at your desk or doing housework. If this continues, it can cause pain and other problems such as tension headaches and even migraine

Here, we offer 5 top tips to relieve muscle tension from anxiety to improve your physical and mental health.

How To Relieve Anxiety Neck And Shoulders Tension?

Relieve anxiety-induced neck and shoulder tension with the following tips:

  • Hot water bathing can be used to improve blood circulation to muscles.
  • Physical and mental techniques can be used to relieve neck and shoulder tension from anxiety.
  • Deep breathing creates relaxation by moving the focus from mind to body.
  • Progressive muscle relaxation and stretching exercises help to reduce tension directly in the neck and shoulder muscles.
  • Mindfulness uses imagery to reduce stress through a calming effect on the mind.

How To Relieve Tension In Neck And Shoulders From Anxiety?

Living with anxiety is not a positive experience. The good news is there are several ways to reduce your anxiety through quick and simple techniques. This involves relaxing your mind so you can move it to a calmer place. 

You can also focus directly on your neck and shoulder muscles to reduce tension within them. Here are 5 ways to do this.

Diaphragmatic Breathing

How To Relieve Tension In Neck And Shoulders From Anxiety
Deep breathing can help with anxiety-induced tension. Photo: Shutterstock

Diaphragmatic breathing, ​​also known as deep breathing, is a good place to start to reduce neck and shoulder tension. When you use this technique, you may notice your neck and shoulders are immediately more relaxed. 

Use the following steps to practice diaphragmatic breathing:

  • Find a quiet place with enough room to lie down. If it feels uncomfortable to lie down on a hard floor, use a pillow under your legs and neck.
  • Put your left hand on your chest and your right hand on your stomach, just below your rib cage.
  • Take a gentle deep breath through your nose, keeping your mouth closed. Breathe in deeply over 5 seconds as you concentrate on your right hand, feeling the air pushing your stomach out. You need to feel your right hand move up with your stomach while your left hand is still.
  • Breathe out slowly over 5 seconds through your pursed lips as if you are blowing out a candle.
  • Repeat this exercise for 10 minutes. 

This technique can also be used when you are in a situation where you find yourself breathing too fast because of anxiety. It is a way of slowing breathing to make you feel more relaxed.  

It is best to use this technique daily. One study of university students living with anxiety required deep breathing daily. Results showed neck and shoulder muscle tension improved by over 25% after 5 weeks.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

How To Relieve Tension In Neck And Shoulders From Anxiety
PMR helps. Photo: Shutterstock

Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) is a way to reduce tension in neck and shoulder muscles by tensing and relaxing them. PMR brings about significant anxiety reduction.

Follow these steps:

  • Neck: Facing straight ahead, move your head back gradually so that you are facing the ceiling. Hold for 5 seconds and relax your neck slowly over 5 seconds as you move it back to its original position. 
  • Shoulders: Squeeze your shoulders towards each other with your arms, bringing your shoulders up towards your ears. Hold for 5 seconds and relax your shoulders slowly over 5 seconds as you move them back to their original position.

Stretching Exercises

How To Relieve Tension In Neck And Shoulders From Anxiety
Stretching is one option. Photo: Shutterstock

Stretching exercises can be as effective as PMR in reducing muscle tension when focused on the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles.  These muscles control the movement of the neck and shoulder, and anxiety can cause them to tighten. 

If you have a medical condition that affects your neck and shoulder, it is important to seek medical advice before using these techniques. You can stretch using the following techniques: 

Shoulder Stretch

  • Stand straight with your legs together. Look ahead and keep your right shoulder fixed in place by resting your left hand on it. 
  • Tilt your head slowly to the right, keeping your right shoulder down and hold the position for 5 seconds. 
  • Repeat on the opposite side, holding your left shoulder with your right hand.

Shoulder Rolls

  • Stand straight with your legs together. Move both shoulders back, up, forward and down in a circular movement. Repeat this exercise 10 times.

Neck Stretch

  • Stand straight with your legs together.
  • Rest your right palm on the right side of your head just above your right ear. Then, press gently, so your head tilts to the left side towards your left shoulder. Move your head as far as it will go without too much discomfort. Repeat with your left hand, tilting your head towards your right shoulder.
  • Place your palm at the back of your head. Move your head forward gently towards your chest as far as it will go without too much discomfort.
  • Use a doorway to grip with the sides of the door frame to support you. Then, gently lean forward until you feel a stretch in your neck and collarbone

Stretching can also be achieved through yoga, which is known to reduce anxiety through regular muscle stretching. Get a neck and shoulder stretch with the following steps:

Yoga Child Pose  

  • Lower yourself gently to the floor in a kneeling position.
  • Make the shape of a table so that your arms support your head and knees support your back.
  • Move your knees slightly apart and lean your body forward so that your body rests in the space between your knees.
  • Rest your chin on the ground with your arms stretched out on the ground in front of you. 
  • Maintain this position for a few minutes or shorter if in too much discomfort.

Yoga Cat Cow Pose

  • Hold this position for 30 seconds. 
  • Use the same technique as the child pose until you get to the shape of a table with your arms, back, and legs.
  • Move your upper body forward so that your shoulders are in front of your arms. 
  • Gently arch your back into a “U”-shape so that your belly moves down and you are looking at the ceiling. 
  • Hold this position for 30 seconds. Lower your head so that you are looking at the floor.
  • Then, arch your back into a bridge shape so that your belly is tucked in.

Practice Mindfulness

How To Relieve Tension In Neck And Shoulders From Anxiety
Mindfulness practice is a form of meditation. Photo: Shutterstock

When you live with anxiety, neck and shoulder muscle tension can produce negative feelings. This leads to a preoccupation with the discomfort, which can make anxiety more intense. 

Mindfulness practice is a form of meditation that can reduce muscle tension by promoting acceptance of negative feelings. It is carried out in the following way:

Negative thoughts, feelings, and sensations may enter your head, but it is important to just notice them. Let them pass as you focus on the guided imagery in your mind.

  • Find a comfortable, quiet place to sit, with minimal distraction.
  • Put your arms to your sides and legs straight out in front of you.
  • Close your eyes.
  • Picture yourself in a relaxing place in your mind, such as a stream or meadow.
  • After a minute, start to ask yourself questions about the place you are in.
  • Build a picture of the place using colors, shapes, objects, animals, people, and other parts of the landscape.
  • Imagine walking around the scene to feel experiences. These could include the sound of a stream or the warmth of the sun on your face. Focus on the way your neck and shoulders feel before and after guided imagery.

Hot Baths

How To Relieve Tension In Neck And Shoulders From Anxiety
Sometimes all it takes is a hot bath. Photo: Shutterstock

Bathing in hot water at a temperature of 40 degrees centigrade–one degree above body temperature–for at least 10 minutes a day can reduce both muscle tension and anxiety. The feeling of relaxation is promoted through improved blood circulation to the body and brain.

Long-Term Strategies

The way we live our lives has a huge impact on our stress levels. Alongside short-term steps, long-term solutions can help reduce neck and shoulder tension. 

Causes Of Anxiety-Induced Neck And Shoulder Tension

Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. It involves the “fright-flight-freeze” reaction built into our genes as a way of responding to an unexpected or threatening event. When we freeze, our muscles become tense and unable to relax

Is Anxiety Muscle Tension A Concern?

Neck and shoulder muscle tension is between 2 and 3 times more likely in people living with anxiety. This is when compared to those without anxiety. 

Neck or shoulder tension sufficient to cause health problems occurs in the general population at least once in 15 years. Taking steps to relieve neck and shoulder muscle tension can prevent long-term complications such as chronic pain and stiffness. 

Conclusion

Anxiety is the body and brain’s reaction to stress, with neck and shoulder muscle tension common in this condition. You can reduce this tension using 5 simple techniques that can help lessen your anxiety levels. Accompanied by lifestyle changes, it can give you the potential to improve your physical and mental well-being

Frequently Asked Questions

How to release muscle tension from anxiety?

Use these 5 techniques: deep breathing to relax mind and body; progressive muscle relaxation and stretching exercises to relax muscles directly; mindfulness to provide mental calming using imagery; and hot water bathing to improve muscle blood supply.

How long can anxiety-induced muscle tension last?

If left untreated, anxiety muscle tension can last for several months or sometimes years.

How common is anxiety-induced muscle tension?

Muscle tension occurs in up to half the general population. People living with anxiety are more than twice as likely as the general population to experience muscle tension.

What if I ignore my anxiety-induced muscle tension?

Long-term effects of untreated anxiety-induced muscle tension include chronic pain and stiffness. These can impact your ability to manage everyday activities such as personal care, household activities, and work performance.

Resources

Blurtitout employs stringent sourcing standards, using only peer-reviewed studies and academic research to ensure the accuracy of its content. For details on their editorial process, you can visit their website. This commitment to reliable sources is crucial in the health and medical fields. If you need help finding or interpreting these sources

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About The Author

Tony Rao, MBBS, BSc

Psychiatrist

Dr. Rao is a psychiatrist and writer on mental health. He has 33 years of clinical and research experience, carried out at Cambridge University and King's College London. He has also held a range of leadership positions, including Associate Dean at London Deanery. At the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK, he was lead for public engagement, has written extensively for print media and contributed to radio and television documentaries on mental health. Since 2023, Dr Rao has been a full time medical writer and has published three novels on mental health themes.

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