How Muscle Tension Reflects Stress

Hold That Pose:

How Muscle Tension Can Reflect Stress

Do you ever experience muscle tension during stressful times in your life? For example, have you ever noticed that after a stressful event (maybe a fight with your friend, a negative interaction with your coworker, or a near-miss mountain biking accident) that you feel especially tight somewhere in your body? Maybe your neck gets stiff, or your shoulders start to rise up towards your ears, or you find yourself clenching your jaw.

The effects of stress can manifest in different ways for different people. While the reactions are individualized to each person, we all experience the hormonal reactions of stress. In addition to internal changes, stress also affects out musculoskeletal system by breaking down muscles or causing muscular tightness that can develop into a chronic pattern of holding. 

What is a holding pattern?

But what is a holding pattern? Often times under stress, our muscles respond by creating tension—in effect getting ready to fight or flee. In a sense it is a guarding effect; the body senses danger (remember that fight or flight response?) and responds. In addition, because of the nervous systems effects on the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular system when under stress, you might notice you are breathing shallowly or chest breathing when stressed, rather than breathing deep into the lower extend of your lungs and engaging the diaphragm—what we call diaphragmatic breathing.

A few examples of holding patterns

I often see a variety of holding pattern in patient that can correlate to their constitutional imbalances as seen through Chinese Medicine. For example, take Wood overacting on Earth. This is a typical TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) pattern that generally manifests with alternating constipation and diarrhea, and rib-side pain. This type of patient often has digestive issues as a result of stress. In additional, the muscular system is affected by this pattern through a holding pattern in the middle of the body, which often shows up as hypertonic obliques or abdominal muscles, or a “stuck” diaphragm that doesn’t allow for full breathing.

 Holding patterns can come from other things that just stress, like emotions or simply the way we use (or abuse) our bodies on a day-to-day basis. Even the type of sports we play or activities we do can cause chronic muscle tightness that develops into chronic, dysfunctional myofascial patterns in the body.

Acupuncture is good at regulating stress hormones, but it is equally as good at releasing muscle tension that has formed as a reaction to stress, emotions, or repetitive activities leaving you feeling chronically tight. Any of the below muscles holding patterns sounds like you? It might be time to book an appointment. 

What pattern do you have?

• tightness in the shoulders, clenching jaw, easily angered or frustrated

• abdominal tightness, digestive complaints, chronic over-thinker

• lower abdominal or back tightness, chronic worrier rooted in fear

• chest tightness, heart palpitations, flushed cheeks, easily flustered or additive personality

• chest tightness, trouble breathing, tends toward sadness