Stress is a literal pain in the neck! When I go through stressful situations or feel anxious it comes with neck pain, always on the right side. It feels as though a vice is around the outside of my neck between my collar bone to the point just under my right ear. So why does stress come with a physical pain linked to a specific place?
1. Stress can cause muscle tension which tends to target muscles in the shoulders, back and neck. Stress can often cause neck pains and even cause a spasm or a tic. If this occurs you must seek medical advice as neck spasms can be related to other illnesses.
2. Fatigue- with many mental illnesses can come lethargy and fatigue which can lead to you tending to stay in bed or curled up on the sofa, usually in a position that is not the best for your posture. This can cause your joints to feel stiff, your muscles to ache and your skin to feel sore in places. Whenever you can and even if you have to consciously force yourself try to get up, move around and stretch. Build this up to light exercise and keep going.
3. High anxiety levels during a panic attack can cause blood-vessels and nerves to become restricted which can give you pain, numbness and tingling feelings in your head and face including your neck.
So how can we help this:
- keep moving: don't sit too long, get out of bed, take a walk, stretch
- take a hot bath to ease pain or apply a heat pack to the area
- some people prefer applying something cold to the area rather than heat
- check your posture is correct to help you feel comfortable and avoid further pains
- sleep on a thin pillow rather than a large pile
- a firm mattress can help with your sleeping posture
- ibuprofen gel (if you can use it) can help relieve pain
- massage can help relieve muscle tension
- relaxation techniques and stress reduction minimise the cause of your neck pain
- if your pain is persistent or unbearable speak to your GP and seek medical advice
Much love,
Becky xx
You may have heard that I was invited to speak on a podcast with Alan Eisenberg of Healthy University. You can find the podcast on the link below...
Listen here: The Podcast at Bullying Recovery
As you know by reading this blog I have no problem with writing about mental illness. I'll openly share my stories, answer questions, discuss topics and nothing is a taboo subject. I want to speak about mental health but until now you may have never heard my voice or me actually speak about my mental illness. You may have seen my Youtube videos but I struggled to watch them back and removed these. I found that I could easily write about anything but the act of saying it out loud was difficult for me to do. So why now?
Well, when asked to be part of the podcast I couldn't say no. I admire the work of Bullying Recovery and of the podcast host Alan Eisenberg. He speaks with a clarity and wisdom about topics that make me want to shout out loud "me too, he gets me". And you can see the amazing work he does by visiting:
http://bullyingrecovery.org/
Secondly I constantly challenge myself to fight my mental illness. I knew I would find it difficult so that's why I said yes. I knew I would feel anxious leading up to the interview and whilst doing it, which I did very much so, but I knew I would control that anxiety and not let it stop me. And finally, I did it because I will do anything that gets my message out of "you are not alone" to others suffering with mental illness.
I don't want to think of anybody feeling as though they do not belong, they are alien to others, they have no hope or purpose, they are weird or strange, this is only happening to them, they are isolated by mental illness. I felt all of these and I won't be the last person to feel them which is why I need to try and reach as many people as possible. I know people will say if you can only reach one person out there and help them then it is all worth it. Not for me. It would be amazing to know that but it's not enough in the battle against ending stigma and kicking depression and anxieties butt for me. So you never know, you might get bored of hearing my voice now!
Much love,
Becky xx
Stress is a literal pain in the neck! When I go through stressful situations or feel anxious it comes with neck pain, always on the right side. It feels as though a vice is around the outside of my neck between my collar bone to the point just under my right ear. So why does stress come with a physical pain linked to a specific place?
