Who Feels Stress "Bodily" Instead of Emotionally?

[JumpyTheFrog]

Does anyone else feel most everyday stress (say from dealing with a difficult child) primarily as physical symptoms rather than emotional ones? I'm not talking about shaking in anger or a knotted up stomach. I mean fatigue or back pain. I have a chronic illness that is made worse by stress, but it's hard for me to untangle when my fatigue might be worse because of a stressful week.

 

I've tried googling thiz but can't think of any good search terms for it.

[Guest]

Me. Which is probably why my adrenals are shot.

 

My stress manifests subtly at the moment, but over time I notice fatigue, lowered immunity, pain transference to various areas of my body, lowered coping with even minor stress like loud noises and cold temperatures, increased body weight, sleep disturbances, inappropriate spikes and dips in my energy level, etc.

 

I have autoimmune issues (still haven't figured out exactly what type), hypothyroid, new allergies and food intolerances, and stage four adrenal fatigue.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I experience it both ways.  It's really fun.

 

:glare:

[fairfarmhand]

both.

 

headaches, insomnia (big thing), fatigue are my main physical symptoms

[JumpyTheFrog]

Insomnia and adrenal fatigue here.

[anmom]

I have severe adrenal fatigue which I would love to know how to fix that I attributable mostly to stress.

[FriedClams]

Yes! I've had a few trips to the doc ruled as stress.... ocular migraines, Neuro migraines, eye twitch.... I tend to not stress out emotionally, but physically. It makes me be aware of my stress and body...a lot.

[HSmomof2]

Both. I have Hasimoto's and fibromyalgia. It's great.

[pehp]

Me!  I am particular about self-care.  If I am stressed I have trouble taking deep breaths and have back pain, hip pain and fatigue.  So I am super-proactive about taking care of myself physically and emotionally, and that helps so much. 

[Guest]

I actually get colds, sinus infections, ear infections, etc whenever I'm under stress. I only realized this recently. But sure enough, if I get sick, I can look back at the past week or two and see an increase in stress.

[SKL]

I feel it both ways too.  Often I don't notice the physical part until it's taken a toll.

 

Once I lost my voice and got shingles at the same time, over multiple stressors.  Another time I got severe spasms in my neck and couldn't hold my head upright for days.  Fun times!

[StephanieZ]

Migraines on occasion. Hives on a regular basis. I'm a basket case, pretty much, lol. Stress is a bad thing! I should have less of it in my life. I'm working on that!

[Tsuga]

Back pain is soooo much more pleasant when dealing with stress than, you know, just feeling upset like in my stomach. That's what I'm enjoying right now. 😊

[*Inna*]

Me. Both ways.  :banghead:

 

Diagnosed with adrenal fatigue and slowly learning how to deal with stress in healthier ways. Also, I've been eliminating big sources of stress in my life (aka distancing myself from emotional vampires in my life).

[Suzanne in ABQ]

Yup.  Headaches, neck stiffness, pain between my shoulder blades, lower back pain.

Fatigue, mostly caused by insomnia, caused by my brain spinning over and over the same "gunk" for hours and hours.

 

Oh, and I get really irritable, mostly due to the above, but triggered and received by my children.  Poor souls.

[fraidycat]

I feel it both ways, but Absolute exhaustion is a biggy. Stressful situation = I really just want to sleep.

[Aiden]

I often rely on physical cues to tell me that I need to take a look at my life, see what's stressing me out, and deal with it.

 

My most common, most easily noticed, and usually most severe symptom is fatigue--often, but not always, wanting to do nothing all day but sleep (but staying awake anyway, not actually napping), but then insomnia at night. Or, even if I sleep well at night, when I'm stressed, I still feel exhausted all day.

 

Mindless eating--I find myself standing in the kitchen looking for something to eat without being hungry and without even consciously realizing I was headed there.

 

Tension in my shoulders and back, often leading to pain.

 

I think my daughter feels stress physically as well. We've been separated from my husband quite a bit lately (she and I went to my mom's for almost 3 weeks to help after a medical emergency, whereas my husband had to stay at home to work; two weeks after we returned, he had to leave for a conference). My daughter says she's fine, but within a week of being separated from her daddy the first time, and the first day she was separated from him the second time, she started talking about feeling "knots" in various places on her body. She would say she was ready to get out of bed, or go into a different room, or eat lunch, but the knot in her stomach or throat or bottom hurt so badly she couldn't move. My husband told me that it sounds similar to stress-related problems he experienced as a child. She also seems more tired than usual, so I'm thinking she got the worst from both of us.

[IsabelC]

One of my daughters is like that. Emotional stress triggers attacks of growing pains.

[Joyofsixreboot]

Yes. I really don't think I'm stressed and then dh points out the giant knot in my shoulders. I really don't notice that until he tries to " fix" it. I also quit eating but not intentionally. Obviously I'm clueless but my body is in on it. I try to be aware but it usually escapes me until dh or the kids point it out.

[VaKim]

My back will hurt, usually right in the middle. And sometimes my neck and head. It can be "good" or "bad" stress. Just any kind of "intense" day will do it.

[lailasmum]

Insomnia, facial pain and twitching  and my appetite tends to swing wildly either to the extreme of not feeling hungy for days or feeling ravenous with no middle ground.  The facial pain& twitching thing always shocks me because it's so bad and seems to be so clearly triggered by times of stress that I've never experienced it outside of these times. I have cut off people that stress me but I need to remember to not acquire replacements which I can have a habit of doing. 

[2ndGenHomeschooler]

I get sick - usually a bad cold. I also tend to stress eat and most of that will be sugary junk food. The combination of of poor diet and stress is enough to cause a bad cold. I also get mouth cold sores. The more stressed I am the more I get. Usually it's just one but I've had as many as four at a time. (We couldn't find an apartment that we could afford after I had our first baby and had to move in with my IL's. They're great people but I really didn't want to live with them.) A lot of my friends and family know that most - but not all - of my cold sores are caused by stress and that the size, quantity, and frequency all correlate to the amount of stress I'm under. I hate cold sores and I hate people asking what I'm stressed about when I have one....

[Heatherwith4]

Yes. Headaches, tension in back/shoulders, stomach issues. Shaking and eye twitches. Fun times. Thankfully it doesn't happen terribly often.

 

ETA: you said everyday stress. Oops. I primarily feel stomach tightness/upset for everyday stress. The other stuff would be serious stress.

[Georgiana Daniels]

Yes. Random heart palpitations. It's scary and it sucks.

[Critterfixer]

I do. Isn't fun at all. I don't even recognize it as stress unless I think about it. It's just aches, pains, a churning mind, inability to focus and lack of energy. 

Ironically, the best way for me to decompress the stress is to go run, walk, dig in the garden, do some heavy lifting...I need to get physical to get rid of the physical stress symptoms.

[JumpyTheFrog]

I already knew that when my back tightens up, leading to neck pain and headaches, that it is from stress. Now I'm wondering if the insomnia is made worse by it, even though I rarely am kept awake because of things running through my mind. Now it might seem like the answer is obvious, but I have a long list of things I already have to do to have any chance of sleeping and quite a list of insomnia triggers. So many things throw me off that it has taken eight years to notice many of the triggers because there are too many variables in a day and thus it's been hard to notice the patterns with all the "noise."

 

I have noticed that often when my oldest is having a bad day, that I will go from feeling okay (for me), to suddenly exhausted (that wired and tired feeling). It sometimes seems like he's a psychic vampire or something...but really the problem is he's an intense, difficult child and my body has almost no reserves. (We are making progress with his behavior.)

 

I don't want to make this thread about parenting. I want to learn how determine when my symptoms are caused or made by worse by stress. I do have all sorts of abnormal test results, so I know everything isn't "in my head," but stress is almostly certainly the initial straw that broke the camel's back, as my sleep troubles began the day my oldest was born.

 

My doctor has told me that meditation will be more helpful than most other interventions we've tried. I have an emwave 2, I just need to get back in the habit of using it.

[Amy in NH]

Your emotions affect your body, and negative emotions can make you physically sick.

[Spryte]

Yes.  I have a lot of serious chronic issues going on, but there is no doubt that stress of many types exacerbates them.  Maintaining a regular schedule helps, good nutrition, appropriate supplements, taking meds on time), meditation and exercise all help during normal times, but when there is significant stress - everything flies out the window.  Muscle pain, spasms, lead to migraines and episodes of trigeminal neuralgia (fondly dubbed the suicide disease, it's pretty stinking awful), among the more common fibro flares, CFS, etc.  My doc checks my levels every 3 - 6 mos, and tweaks meds as needed (thyroid, adrenals, etc - I have a lot of missing/nonfunctional organs here).   

 

For managing the misery, once in a cascade of physical symptoms - I stress dose (I have Addison's Disease, so a stress dose of cortisol is necessary at times, as my adrenals don't function at all); increase supplements suggested by the doc for these times specifically; coat my muscles with a gel to help muscle pain; max out my monthly scrip of Axert; and sleep.  Our family has an emergency plan which works well as long as DH is not traveling.  If he's on the road, the kids and I go into survival mode.  We have easy, nutritious foods on hand (I cook ahead and freeze for these times - we plan for them, as we know they happen).  We have a plan for school on days like these.  And I have activities for the little one that don't require help from me, reserved for these occasions.  

 

ETA: During bad times, I also try to make it to cranial sacral therapy (sometimes I can't swing getting there).  Massage therapy is also helpful, and if I can't make it to the therapist, DH will pull out the massage table and do some work on my neck/shoulders/upper back - which is where a lot of my tension builds.  Sometimes, if we catch it early, that will stave off a major flare.  

 

I should add also, that we go into "reduce inflammation" mode at these times, and pull out all of the inflammation reducing tricks and tips we've learned over the years.

 

[Lisbeth]

Yep, I have a lot of physical fallout from a very stressful childhood. It really makes me angry to think about...which probably adds to my physical symptoms.

[plansrme]

I have recently observed something similar but far, far more minor.  Nevertheless, it surprised me, and I can see how, on a larger scale, it could affect one's health.  I've been trying to run more and longer lately, and as always when I run, I pick something to think about to stave off boredom.  One of my kids has been causing me minor stress lately, and I notice that when I think about her, my endurance plummets.  I get tired and have to stop and walk repeatedly.  Now that I've figured out the problem, I immediately shift to happier thoughts--bunnies, puppies, vacation plans, and I instantly feel better and stronger.

[JumpyTheFrog]

among the more common fibro flares, CFS, etc. My doc checks my levels every 3 - 6 mos, and tweaks meds as needed (thyroid, adrenals, etc - I have a lot of missing/nonfunctional organs here)

 

...

 

I should add also, that we go into "reduce inflammation" mode at these times, and pull out all of the inflammation reducing tricks and tips we've learned over the years.

I've had adrenal issues for 8 years now, but thankfully not Addison's disease. I did descend into CFS for a couple years, but have improved enough to not have that anymore, although I still worry about a relapse.

 

Unfortunately, my oldest has a personality that needs a ton of structure and to be kept busy or his behavior gets really ugly, which only makes my symptoms worse. So when I'm not doing well, I'd like to send him to day camp, but it would only make him worse. Thankfully, DH has worked at home for the last five years.

 

I'd like to learn more about your inflammation reduction ideas. Maybe there are some I haven't tried yet.

[prairiewindmomma]

iinflammation reduction:

tumeric

fish oil

immuno-modulating herbs like: astralgus, ashwandaga, etc.

 

things that increase inflammation:

sugar

any immune-stimulating herbs (echinacea, elderberry, etc.)

 

I also up my magnesium, which is a smooth muscle relaxant.

 

Started a cold here this am; had too much sugar over the weekend. Had huge joint flares Sunday and Monday and ta-da, today I am sick. I could handle the stress when I was eating well and sleeping well and exercising, but then I sabotaged myself because I am awesome like that.

[Guest]

I've had adrenal issues for 8 years now, but thankfully not Addison's disease. I did descend into CFS for a couple years, but have improved enough to not have that anymore, although I still worry about a relapse.

 

Unfortunately, my oldest has a personality that needs a ton of structure and to be kept busy or his behavior gets really ugly, which only makes my symptoms worse. So when I'm not doing well, I'd like to send him to day camp, but it would only make him worse. Thankfully, DH has worked at home for the last five years.

 

I'd like to learn more about your inflammation reduction ideas. Maybe there are some I haven't tried yet.

I take a lot of similar supplements as prairiewindmomma, but include magnesium, vitamin k through dietary sources, and low dose naltrexone.

[The Governess]

Have you all read the book The Highly Sensitive Person? If you feel that you overreact physically to minor stress you may be one of the lucky people ;) who have a more sensitive nervous system.

 

You can take the test here: http://hsperson.com/test/highly-sensitive-test/

 

After I learned this about myself I was able to give myself a break about what I should or shouldn't be able to handle and make my personal downtime a priority without feeling guilty about it.

[Murphy101]

My dh. It affects his diabetes, making it hard to keep sugars level, causes golf ball size knots to form in tense shoulder and jaw lines. A good chiropractor has been wonderful in staving off those problems.

[JumpyTheFrog]

I don't think I used to be a highly sensitive person, but since getting sick, I might be. I will go taks the test.

[LizzyBee]

I think I have both. But it seems the physical symptoms exceed the emotional symptoms lately. I've been working 55-60 hours a week, and I don't feel particularly stressed, but I have knots in my back, I catch myself being tensed up, and that sort of thing. Even when I was working 35-40 hours a week before tax season, I had to get a night guard because I was grinding my teeth at night, even waking myself up from it, and I was having drowning dreams which I only have when I'm stressed. 

[JumpyTheFrog]

I just took the HSP test and scored on the border. I noticed that I checked many things that I wouldn't have before getting sick.

[prairiewindmomma]

I took it, I am not.

[Critterfixer]

I scored an 18 on the test. So I guess I'm sensitive. :laugh:

I seriously have certain sweaters that I put on to wrap myself up when I'm feeling tense. They have to be clean and ready for use at the first of the week. It's standardized testing day. Got one on.

[Gentlemommy]

Yes. Fatigue, sore muscles, migraines, lack of appetite, insomnia. Scored 21/22 (one I could have gone either way lol) on the HSP test.

[Lanny]

Stress can damage many body parts.  It isn't simply emotional damage.  I have P.T.S.D.   Years ago, I read they had discovered that some, but not all, people who have P.T.S.D. have a "Marker" in their blood. Nobody who does not have P.T.S.D. has that "Marker" in their blood. So, obviously, physical changes.   The best thing, which is much easier said than done, is to reduce stress, as much as is possible.   

[Tess in the Burbs]

I do.  my neck on my right side of skull or my left shoulder hurt when I am stressed.  And I know I am dealing with it emotionally b/c I usually can't sleep when stressed...which only leads to more physical stress lol. 

[dtsmamtj]

How does one define physical stress?  My daughter was diagnosed a few years ago with Hoshimoto and food intolerance.  She has been feeling sick/unhealthy since then.  It got worse last year then found out she had deficiencies in C, D, B, iron, folate, etc.  The thyroid med she had been on turned out to have traces of gluten in it.  Iron levels are somewhat stable and so are thyroid numbers.  During all of this she started exhibiting episodes of involuntary muscle movement.  EEG and MRI are normal.  She shows no outward signs of being stressed but wondering now about physical stress?  She has also battled sleep issues since all of this started.  Ugh - need to help her figure things out.

[Rosie_0801]

I have severe adrenal fatigue which I would love to know how to fix that I attributable mostly to stress.

 

A chiropractor can help, but their help won't last long unless you make the changes you need to prevent yourself heading back into the same cycle.

[chocolatechip]

Yes, I have both. It manifests physically as massive acne breakouts, what I call "busy brain" (such a low attention span I can barely focus on one thing for any length of time), and headaches/tense muscles.

 

I scored 16 on the HSP test.

[Ausmumof3]

I feel it both ways, but Absolute exhaustion is a biggy. Stressful situation = I really just want to sleep.

This is me at times.

[Ausmumof3]

I think it is fairly normal. I don't know if it's normal worldwide or only in cultures that teach kids not to cry or show emotion. I am absolutely sure with some people I know that their physical problems come because they aren't acknowledging the emotional stress. To give themselves the downtime needed to process, they have to become physically ill.

[AnnE-girl]

My TMJ flares up. I don't grind my teeth, but so much tension goes to my jaw that it starts popping and hurting to chew. It has always gone away, but my dentist has warned me that it will likely cause permanent damage eventually.