Anxiety and Pain in the Body: How They’re Connected and How Therapy Can Help
Anxiety is more than just feeling nervous or stressed—it can also have a real impact on your body. Many people notice that when they’re anxious, they also experience muscle aches, headaches, stomach problems, or jaw pain. Sometimes the physical symptoms are so strong that they feel like a medical condition. While it’s always important to talk to your doctor to rule out any underlying health issues, it’s equally important to understand that anxiety can cause very real physical discomfort.
When you feel anxious, your body activates its “fight or flight” response. This is your body’s way of protecting you from danger by releasing stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. These chemicals speed up your heart rate, tighten your muscles, and change your breathing to prepare you for action. This response is helpful in short bursts, but when anxiety becomes chronic, your body can stay stuck in this high-alert state for long periods of time. This constant tension can lead to pain, fatigue, and other physical symptoms that interfere with daily life.
Some of the most common physical symptoms of anxiety include muscle stiffness or soreness, headaches and migraines, jaw pain or teeth grinding, tightness in the chest, digestive problems like nausea or stomach aches, tingling or numbness in the hands and feet, and trouble sleeping. These symptoms are real and measurable—they’re not “just in your head.” Anxiety changes the way your nervous system processes sensations, which can make pain feel more intense and persistent. Over time, this can create a cycle where pain fuels anxiety, and anxiety fuels pain.
The good news is that psychotherapy can help break this cycle. Therapy works on both the mental and physical aspects of anxiety, teaching you skills to calm your nervous system, release muscle tension, and respond differently to stress. Evidence-based approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and mindfulness-based strategies can be especially helpful. In therapy, you can learn to identify and change unhelpful thought patterns, practice relaxation techniques to ease physical tension, develop coping strategies for stressful situations, improve your sleep, and become more aware of the mind-body connection so you can catch early signs of stress before they become overwhelming.
If anxiety and physical pain are interfering with your daily life, it may be time to reach out for professional help. You might benefit from therapy if you’ve had medical tests without clear answers, if your symptoms are getting worse, or if pain and discomfort are causing you to avoid activities you once enjoyed. Psychotherapy offers a safe space to explore what you’re experiencing and to learn tools that can create meaningful change in both your mind and body.
