Could muscle twitching indicate anxiety?

Hi, it’s exactly what has been happening to me. I have a history of general anxiety, which is closely related to my muscle twitching. Every time when I have an anxiety attack, I feel numbness in my legs and arms, and muscle twitching in my face. It is a terrible feeling when I don’t have any control over my own body. My cheek is twitching at least for twenty minutes, and it makes me even more scared and depressed. Beside medicines for anxiety, I’m taking magnesium because I heard it reduces the muscle twitching. I had many sleepless nights because of this problem, so I decided to try with a music therapy. My friend recommended it to me. She said that there is a special music for anxiety, which will relax me and help me sleep.

Hi,

Many of the chronic fatigue symptoms are similar to that of flu (muscle aches, headache, fatigue and muscle twitching). It can be related to general anxiety determined by extra work or just by being too worried about everyday life. But when it is combined with depession it becomes very dangerous and need special attention and medication. Chronic Fatigue Information Site recommends treatments for relieving the symptoms, like acupuncture, massage therapy or chiropractic treatment. Anyway, you have to know for sure what determined this symptoms. Take care!

I found it quite interesting that anxiety can cause numbness and weakness. I noticed that I experience numbness , tingling, and twitching in my legs, arms, face when I am under stress. I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia but I question the diagnoses. I recently in the past month have been experiencing pain in my thumb joints and fingers then muscle twitching in my left thumb. The twitching has gotten worst after work and after I started to swim. It is almost all the time but did experience the same twitching in my face when I was stressed out. I also noticed it after I started to use the computer on a daily basis. I was diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel in my right hand years ago but I never experienced twitching in it. Go figure-stress can cause alot of problems along with anxiety attacks which I have suffered from in past two years . One day at a time!

Take calcium supplement and there is a big chance that the twitching will go away, try it for a week, it worked for me, after years of wondering what the hell was wrong with me i met this doctor and he told me i needed more calcium and 3 days later i improved.

I have experienced the same twitching due to anxiety. It is quite normal and nothing to be worried about. In fact dwelling on it makes it worst- but during times of anxiety it is hard to not dwell on it. I am learning how to control my own thoughts and telling myself that I am fine. Our words and thoughts have a lot of power over our physical body.

My muscle twitches always coincide with with high anxiety and feelings of depression. You should ask him to see a doctor (psychiatrist). If you don't have health insurance you might be surprised that a visit to a psychiatrist only costs around $250 for an initial visit and $90 for follow ups every three months. Also, the medications (generic ones) cost around $10-15 for a three month supply at grocery stores. I take citalopram (celexa), and am very happy with it. I find the side effects to be less bothersome over time. For me, I had no idea of the cost of these visits and medications, I just figured it wasn't a financial option without insurance - this delayed me from getting treatment. Hope this helps.

Hi, I,ve been reading alot of posts to try to get some answers. I have been experiencing twitching for the past month. It started on my right pointer finger, now it's all through my body (arms, chest, face, legs). I have a history of anxiety and depression but am worried about ALS, or parkinson's. I dwell on it daily and it's taking over my life. I wait for the next twitch in my hand and when it comes, fear goes through my whole body. I am a 38 year old male with two young children and a beautiful wife. I don't know what to do! Can anyone please give me some insight on this? Thanks.....

Please try not to worry. Most likely you are ok. I am a 41 year old female suffering from the same thing. For more peace of mind, I highly recommend you see a good neurologist. Find someone who has a rep for not only being intelligent but with a good bedside manner. They will probably run an MRI of your brain and c-spine and find nothing but will look to see if there are any lesions that indicate a neurological disorder. Then they will run a nerve conduction study where they put little sensors on you and test your nerves. This is just a tad uncomfortable, but if someone with a good bedside manner who is experienced at doing it does it, it should be fine. I would ask around about getting a micro nutrient blood test. Insurance does not like to cover this because it is a much better blood test than the normal blood tests they run but try anyway. I'd add in a good chiropractor and try acupuncture as well as therapy for the stress. I have been on this journey of numbness, twitching, buzzing, etc. for over a year and a half now. I know that anxiety plays a big role, but it is compounded by other things as well such as lack of or not absorbing certain vitamins (someone on here mentioned magnesium and calcium, these are big ones, but are you actually absorbing them even if you take supplements) Nutrition and diet play a big role. Sitting at the computer using a mouse plays a big role (I'm a graphic designer) and many other things. So many people suffer from these scary things and a lot of times the problem is there is some physical stuff going on but you get in an anxiety loop over it. I'm still working on myself-I've got a long way to go. But when I read this my heart went out to you. Hang in there. It is going to be ok.

I've been a transcriptionist for over 20 years so I started freaking out about what it could be, MS, Parkinson's, etc. I went to a wonderful neurologist who did the routine tests, thyroid functions, MRI, EMG, etc, and everything was normal. Even though I consider myself a laid back person, he believes the twitching is from stress - and who doesn't have stress in their life? I just never realized how much it affects the body. Anyway, I'm now on Klonopin 0.5 at night and at first it helped, but the twitching is back and in full force. I see him in two weeks to discuss it further. in the meantime, my 19-year-old daughter tells me she has twitching as well . . . so I'm back to being paranoid and thinking this is a familial disorder, and frightened actually. I don't want to stay on anxiolytics for ever . . . calcium and vitamin D supplements have not helped. Has anyone ever had a true diagnosis on this board???

It's relieving to know I'm not the only one experiencing the symptoms many have listed here; although I don't like that anyone might be feeling the way I have been feeling for the past couple of months. I have had a lot of issues concerning anxiety and I can work through a panic attack but many other frightening manifestations have occured lately. I started having random twitching in my entire body, they are usually single fire and sporatic. I notice it more when I relax or try to sleep. Now I have developed a tingling/numb sensation in my left arm and face. I hope this is due to the anxiety issues but have concerns for something more serious. I think I will make another appt. with my doc and request to meet with a neurologist. I pray for all those that are battling these same concerns and ask for your thoughts and prayers too.

Hey everyone, I too have been experiencing muscle twitching throughout my entire body for almost a year now. it scared me at first, I'm only a 20 yr old male, so i was very stressed not knowing what was happening to me. The doctors told me to wait for a bit see if my symptoms would alleviate but eventually i went through a serious of tests....I was so glad to hear that i was normal, but the twitching would continue...benign fasciculation syndrome. i dont like it all, but i am so grateful it is nothing serious like MS. To get my mind off of this annoying and sometimes scary condition, i live life, love, exercise, lift weights, eat right, basically living my life as if it never existed. Although I don't think I'm stressed, perhaps I am but just dont realize it. My suggestion to everyone is to go to the doctor, be happy and as healthy as you can be. Maybe if we 're lucky, it will all go away sometime. God bless you all! You are all in my prayers.

Hello all.  For the most part, after reading all of the comments here, I do feel better about my facial twitching probably not being any more then stress.  However, I can understand how you are all feeling, and my heart goes out to all of you with your concerns and fears.  I am a very stressed person and have severe anxiety disorder, being controlled on Xanax for some 20 years now (.5 mg 3x day), which commenced as a result of a traumatic event in my life.  It is comforting to know that I located this blog and that my symptoms of cheek twitching is probably no more then stress, but I still don't understand.  It just started yesterday, and I am totally not stressed.  All I was doing was merely surfing the web when it started.  But now I cannot take my mind off of it.  I am so focused on it, I can bring it on just by thinking about it.  Amazing huh?  I guess it goes to show you how powerful the mind really is.  Well, thanks to everyone who has posted, I do feel better.  God Bless You all and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

Hi I'm a 26 year old female and I suffer with anxiety plus post traumatic stress disorder not a nice combination but just lately I have had twitches it's mainly my legs but sometimes my foot or my head twitches and it does scare me especially when i go on websites and twitches could mean all different things like i went on a website the other day and looked at the symtoms for multiple scerosis and that said one of the symtoms is tremors and i was trying to work out if they are the same thing and I'm still wondering if they are the same thing so if anyone knows i would be grateful?? I am at the moment trying to get a grip wih anxiety because i have heard that anxiety can make you think all differnt things and look at different websites looking for symroms and I admit it I need to stop doing that anyway I thought I could sort my own anxiety and stress out but it seems i cannot so i went to the doctors and he has put me on half-inderalla it has an ingredient that blocks the adrenaline which causes anxiety and it slows the heart rate down these tablets are alslo beta blockers and they are used for thryoid problems so they are quite good i have only been taking them for a week so im waiting to see if they have the desired effect. I hate having anxiety especially when it rules my life i'm no way the same person i used to be i wont go out now unless i have to i only feel comfortable on my own in my own flat i get nervous when someone knocks on the door i get nervous when i'm out with people i even get nervous when my partner comes to stay and i dont see him that often i have always wanted someone to talk to about anxiety but haven't found anyone yet because family do not want to talk about it as they dont suffer with it but i never used to be a nervous person i used to be up front, go out when i wanted but at the moment it seems like anxiety is going to rule my life forever what i would give to be able to take my dog for a walk with my partner without these worries :'(  plz if anyone who has experienced anxiety for a long time can help me then please do! but as for the tremors and twitches are they the same thing???eh

I was wondering on this cacuim..I feel this flutting feeling onmy cheek and it makes my eye do like im winking ...I hate it..strange men look at me as IF im doing at them..or at lest thats what I feel they are thinking..soo do u think this will help?..im going to try it since im lactose and tolerant...I dont drink milk nor do i take any medication what so ever,...please let me know if my symtons were the same as yours?..thank u for your time.