Waking up with thigh pain, headaches and exhausted? - Anxiety?!
Posted , 3 users are following.
Hello,
So my anxiety has been up and down like a yo-yo and so has my mood lately. Dealing with this constant panic state while trying to "look normal" is exhausting. Currently not medicating. It's pretty much the usual anxiety symptoms 24/7 - racing heart, tight chest, shallow breathing, dizzy etc.
For the past 2 months now though without fail I have been waking up with burning thighs and tension headaches. Some mornings I actually struggle to walk because of the muscle pain - I am only 25 year old guy, physically fit and healthy eating. No smoking or drinking. I had to miss a day in work this week because of the pain 
Nothing brings relief. The headaches last literally all day - painkillers don't do much. My thighs just kind of throb all day like a burning sensation and the tiredness is because I am guessing my sleep quality is affected by tension.
Is there anything anyone could recommend?
I have accepted 99% of all my physical symptoms are anxiety related however it's been almost 6 months of dealing with it. I just want to get back to normal!
Thank you.
0 likes, 6 replies
Sillymop thomas96833
Posted
Hi Thomas. When I spotted your muscular issues I wanted to respond because I have been dealing with this myself a bit recently.
I think when we are anxious we hold ourselves in certain ways. I don't know about you, but when I am as anxious as I currently am, I am constantly moving my legs or holding the muscles in them quite rigid.
Is this something you do? You may not even notice it so perhaps keep an eye out today and see if your fidget a lot of grip the muscles in your legs.
The other thing it could be is a mild bug. When we are anxious I do believe that our immune system is slightly lowered due to the stress our bodies are already going trough...this could make your legs ache.
Another thing could be sleeping positions. You may be over active in your sleep during anxiety and have pulled muscles.
So... I recommend Epsom bath salts. These are great for muscular aches and pains. This bath soak is also meant to help with anxiety, too.
I put half a small cups worth of salt in a deep, warm bath and soak for up to half an hour - longer if I can help it. I think any less than half an hour and you may not feel the benefits.
I would be interested to know if this works for you so if you do try it out, let us know
Sillymop thomas96833
Posted
Oh! And, I forgot to add... Tension headaches... I get these too and I find that tablets don't really help. They come and go throughout the day, sometimes worse sometimes gone completely and really the only way to treat these is to relax.
If you have something in your life that is making you anxious then try tackling that and looking after your body...the salts will help as will lots of water. You can also find some meditation videos on YouTube when tou have some time to yourself.
If you suffer from generalised anxiety disorder and are going through a bad patch..you could try some herbal remedies. I like Bach's rescue remedy. These come in drops that you can drop on your tongue during high periods of stress. They also come in the form of chewy sweets.
Sometimes just the act of taking these makes me feel a little calmer and this may ease your headaches.
thomas96833 Sillymop
Posted
Hello,
Thank you for your kind words and advice. Just going through a bit of a bad patch and weirdly yeah I have just had a bit of an infection. Why does flu make Anxiety worse?
Been on antibiotics for 4 weeks (6 week course) for infections and that has drained me which isn't helping either. At first I thought the leg pain was a side effect of the antibiotics, but looking at it, I think it's more bad habits.
I can actually really relate. When stood up and I am feeling off, shaky or dizzy etc I really tense my legs as in to stay firm and hold my ground type tension.
I will definitely look into Epsom salts as I have read about them before.
The tension headaches are worse, I have actually found muscle rub does more than pain killers.
The doctor has suggested started a course of antidepressants and I was really against them at first, however now leaning towards trying..
Sillymop thomas96833
Posted
Wow a six week course of antibiotics... That's an intense course. That will make you feel awful.. I took antibiotics in the summer for a week and they made me feel pretty disgusting.
I would recommend working on replacing the good bacteria in your stomach with a daily Yakut. Try and eat a bland diet as your stomach will suffer on antibiotics and make sure to take good vitamin supplements.
I would avoid iron tablets but take iron sachets instead for an energy boost. Iron tablets can have an awful effect on delicate tummy a bit the iron water seems to sit well with me (if you are in the uk you can buy these sachets from boots or waitrose. Just take one a day.)
In terms of tension headaches...yes these are truly awful. I always find they add stress when my body is just desperate to calm down. 4head is good and it sounds like this is what you are already using, or something similar.
Once you finish your antibiotics, have a look into diet...there are so many things that you can add to your diet which can help anxiety, especially almonds.
Personally, I wouldn't necessarily take any anti depressants just yet...your body is low from an infection and even lower after antibiotics. My mother suffers terrible depression on antibiotics, they really can have a profound effect.
Give yourself some time to heal first and definitely look into counselling.
Once you have crossed all your t's and dotted your i's then you can explore further meds...and probably from a better position too as the level of desperation (I'm assuming this - my anxiety makes me feel desperate,) won't be as high and so you will be better able to work with your doctor to find the right medication for you.
thomas96833 Sillymop
Posted
Thanks a lot SillyMop.
I have wrote down most of your points and will try them.
The antibiotics aren't great, it seems overkill to me. Normally it's 7 days but it's for swollen lymph nodes in my neck (ultrasound revealed it) which apparently indicates your body is fighting something.
Weirdly I have just read the side effects on the leaflet and enhanced anxiety / depression is listed!
I hardly ever read the side effects (or ask my partner to) as lesson learnt with anxiety, if you think you have it then it tends to manifest.
I think your right though, being run down probably isn't helping and yeah my diet has been rubbish lately, I can't stomach anything.
I will probably wait to the course finishes and then start trying to rebuild some strength back up. Diet and exercise routine before trying the meds again.
Thanks a lot for your help. You really have made my day
Willy75608 thomas96833
Posted
Hi,
I too have never really had anxiety before. I have the leg symptoms also. I wake up and my thighs are tingling and I can't stop moving my legs. I get head aches but they are more like my head feels off rather than pain. I know I am anxious whenever my legs begin to tingle. It is the only time they feel this way. This also sets off the only other symptom I get which is blurry/hazy/fluctuating vision.
I know it is hard to believe it can be anxiety, but I can't figure out any other explanation for these symptoms, at least for me.
Hope this helps.