Do You Twitch?

[Marlene]

While I was on the Klonopin, I never had any sort of twitches or jerks. After I got off of them, I had twitches and jerks pretty badly. I figured it was part of the withdrawals with my startle reflex being set even higher. I've been off of meds for five months now and I still have the twitches. Not as badly as before, though.

My question is does anyone else have these muscle twitches? I find they happen when I'm very anxious and also when I'm very relaxed.

Lisa

[hodge]

I haven't noticed having any lately, i.e. since medication, but I used to get these little muscle twitches or spasms around my eyes. I've heard that was due to stress. I still get the full-body shudders quite often in direct response to exposure to troubling things. Does that qualify?

[Marlene]

Honey...any and all info qualifies. Mine is in my arms. I have this little 'jerks'. Usually when I'm relaxed. The harder my day was, the worse I twitch. It doesn't happen at work (unless I'm really stressing), but I also keep myself strapped down pretty tightly at work. So I wonder if it's when I relax that these small twitches and jerks that I've kept at bay during the day come out stronger than they would have been in the evenings when I'm home. It's like my nerves are playing catch up or something. I don't know if that makes sense.

Last night I went and got a massage (really relaxed!) and I had a few twitches. I'm starting to get used to having these now.

Lisa

[hodge]

Okay :).

Yes, I think that makes a lot of sense, that the body would find a way to release the tension or whatever it's doing.

Wow, I don't know if I could ever handle getting a massage. Maybe someday, after more healing...

[batgirl]

I voted yes, mine are in my face only, I call them facial tics. I get those eye ones Hodge, those are annoying. I also get this one around my mouth sometimes.

[Marlene]

Wow, I don't know if I could ever handle getting a massage. Maybe someday, after more healing...

I look at a massage (since my symptoms) as something akin to a medical procedure. Sounds weird, I know, but it works for me. I had a number of them when my symtpoms first started and my body pain was so bad that massage was the only thing that gave me any relief.

I went this time because I had a number of knots in my shoulders I couldn't work out. It got so bad that it woke me up one night last week. It also took me five minutes of deep breathing once she started for me to relax enough for it to be of any benefit!

Lisa

[kers]

When I'm very stressed or scared, my arms twitch without me trying to or wanting to move them. It makes me feel out of control.

[She Cat]

I have the eye twitch thing all the time lately. At one point I had it in both eyes at the same time. Driving became quite the challenge.

[becvan]

I get some god-awful facial twitches. My eyes twitch and if I'm really stressed my lips and cheeks twitch. I also get severe leg twitches when I'm stressed. I use the twitches as a warning that I'm about to overload!

bec

[veiled]

Hmmmm. I really thought this was normal and not stress related at all. I thought everyone got the eye thing where it feels like it is trying to involuntarily wink for you and the muscles jumping. That is what it feels like to me, they "jump" around... I can amuse myself watching how long they do the little trick. OK, fine, apparently I am easily amused :) Can't say I have had the pleasantry of the mouth twitching... Maybe because I already over work it?

[Marlene]

In my reading, I saw that when someone is recoverying from PTSD, 'sudden startling' (which is a better word for me than twitching) is one of the last symptoms to disappear. It's related to our hypervigilance.

But I find it interesting about so many having facial twitches. When my stress levels go up, I find parts of my face go numb and I get the facial tics as well.

Lisa

[Freddy_hiding_less]

Yes since a few Years. I do regulary recive and give massage with a friend and thats very helpfull for me to get into my body. Every time My voice sinks deeper and gets fuller somehow. I have worked with various relaxation techniques and now when I rest deep, standing or laying down in the bottom of every exhale there comes various kind twists or crunches along my spine. Sometimes pulling the whole front together sometimes just shaking my head, sometimes shaking the whole body like o dog does when it's wet or sometimes like the crunch I'm told baby:s does before their first breath to emty their throat and lungs.
This has for a couple of Years limited my meditation and relaxation practices.

I'm really curious if anyone else experienced something similar. And if there is something behind that.

/Freddy

[becvan]

The sudden startle response is not twitching. Two totally different things. Sudden startling response is jumping, or being scared by loud noises, people coming up behind you, etc...Twitching is an uncontrolled muscle spasm that can happen anywhere in the body and can be brought on by different things (stress, excitement.. who knows? lol)

Just wanted to clarify the difference here...

bec

[Marlene]

Hmm...I have both. Startling and the twitching (uncontrolled muscle spasms). Thanks, Bec, for clarifying the difference. I was having trouble putting words to it.

Lisa

[Marine0311]

My wife hates to sleep to close to me. When I'm alseep I twitch jerk around arms, legs you name it. I've choked her once in my sleep. I talk in my sleep about combat and it scares the crap outa her also.

[mightsurvive]

My eye often twitches which I know is a stress thing and yesterday I had my cheek twitch. And no matter how hard I try to stop the twitch I can't. I also sometimes wake in the night because I have had an involuntary twitch - maybe from nightmares? Not sure though.

[harrywgtn]

I only twitch when im feeling bad and my mind is racing , freaks me out. my whole body can give a unwanted jump

[ChrisB]

Marlene- I said yes to the twitch. I seem to get them after I have removed myself from the stimulus. Better sit down cause I'm about to get weird. Watch Animal Planet, watch the lions chase the deer. Notice that when the lion fails to get the deer in the chase (attack), when the deer gets to safety he will shudder-his entire body will shudder. This is their built in ability to shed the over abundance of adrenaline. (Fight or Flight) Adrenaline helps us survive but could it be that we shed it poorly due to our hypervigilance? Could our twitch or shudder be our way of helping ourselves? Just a thought.

[dedic8edmum]

Marlene- I said yes to the twitch. I seem to get them after I have removed myself from the stimulus. Better sit down cause I'm about to get weird. Watch Animal Planet, watch the lions chase the deer. Notice that when the lion fails to get the deer in the chase (attack), when the deer gets to safety he will shudder-his entire body will shudder. This is their built in ability to shed the over abundance of adrenaline. (Fight or Flight) Adrenaline helps us survive but could it be that we shed it poorly due to our hypervigilance? Could our twitch or shudder be our way of helping ourselves? Just a thought.


I too answered yes to havnig the twitch. I've had them for at least 20 years. When I was a kid my Aunt called them "Nervous Tension Relief", but my Mother would tell me someone was "Walking Over my Grave" I experience them in my eyes and cheek, I also have spasms that travel right up my spine, with my arms often flailing and my head twisting from side to side.

I was totally surprised to read so many others share this expience. Plus I really like the idea that its a coping method we've developed to help protect ourselves. Great thought!

[winterlion]

I started having leg and foot twitches about 2 years ago. My therapist said that's normal. They were really bad while I was still working but since I lost my job, my stress is lower and the twitching has subsided quite a bit.

[void]

My muscles are constantly contracted and it is difficult for me to walk because of same.

[hodge]

ChrisB,

I don't think your observation is weird at all; it makes perfect sense to me. In addition, I do a lot of shuddering at the end of some high stress situations or moments. It feels like a shaking off of something - adrenaline? Could be as simple as such a biochemical response, though I have other feelings attached to it, but I can't think of how to express them right now.

[moog]

Eye and facial (cheeks) twitch. Hands/arms shake majority of the time. At night my I have leg and arm jerks. Apparently I kick the wife quite often. I used to have really bad constant twitching/jerking of my arms almost all the time, it was almost as if I was in convulsions; mostly noticeable when I was relaxed because when I concentrated on movement it would diminish.

[Auburngirl]

I 'twitch' sometimes when I'm just about to fall asleep - usually arms or legs. I used to full on shake (usually just after falling asleep and would wake myself up!), but that hasn't happened in a while. My doctor said it was the body's way of trying to get rid of excess tension.

[2quilt]

i think its a side effect of an antidepressant.

[Grama-Herc]

I am surprised to see a thread about twitching. I sit and watch m y toes move and twitch on their own. I see the muscles in my legs move. It's like looking at a bag of cats moving inside.

The feeling is so strange to see body parts move and have no control over them. I hate when my toes start twitching because they eventually start cramping up and moving directions that they are not designed for. It is painful when you toes turn around side ways and cross over eachother.

But yes to twitching and it drives me crazy

[Auburngirl]

2quilt- I'm not on antidepressants and I twitch!

[moog]

2quilt- I'm not on antidepressants and I twitch!

I've shaked/twitched for some time now....long before meds were involved.

[becvan]

Same with me. I'm not on anti-depressants and I've twitched for years!

[Marlene]

I 'twitch' sometimes when I'm just about to fall asleep - usually arms or legs.

Twitching when falling asleep is known as a myoclonic twitch. Don't ask me how I know...it's just one of those tidbits you pick up along the way. I've heard two theories: Your body thinks it's falling and this is an attempt to right itself. And when you relax to sleep your respiration also relaxes and sometimes your brain thinks you've stopped breathing or are not breathing enough and 'jerks' you to make you start breathing again. Don't know which is true. I've done that type of twitching all my life.

The other type of twitching is my startle response that now set into high as its default. Even a thought about twitching can make me twitch. It's become just another thing for me to get used to with PTSD.

Lisa

[xxarmywifexx]

I get a funny eye twich everynow and then. I'll have to pay attention to it next time to see if I can connected with stress. Would that be a muscle spasm? Cause I get those a lot...in my legs and in my arms. *ponders*

-xxarmywifexx