Anxiety is the most common mental health condition on the planet. It manifests in a wide variety of ways. For example, some people have generalized anxiety while others may display very specific phobias. Anxiety symptoms can also appear in a cluster thus making it more challenging to specifically diagnose. In roughly 20 percent of cases, one such symptom is a tic.
While anxiety disorders are not the most common cause of tics, there is definitely a connection. You may have experienced twitching in your eyes or in any muscle in your body. If it doesn’t last long, you may not give it much thought. But if the tics linger, anxiety could be the culprit.
What Are Anxiety Tics?
For a movement or action to be considered a tic, it must be any or all of the following:
Compulsive
Repetitive
Out of your control
For a tic to be anxiety-related, it must be caused by your fight-or-flight response. In other words, when faced with a real or imagined threat, your body goes into survival mode. If this mode is activated too often or for too long, you can get stuck in an anxiety cycle. This will present many different symptoms — including tics.
In a moment of stress, your body releases chemicals ostensibly to help you survive. However, these chemicals — especially when no real threat exists — can make your muscles move as if you needed them to fight or flee. When anxiety becomes chronic, you run the risk of these tics also becoming chronic.
Different Types of Tics
Generally speaking, there are two categories of tics. Motor tics might be something like twitching, sniffing, or eye blinking. A vocal tic could be grunting, clicking, or throat clearing. From there, both motor and vocal tics can be broken into two more categories.
Simple tics like grunting or blinking usually involve only one body part. Complex tics last longer. They involve more than one body part, e.g.
Related speech
Squatting
Touching or tapping objects
Smelling objects or people
Despite all this, there is good news. Anxiety-related tics are almost always temporary. You do not need to handle this alone
Treating Anxiety Tics
When looking for a way to manage tics, it really comes down to managing anxiety. A great self-help starting point is self-help. The following elements can fortify your body against the presence of anxiety:
Regular sleep patterns
Making healthy eating choices
Daily exercises and physical activity
A dedicated and quality self-help regimen makes it easier to manage anxiety in general. This is essentially the approach for anxiety tics. If anxiety is causing the tics then don’t focus on the tics. Take steps to reduce and relieve the anxiety you are experiencing, e.g.
Accept the need for help: As stated above, anxiety is very common. There is no shame in this struggle. The best approach is to recognize what you’re dealing with so you can self-educate and take self-help measures.
Stress management and relaxation techniques: Effective options include yoga, meditation, aromatherapy, breathing exercises, and Tai Chi.
Identify your triggers: Keep a journal to monitor what makes you feel anxious and what soothes you. This kind of journal will be quite useful in your therapy sessions.
Speaking of therapy, you will want to reach out and connect with a mental health practitioner. Anxiety is not just occasional nervousness and worry. It’s a diagnosable disorder that is best handled with the guidance of a skilled therapist. In your weekly sessions, you’ll work to identify root causes and underlying issues. You’ll learn coping skills and new approaches to reclaim control of your daily life. If you’re interested in learning more about Anxiety Treatment, click here. Let’s connect soon to set you up for a free consultation!