constant head pressure/dizziness

[MrMike]

good morning to you all. i have been dealing with constant head pressure and dizziness for about a month and its actually the reason i found this site and signed up. i found and read alot of posts on this subject and noticed how similar the symptoms were from post to post. i decided to do some researching (google hehe) on what could be causing these annoying symptoms and i believe that most (or maybe all?) of us here may be dealing with tension headaches caused by neck, shoulder and upper back muscles that become tense from our anxiety. it does make sense considering that neck and back muscle tension is a very common symptom of generalized anxiety disorder....sometimes we dont even notice it. a person without anxiety may get these tension headaches during times of stress but they usually go away....but with us anxiety folk i believe our constant anxiety keeps our muscles tense all day (even when we sleep) which makes our headaches stick around..which causes us more anxiety..which in turn makes our muscles tense up...which..well you get the point. we may feel our neck and back muscles sore, tense, stiff, tired, and sometimes painful. i also found information on ways to treat these muscles that may help us finally find relief from these awful tension and pressure headaches. there are ways to massage the muscles to help ease the built up tension. the best way to learn these techniques is to read about them yourselves. i wont post any particular website since there are many..so instead i would suggest to just search on google or any other search engine for "tension/pressure headaches neck muscles". there are places you can go and have these muscles massaged..but there are also ways to do it yourself. most of these sites show you how. i figure i have nothing to lose so i will be trying some of these techniques myself tonight in hopes that i get some relief. i know it takes more than one time before i will see any real change but i will stick to it and will keep you all updated of my experience with this. i would also ask any of you reading this to try it and maybe let us now how things go with you. thanks and good luck

[MrMike]

just a quick sidenote to my post...if you are indeed having constant head pressure i would advise you to first see your doctor and rule out any other issues non anxiety related that could be causing you these symptoms. if things do check out ok with your doctor then i would say to read about the neck muscles and how they can be a possible cause to your constant pressure/tension headaches.

[Hidden]

Hi, I have this tonight and got doctor in the morning. I'm struggling to accept it's just anxiety I have. I have days like today I think somethings going to happen to me. I'm upset tonight!

[MrMike in reply to Hidden]

hi Jill...i hope your doctor can find the possible cause of your symptoms. its ok to be upset and scared..these are not easy symptoms to deal with. anxiety will make us over-worry (is that a word? hehe) about pretty much everything...especially when it has to do with our health. and when it comes to anxiety all logic goes out the window when we start to worry. all of a sudden that head pressure is a brain tumor right? we dont stop and think about all the other common and less serious things that could be causing these symptoms. hard to stay level headed..i know that too well. good luck at the doctor tomorrow..let us know what he says.

[Hidden in reply to MrMike]

Thank you Mr Mike for your kind message. I hope you are doing ok yourself tonight x

[MrMike in reply to Hidden]

its good therapy to share what worries you..especially with people that know what you're going through. its a good way to get those stubborn "knots" (as i call them) out of your head. i used to write stuff on paper anytime i had something that just would not leave my thoughts. all that worrying can build up so its good to let it out every chance we get. venting is awesome! hehe. im glad i found this website. so far ive met nothing but great people here.

[Hidden in reply to MrMike]

I know it's true, everyone is so kind... It helps 😊

[Agora1]

Hi Mr Mike: I'm in total agreement with the head pressure and dizziness coming from your contracted muscles in your neck. I have had this for years now and have learn to accept it as a part of my stress level. I also use coping skills such as heat paks on the back of my neck and shoulders as well as sleeping on a buck wheat pillow that I can conform to my neck. It helps with relaxing the muscles at night so I don't wake up dizzyheaded. After years of contraction of the muscles I have now developed disc problems with my neck. My daily stress and anxiety have always been controlled by jutting my head forward to hold my balance. Now I have a lifetime issue. I wish you well to try and get this under control before it takes a permanent problem.

Wishing you well.

[MrMike in reply to Agora1]

hi Agora..thanks so much for your input. ill be trying out the heated pad on the neck and looking into a pillow like you mentioned. i do have the tendency to sleep on my side and always have my head propped up over my arm...probably not a very good position for the neck now that i think about it. thanks again. wish you well too!

[veganese]

I wholeheartedly agree. I have chronic tension in my back, shoulders, neck, scalp, also jaw - I clench my front teeth. I don't get headaches, strangely enough, but I have dizzieness/balance problems and general discomfort. I also get really tired, throughout the day. I feel it's a vicious cycle of anxious mind, muscle tension, balance problems which then creates further tension and anxiety by trying to maintain balance when standing/walking. I think intervention by physical means (therapies) helps but the initial problem stems from our mindsets or mal-adjusted thought processes. I'm under a good deal of stress at the moment (various caring responsibilities) which makes recovery difficult, but I'm optimistic. I'm my own worst enemy, pushing myself to do my best when I should really just holds my hands up and say 'that's all I have to give', and admit that I can't control everything in life. I've just bought a book on mindfulness and hoping to go along to a local yoga class very soon.

[MrMike in reply to veganese]

you are so right. it is a vicious cycle. the anxiety produces these crazy symptoms and the symptoms makes us go bonkers...and that constant fear and worrying fuels the anxiety. sucks so much. our minds can be our worst enemy but also our most powerful weapon to fight this. it is a battle trying to stay positive but we have to find those little things in life that make this struggle worth every little bit of our effort.