People who feel anxious often say that they can’t control what they do. Their body experiences twitches and the muscles spasm in a way that is unexpected and uncontrollable. This puzzles a lot of people because anxiety seems like such an abstract feeling that it is surprising when it has physical effects. They can’t connect anxiety to something as corporeal as muscle spasms. However, the human body is wired to respond to the emotions of a person. For example, the creation of tears when you’re sad is an involuntary emotional response. In the same way, sometimes the muscles contract without warning because it is in response to anxiety felt by the person.
The human nervous system is divided into voluntary and involuntary. The voluntary system is controlled by the mind so it obeys the commands sent to it. The involuntary system is the automatic system; it controls breathing, heartbeat, digestion and other things that are done without thinking. The involuntary nervous system is further divided into sympathetic and unsympathetic. The sympathetic system controls bodily functions and reacts when the person is feeling a strong emotion. So when someone is feeling anxious, the adrenal gland immediately reacts and produces excess adrenaline which causes many physical reactions including muscle spasms. Muscle spasms are the most physically telling of the symptoms, but the other symptoms include 1) rapid heartbeat 2) sweating and 3) cold extremities.
Anxiety, despite being a very abstract feeling can actually create very real and physical responses. The body reacts when it is under too much stress, or when it feels fear and panic. It is a natural reaction that is part of human nature. Why does it happen? The physical signs show us that we should be wary of the situation that causes us panic or anxiety. For example, if we are on the edge of a cliff we get nervous and our body starts to tremble. This is our body’s way of telling us that the situation is dangerous and we should be careful. But when people experience muscle spasms because of anxiety over small things like driving on the road or speaking in public, then it becomes a serious issue.
