A tensing up habit

Yeah.. I mainly do it when I'm excited about something.. Same thing when I get caught.. I used to clap like quickly and changed to something not so obvious.. I'm really sick of it because now I live with my GF and if she catches me I feel like she'll think I'm a retard.

I have recently wondered if it's from increased intelligence or something like that.. It's almost like I'm living my thoughts when I do it.

Me too! Oh my goodness! I don't believe this. At first I thought the original "A tensing up habit" post was just like me. Then I read the next several posts and it is even more like me! I have been doing this for as long as I can remember. My tensing up habits change every so often too! I have had so many different issues it would be difficult to list them all but to name a few - rolling my eyes so far up or down that I could feel the muscles tensing, squinting my eyes, flaring my nose, nodding my head, pulling at fingers and/or toes enough to feel them stretch. One big thing that is an issue for me that you didn't mention is that for the most part, everything has to be even from one side of my body to the other. If I tense one eye then I have to tense the other. I'm 30 now and it has gotten much better because it used to be much worse when I was younger. People would ask me if I'm okay. Usually now it's only noticeable to other people when I'm watching TV. Maybe I'm just able to control myself a little better now.

I could go on forever about different phases I've gone through. Mine changes every couple to several months as well. It's crazy to read stories from others who have similar issues! I really thought I was the only one. I should have known better. I can't stand it when people tell me that I should just stop. I tell them that it's not involuntary but it just feels good and they don't understand the way it feels when I don't do it. It's like my body is saying "You need to tense that muscle. You need to tense that muscle. Tense it! Tense it!..." and I can't get it out of my head until I do it. Could you call it an addiction? Only if you are willing to call a three year old an addict.

All the best to you all. I wish I had some advice but I don't. I'm hoping for some too!

WOW, I can't tell you what a relief it was to find this! Honestly thought I was reading something I'd read. So now we know we are not alone! BUT I don't think that makes this normal. Is it a form of OCD? I never do it when people are looking but I find myself screwing up my face as much as I dare while they look away. Sometimes I get caught and I pretend to have terrible hayfever, which works because while I tense up my face I put my fists on my nose :/
I find it sometimes increases my heart rate makes me feel really hot/flustered/out of breath and I can see wrinkles setting in above my nose + on my forehead (I'm 20!)
So what now…Please will a doctor/psychologist spot this and shed some light for us? Or if any of you get the courage to speak to a professional about it please share. I truly hate having this compulsion!

wow, I am exactly the same way, after reading the first 2 paragraphs I thought you were talking about me, I tense my ears and jaw for a couple months, then I'll move to something else, like tensing my right hip and knees. I have actually been injured from doing this though, which worries me. I have dislocated my knee twice from tensing it up with every step. But it wont last but a couple months then I'll start tensing something else up, like i'll do something weird with my eyes, and by doing so it gets many weird looks from onlookers. I would like to get help but where do you go? I am glad I am not alone, please any help is appreciated

Tourettes?

Wow, I am so glad I found this thread. I have the exact same thing. I have had it since I can remember. Like most of you, I can control it in public, it is when I am alone. I tense my jaw and clench my fists and walk around as if I am in a trance. I am working from home at the moment so seem to be doing a lot more as I am by myself. Has anyone actually been diagnosed with a condition. I want to seek medical help but it would be great to know what is the condition I have.

I do the same thing where I clench up my fists at twist my face and shake. People who catch me doing it ask me if I’m cold... I wish I could stop doing it because it is so embarassing.

~ATTENTION READERS~

Intense Imagery Movements (IIM) is a subclass of Complex Motor Stereotypy (CMS), typically characterized by vivid imaginary images which occur simultaneously with the stereotypy.

These actions can be described as immersive & intense.

Not all with CMS experience IIM.

It is common for adults to experience IIM exclusively as suppression in public can typically be achieved.

(There is not a lot of information out there on IIM, as it is even more rare than CMS, especially as an adult. When web searching, the keyword CMS:IIM may be helpful) – Adieu, Erica R.

Please read this 10/25/18
Okay so I have never ever researched this because I thought surely no one does this and there can’t be anyone doing weird stuff like tensing up like me all the time. Literally everyone’s post in here is exactly, like pin point accurate, to what i experience. I get this intense adrenaline rush like 50 times a day, give or take. It is not even thought of when I’m around other people but right when i get in the bathroom in a public place, or I’m somewhere where my body feels it’s sociably exceptable (98% of the time when absolutely no one is around and I’m home alone or something) I will put both of my fist together to where my fingernails are touching each other, press on one fist with the other and vice versa with intense pressure and make a small noise that sounds like this “eeeeee” and it makes me feel good. Like y’all said, extremely controllable in public, but not at all when alone, and I’ve been doing it ever since i was young and i just thought how weird it is, i do it especially in the shower and I’m assuming i do it in there because there is no one around. All my friends know i do that, literally, and they think it’s a joke, and they all do it too, and i play along with it when I’m around them literally all the time. If you know me then you know I’m a goof and you think this is just another goof thing about me, but i only do it around people my body feels comfortable around (but never as intensely as when I’m alone because it’s a “joke” and they would literally freak out if they saw me tense up like i do and look excited) Like i said, it always happens in the shower, literally always, and when i get excited i want to do it so bad, it’s like an adrenaline rush/release. When my roommates aren’t home i literally do it uncontrolllably and if they or anyone saw how intense it gets, would think I’m psycho, but I’m not, it’s literally this burst of energy i get, it’s insane, idk what to do. I’m prescribed ADHD medicine but that doesn’t help the problem. It makes me feel good, like idk, it doesn’t hurt or anything but it’s insanely annoying that i waste time, even when in a hurry, to stop and do this stupid thing that makes me feel good. I also always bend each of my hands back to where i can feel the muscle/pressure go as far as it can and it feels good, i also do this with my eyes and my fingers, and idk what it is but it’s getting out of hand when I’m alone. People notice me do the hand and eye gestures and ask if I’m okay. Yes I’m okay it feels good but dammit why do i do this... i thought it was a dumb habit but literally all the stuff y’all are saying is literally exactly what i do, and I’ve been doing it for ages. One of my roommates in college caught me doing it when i was getting out the shower really early in the AM, i didn’t know he was up, he thought it was weird as hell because he always saw me do it “jokingly” around other people but was confused on why i was doing it alone. I just told him i was excited.. i didn’t know what to say. Oh, and I’m 23 years old. I also bend my feet upwards to feel the tension, it feels good, idk. It looks stupid as hell and i don’t need to be doing it, especially in public bc people ask if I’m okay, and then when I’m by myself i do the clinching of fist against each other and go “eeeeee” and all my veins pop out and i can’t breathe, what the hell is this. I feel like if i told a Dr about this he would think I’m a damn clown. Like this is annoying. Help lol. Do y’all have any other methods or info/links on something like this? Thanks you

Wow, I just had to add my two cents to this page and say I'm so relieved to find this. I'm 27 and I have done this for all my adult life. Only when I'm alone, whenever I'm experiencing some form of nervousness or anxiety (in my case, viewing certain peoples' social media profiles, or thinking over some difficult task I need to do for work), I tense up my whole upper body as much as I can - torso, arms, and face to the point where my muscles shake. Only briefly though. I don't know why I do this, but having lots of idle nervous energy just drives me to do flex my muscles as much as I can. I only do it alone. I'm sure it looks pretty weird. Sometimes I will make a point to leave the room and go somewhere private like a bathroom to have this reflex, like after a tough social interaction at work.

I have always suspected that it is a related symptom to things like Tourette's, or OCD, which I also experience in a very mild degree, but my particular tic has been hard for me to look up online without immediately crossing over into extreme symptoms which I do not have. In my case, I do not consider it impeding my life. I have never injured myself doing this, and it doesn't prevent me from doing anything, it's just a "blowing off steam" reflex that I have. I have to wonder what will happen if/when a partner observes me doing this.

After a good cry, I am able to type. thank you, because I have been struggling with this exact same thing for 48 years and I am so relieved to know I am not the only one. I am interested to learn more about Tourette's, I don't have any out bursts or make noises of any sort. And I do find I can hide it relatively well from the public eye but it gets harder to do so, I am so thankful for the this writer's courage, with out you all I would still be alone with this.

I've experienced much of the same symptoms everyone is describing here.. If I'm alone and something I see or think about causes excitement I go into 'hulk mode' like I'm about to evolve into a different Pokemon. I scrunch up my face, usually bringing my hands up to around my mouth and experience a huge influx of adrenaline even only for a few short seconds.. at which point I usually notice my previously subconscious actions and stop.

I think the adrenaline and relief that this momentarily brings me from any excitement or anxieties I suffer from are what feeds this habit into something I cannot stop doing.

I finally made my concerns about this public when I was 25 as I also noticed that I began to experience headaches (or like a constant pressure) in my left temple and doctors we're concerned that it was possibly a tumor so I had an MRI scan but results showed a healthy functioning brain. The Doctors could not relate the characteristics of my habits to anything except tourette's and autism, both of which they would not diagnose me for and of which I know I do not have.

A few years ago I was convinced that it was ADHD but I do not share many of the symptoms associated with that disorder either. So quite possibly it is 'this primary motor (repetitive) stereotypy' that Dr John Hopkins describes.

I am 28 now and still experience these fits when I am alone. It still allows me to lead a relatively normal life except I do believe this habit affects my focus, attentiveness and motivation because if something provokes me to 'have an episode', often the adrenaline following that throws me off track and I can never regain focus.

Curious to hear more about diet and whether that can effect the urge. Or any other cures for that matter?

After reading this, and all the comments, and doing extensive research on Tourettes, I realized I don't blurt out words, or do anything like that. For me, it's only my muscles with contract every minute of every day. It's so annoying, especially at night, because I constantly have to move my legs. What's weird though, it that I have all the "muscular" symptoms of Tourettes, but not the others. Any one else experience the same?

To all posters,

These are symptoms of tourettes syndrome. I have it as well. If you go to a doctor who specializes in tourettes, you will finally get some understanding but unfortunately there is no cure. Please look into such things as meditation and deep muscle relaxation as they are your best bet for diminishing the tics, though they need to be done regularly and daily.

There are a lot of threads on the net I have seen with people asking the same questions as here. Tourettes is not very well understood and only the most extreme forms are shown in the media. This us a neurological disorder. The brain is sending the wrong messages to the body, so you keep feeling there is some "tension" in your muscles you need to "release" but no matter what you do it never gets released.

It us a very difficult and exhausting.thing to live with day after day and most adults who do not have very visible symptoms that catch attention in public remain undiagnosed. So You all deserve to be recognized for your courage and fortitude in struggling with this syndrome!

Relaxation techniques like those I mentioned above are the key. I wish everyone who struggles with this success in finishing the severity of their tics using these techniques.

I'm back again guys... I have self diagnosed with Impulse Control Disorder and I was sure this habit had to be connected... after you read up on ICD on Wikipedia, please look up Tics. I am so positive this is our answers... now to look at treatments... good luck all! Xo

This is EXACTLY the same for me. It is usually something I do when my emotions are heightened such as excitement. I suffer from some other issues with panic and anxiety (though not crippling) and it makes me wonder if it's all related. So glad this site provides the forum to discuss these things, even if anonymously. It feels good to know other people struggle with it too!

If you suffer from panic attacks and heightened anxiety, then perhaps you should see someone about it. Panic attacks are horrible and definitely not normal to have to put up with on a regular or regularish basis.
I hope that your anxiety doesn't lead to you having a problem with alcohol, because relying on it to relax and et rid of all the tensing and so on isn't the best idea. Be careful with that.

I've also got a strange habit. When I'm feeling in a bit of a state, I talk to myself and I don't even realise it sometimes. It could be that I'm thinking about something stressful or thinking about something about myself that I perceive in a bad light or I'm just angry. It might be swearing or something like "die die die" over and over again. It sounds disturbing, I know :/ I don't think anyone has noticed it though. Somehow.

I mean, once, it happened when I was on the phone to a friend and I caught myself in time.

Thank you for sharing this. I always thought it was just something weird I did. It's very comforting to hear my symptoms and the exact feeling described by others!

This is an old thread, but I thought I would post this in case anyone else stumbles here. There is a DSM-5 diagnosis called a Persistent Motor (or Vocal) Tic Disorder. Criteria for this entails having one or more motor tics OR one or more vocal tics (but not both). If both types of tics are present, it may be another diagnosis (e.g., Tourette's).

In my case, I only have this one tic of squeezing/pressing my face and tensing my muscles. I have done it since childhood. I have no vocal tics. I have not yet sought an official diagnosis, but I meet all the criteria. This is the answer that makes the most sense in my case. I thought I would share in case others relate as well.

Omg this is like Mean Girls when everyone was getting things off their chest 😭 but I have never felt so grateful to find this thread! I tense as well several times a day. It’s like releasing bottled up energy. When I get excited, happy, angry, etc. triggers the tensing too. But am I the only one that when I’m in a relaxed state, or about to drift to sleep My breathing starts to tense as well?? It’s so embarrassing when I’m cuddling someone and they can feel my breathing randomly tense and struggle. Eventually it’ll stop, but so weird.

I read this quite a few years ago and discovered I likely have Tourette’s but still, at 37, I haven’t told a soul. My parents must have an idea, as they know I’ve had this problem but never took me to a dr about it. I have an appointment with my primary this week where I plan to bring it up and start dealing with it. I have other issues like bipolar and I’ve had problems with addiction. I’m wondering if I had been diagnosed a long time ago, I would have found some relief. Oh well, gotta start somewhere! It was nice reading everyone’s experiences, makes you not feel so alone.

when i get this i tend to do it alone too, but i rub fingers in to the palm of my hands and i dont have a clie why lol

I only found this page because I was curious of why I've had this weird tension thing since i was maybe 11; so when I tense which Is mainly every day, particularly when I'm watching movies because I'm so fixated on the movie to realize I'm doing it. but like someone mentions before they have to tense both muscles, which is the same with me i have to tense my arms and hands at the same time. How I tense my hand is by bending the tips of my fingers forward and flex my arms. my family thinks I'm just being weird I honestly don't realize until my arms are noticeably directly in my face.

funny story I was in year 9 and I was sitting in class and everyone was in the computer room and busy turned around doing their own things and some girl in my class walked in and saw me tensing she asked me later on if I was okay. but yeah if I'm by myself I don't even care because it's kind of a relief thing when I'm angry or excited, but it's strange because I'm not the type of person to show crazy excitement when surprised with stuff. The only effect I get from tensing has increased my heart rate and had heavier breathe.

also I don't think this is the same things but from earlier times I use to bit the inside of my cheek everytime I crossed a street like in the car, I use to draw hearts and stars on my thumb with my nail . I cool to hear all your stories too

After reading this I too am the same.
I’ve been searching the net for many years on this and finally yes I agree it’s just a habit we have to break.
I was tested by medical doctors to have Tourette’s then OCD then not sure....
I have found a good way to stop these habit times by opening my mouth and breathing deep... it actually works.
EspeciAly when I’m trying to sleep and I’m doing faciAl tensing etc... I just open my mouth and start to breath that way. I eventually fallll asleep with my mouth open...
You don’t have to breath deep just leave your mouth open.
Try it

Here's a good link: https://www.movementdisorders.org/MDS/About/Movement-Disorder-Overviews/Tics--Tourette-Syndrome.htm

Also, I should note that my tics are less noticeable when I am on my antipsychotic medication (don't suddenly stop taking your meds, kids) and when I briefly (like a month) stopped taking them, they were pretty bad.

This is a miracle! I always have done this. I used to think that I was 'excited', as a child would be going to an amusement park and they lock their muscles and dance around. But now, it happens more frequently, and I notice it happens when I get strong emotions or if my medication is making me feel jumpy. Its just this conscious action that I do to relieve excess energy I think, because if I resist the urge, it feels like it ripples through me and while it's not a painful feeling, it feels like a bad thing. I can control it when I'm around people, but when people's backs are turned I do it.

My daughter is 9 and has a habit of tensing up her face, arms and hands to the point where it looks like mini seizures. She doesn't always realize that she is doing it and it happens so frequently I don't think it's in response to elevated emotions or anxiety. Its been suggested it's a sensory thing dealing with her proprioceptive input receptor(?). Does that sound reasonable? How do you manage it? It's becoming so noticeable and kids are just mean!

Well, I have a diagnosis of Aspergers, Tourettes and Bipolar and I do this. I often have to tell myself to conquer excitement and remain clam because when I start "spazzing out" as I call it it impairs my ability to think and concentrate, and I end up off on tangents not doing what I'm supposed to be doing. I tend to do it when I'm nervous about a task, want to feel better or really excited about something. The euphoria can get pretty intense. I generally like it I suppose but I hate how it impairs me and would do better without it... :/

Wow, I did not expect to find something so similar to what I've been dealing with by googling "tensing habit"! I had vaguely considered Tourette's, but I didn't think that mild cases existed. That actually makes a lot of sense. For me, I've had various impulsive habits (or tics I guess) since I was about 7 I think. I didn't really pay attention when it started (I was a kid, I was too busy paying attention to cartoons), but I remember an earlier form being tensing certain corresponding parts of my body in unison, then alternating with a different set. For example, I'd tense my right hip, bottom outer portion of my neck, and bottom of my shoulder all at once, then left, then I'd flex my right kneecap along with the top of my right shoulder and the right side of my head above my ear (wiggling my ear up basically) together, then the same on the left. For some reason these muscles just automatically go together as a set in my brain. This one has continued on and off over the years, for a few years I wouldn't do it at all, and then I remembered it and started feeling compelled to do it again. The upside to that was that it was practically invisible, unless someone was looking for it.
Currently I've been dealing with a different one which surfaced several years ago, then sort of went dormant for a while, and I believe reappears whenever I'm more stimulated, whether it's by talking to people, being out in a new place, having a lot of light in my eyes, etc. I've noticed that I've been doing it a LOT more since I've come to college. It was all but gone over summer break, but now that the new semester has started I feel like it's back more than ever. This "tic" is more like the ones described by others, I tense up my eyes and ears and forehead, and if I do it "right" I get that sound you hear when you yawn, kind of like pressing your ear into a seashell, or a rushing wind. Eventually as I do it more and more, my face feel strained and my eyes get tired. I've started not being able to help the urge to do it even when I'm around others: some friends of mine in nursing school looked very concerned as if I might be having a seizure the other day, and I explained it to my girlfriend as best I could after she mentioned it one day. She's trying to help me stop it by pointing it out whenever I do it, but I don't know how effective this has been. Like someone else mentioned, it's not like a normal twitch in the sense that I don't even consciously do it, it's moreso that my brain yells at me to tense my face until I comply.
I might talk to a psychologist or another professional to understand it better, but just reading all this makes me feel so much better and so much less alone!

I have exactly the same!! It started off tensing my jaw and either sides of my neck. it then moved on to consistantly jolting my head backwards. i also do it with tensing my ears and occasionly scrunching my eyes. the neck is worst though. I thought it mayve been a habit but im not sure after reasearch. started about a year ago :/

I have the exact same thing! It is difficult because I don't know what it is, as whenever I look up Tourettes it says it involves noises which I tend not to do

I can not believe I have found this. After months of searching for people like me, I have finally found this. I am only 15 and have had this exact problem for years now. I honestly thought that I was the only one like this. I have never told anyone about this as it is embarrassing and I have no Idea how to explain it, but thankfully you have just done. I have the same symptoms. It seems that when I get really nervous or stressed or anxious or angry it gets really bad. I try not to do it around people but sometimes they see me and are really freaked out. I tend to tense my muscles a lot and scrunch up my face. Sometimes it is quite painful when I do it but I just can't stop myself when I start these strange fit-like things that involve me having what looks like mini seizures. I can't believe I have finally found help for this, I have began to become so worried about my condition and I feel like there is no one to talk to. Now I know other people share this painful thing. I am only 15 and it only seems to be getting worse. I have strange rituals as well and tend to get quite obsessive with things. I am also quite obsessive with my weight and tend to get very depressed with food ( I don't make myself sick or anything ). Does anybody else have this? Thank you for posting this , please somebody reply to help me a bit . Thanks

Also: if you are unfamiliar with relaxation techniques and have never tried meditation and deep muscle relaxation, feel free to drop me an email. I have some materials I am glad to share to help you get started. my email is: [email protected] ... Some day, if there is enough interest from others, I would like to start some kind of internet support group or forum for adults with tourettes to share their experience and let others know what has helped them. Good luck to all.

Thank god. It's not just me. I've done this sence I was a kid. I have to do it evenly too, one arm then the other my whole body.... It's weird. Just do it for a second. I've been wondering even before I read this if it's turets. I do it when I'm relaxed, just watching TV... No stress involved.

Tourette's may be the answer afterall...

Types of Motor Tics: <a href="http://youtu.be/ojINmQaKvys" rel="nofollow">http://youtu.be/ojINmQaKvys</a> this is the best video I've found so far. I think I have basically every tic shown on here, mostly clonic tics, and also including sensory and phantom tics

Half way through reading this I honestly thought I must have written it a while ago and forgotten!

I am so happy to have finally googled this to find if it is a diagnosed condition!!

I started this same habit when I was young... I have definitely connected it with my anxiety!! And yes its definitely worse when excited! I started out screwing up my face, but with the years it tends to change. I've had it in my face, neck, back, legs and arms.
And yes it can sometimes put joints out of place! Sometimes I even end up aching...

When I was younger I got picked on not only at school but by my family too. My mum made the rule that everytime someone caught me poking faces I had to pay them 10c... they said they were helping me, it only lowered my self-esteem and raised my anxiety.

I have had a heart condition since I was born and when I was 8 they put me on medication that had a rare side effect of depression... but no one picked it up until I was 18 and attempted suicide. I still have some depression and anxiety now but am a lot better and better at keeping my tensing under control... it comes and goes, a few weeks ago I was at work, working alone when I realised I was poking faces. its hard to resist doing it, just makes me very anxious. so yes it really releases something, kinda vents some stress.

right now I can tell you it becomes quite bad when you're stoned lol I can feel a small tingle in my ankle which is making me tense and stretch it!!

I would absolutely be thankful if anyone can share some more links or info about this horrible habit!!

You should get a stress ball or two--one for each hand; preferably with eyes that bug out when squeezed. I am not referring to male genitalia.