My TMS symptom/trigger

[tmsthrowaway05]

Anxiety brings about the pain. Which is the case for most of us. For me it's been upper back for 3 years straight. Healthy 28 y.o male life ruining stuff. Does anyone else share my symptom? This is what happens, every time:

Anxiety will kick in, I forget how to breath almost, and I stop naturally breathing through my diaphragm like one normally would, instead I manually try to take big breaths almost as if you were to yawn. This is a classic sympathetic nervous system trigger. Doing this completely locks up my back from the middle/upper portion all the way to my traps. For example my intake of breath my stomach sucks in, instead of belly breathing/belly rising inhales. When it's real bad, I will be focused on it all day and take hundreds of 'yawn breaths' where I am basically breathing the opposite of how you should be. When doing this, (I know from experience lol) sucking in my belly on intake, my upper back gets so damn tight it's crazy. Then as you all know the pain comes on, the anxiety stays, and it ruins your day until you can take your mind off of it. Just wanted to rant and see who else has this exact symptom, if anyone. Haven't been on this site in over a year and am totally on board with TMS. Have known for 2 years this is what is 'wrong with me' and still struggling hard

 

[Cactusflower]

I am familiar with backwards breathing.
Regular breathing is not “belly breathing”, but it is lower chest breathing. Backwards stress breathing is actually neck breathing which is why your upper back gets so tight. Over use of scalines.
The good news is that this is a very normal stress response and nothing to worry about. As you know, when stress lowers your breath returns to a more normal state.
Have you tried focusing on the psychological during stress breathing events? Being curious to your triggers? How you are feeling emotionally? Do you ever consider how your own thoughts create your internal stress?
Do you engage in self care habits on a regular basis that help you learn to relax and take your attention off of stressors? Do you ever engage in activities that are “mindless” eg. Sitting in nature, bird watching, cloud watching.. noticing how the world revolves beyond your thought processes, beyond your stressors and worries?
Taking time “out” of your head can totally change things like stress breathing habits without even having to think or worry about breathing patterns. Besides causing you pain, the breathing really isn’t a problem, your anxiety is.

 

[mbo]

The vast majority of advocates of the TMS paradigm put aside serious illnesses as MS, ALS, cancer, autoinmune diseases,....
Contrary Dr. Mate considers that are extreme manifestations of the mind-body phenomenon.
What do you think ?
M.