Where is stress stored in the body?

Most of us know that stress starts with our thinking and our circumstances and then affects our bodies. Stress can activate the stress response cycle or fight or flight response, which causes our bodies to enter into a physiological process resulting in muscle tension, headache, and more. Managing the physical impacts of stress is one powerful way to offset its effects. The shoulders, neck, hips, and low back are often areas where stress is painfully stored in the body.

Stress can cause tension in the neck and shoulders. Take a moment to check in with your body right now. Where are your shoulders? Forward, and up, almost at your ears? Or low, back, and relaxed?

Managing the stress carried in your shoulders and neck is one way to support stress recovery. For stress in the neck and shoulders:

• Self-massage can be wonderful for removing stress and alleviating pain and stiffness in the area.
• Stretching the areas affected with simple head circles and ear to shoulder neck stretches can help with pain and tension.
  • Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms at your sides. Draw your shoulders down, and imagine sliding your shoulder blades down your back. Gently drop your right ear toward your right shoulder. Repeat on each side.
  • Sit or stand with good posture and tuck your chin to your chest. Move-in gentle, deliberate circles with your neck, sweeping your chin close to your shoulder. Repeat on each side.
• Use heat or cold packs to relieve tension in the neck or shoulders.

The hips and low back often carry stress. When we sit and stand for long periods of time, both the hips and low back can become stiff. Mental and emotional stress can often impact the hips as well. To help support your body and the tension stored in these areas, try:

• Stretching daily, using stretches that target quads, hamstrings, piriformis, and hip flexor muscles.
• Find a yoga class with a gentle flow for the lower
• Try the yoga pose “legs up the wall.” This pose inverts the legs, helps relieve stress in the lower body and improves circulation in the lower body. Lie on your back, with your legs up against a wall, and your buttocks as near to the wall as is comfortable for you. Rest your hands wherever they are most comfortable.

These practices can help you alleviate the impacts of muscle tension caused by stress in the body and target some areas of the body where stress may be stored. Targeting stress with methods that help relieve stress at the emotional and mental levels is also important. Meditation, progressive muscle relaxation, and getting regular exercise can each help with stress.

If you’re experiencing the physical and emotional impacts of stress, talking with a therapist can help. A licensed therapist can help you learn how to manage your boundaries, relationships, and sources of stress, in addition to helping you learn practical techniques like mindfulness.