Anxiety Chest Tremors
Anxiety chest tremors, including chest area, ribcage, diaphragm, and heart area trembling, shaking, and vibrating are common anxiety symptoms, including anxiety and panic attack symptoms.
Anxiety chest tremors can occur occasionally or persistently. While disturbing and uncomfortable, anxiety-caused chest tremors aren’t a reason for concern.
This article explains the relationship between anxiety and chest tremors.
Article Menu
Chest Tremors Common Anxiety Symptom Descriptions
- Anxiety chest tremors can feel like your chest area, ribcage, diaphragm, or heart area is trembling, shaking, vibrating, or has tremors.
- Anxiety chest tremors can affect just one area of the chest, many areas in the chest, migrate from one location to another, or affect the entire chest.
- Anxiety chest tremors can be visible or not visible.
- Anxiety chest tremors can occur on the exterior of the body or feel like it is occurring on the inside, or both.
- Some people describe anxiety-caused chest tremors as an internal chest shaking, vibrating, or trembling.
Anxiety chest tremors can:
- Occur occasionally, frequently, or persistently.
- Precede, accompany, or follow an escalation of other anxiety symptoms or occur by itself.
- Precede, accompany, or follow a period of nervousness, anxiety, fear, and stress, or occur "out of the blue" for no reason.
- Range in intensity from mild, to moderate, to severe.
- Come in waves where it’s strong one moment and eases off the next.
- Occur for a while, subside, and then return for no reason.
- Change from day to day, moment to moment, or remain as a constant background during your struggle with anxiety disorder.
This symptom can seem more noticeable when undistracted, resting, trying to sleep, or waking up.
All the above combinations and variations are common.
To see if anxiety might be playing a role in your symptoms, rate your level of anxiety using our free one-minute instant results Anxiety Test, Anxiety Disorder Test, or Hyperstimulation Test.
The higher the rating, the more likely anxiety could be contributing to or causing your anxiety symptoms, including feeling like impending doom symptoms.
---------- Advertisement - Article Continues Below ----------
---------- Advertisement Ends ----------
What Causes Anxiety Chest Tremors Symptoms?
Medical Advisory
Talk to your doctor about all new, changing, persistent, and returning symptoms as some medical conditions and medications can cause anxiety-like symptoms.
1. Anxiety-Activated Stress Response
Anxious behavior, such as worry, activates the stress response, which prepares the body for immediate emergency action. This survival reaction is often referred to as the fight or flight response.[1][2]
Visit the “Stress Response” article for more information about the stress response and the many changes it causes.
Many of the stress response changes can cause “chest tremor” symptoms. For instance, the stress response:
- Quickly converts the body’s energy reserves into “fuel” (blood sugar) to provide an instant boost of energy. A rapid rise in energy can cause a “tremor” sensation, including in the chest.
- Increases heart rate, respiration, and metabolism due to the boost in energy. A sudden rise in respiration and metabolism can cause a “tremor” feeling in the chest.
- Causes muscles to tighten to make the body more resilient to injury. Tightening chest muscles can cause a “trembling” or “tremoring” feeling.
- Stimulates the nervous system, increasing nervous system activity to be more sensitive and reactive to danger. Increased nervous system activity can cause a tremor feeling in the chest.
- Heightens most of the body’s senses to be more aware of danger. A sudden increase in sensory awareness can magnify the stress response-caused sensations in the chest, making it feel like the chest is vibrating or trembling.
- Increases heart rate and respiration, which can lead to hyperventilation and make it seem like the chest is tremoring.
Any or combination of the above stress response changes can cause “chest tremors” feelings.
The degree of stress response is proportional to the degree of anxious behavior. For instance, the more anxious you are, the more dramatic the stress response changes.
Some people say they have a “case of the nerves” because they are shaking so much due to a strong stress response.
Just as too much caffeine can cause jitteriness and trembling because caffeine is a stimulant, so can the stress response since stress hormones are powerful stimulants.
Acute stress responses can cause acute chest tremor symptoms.
2. Stress-Response Hyperstimulation
When stress responses occur infrequently, the body can quickly recover from the many stress response changes.
However, when stress responses occur too frequently, such as from overly anxious behavior, the body can remain in a state of semi-stress response readiness, which we call “stress-response hyperstimulation” since stress hormones are powerful stimulants.
Hyperstimulation is also often referred to as “hyperarousal,” “HPA axis dysfunction,” or “nervous system dysregulation.”[3][4]
Visit our “Stress-Response Hyperstimulation” article for more information about the many ways hyperstimulation can affect the body and how we feel.
Hyperstimulation can cause the changes of an active stress response even though a stress response hasn’t been activated. Consequently, hyperstimulation can cause chronic “chest tremors” symptoms.
Chest tremors are a common symptom of hyperstimulation. Many people who are anxious and hyperstimulated get chest tremors as symptoms.
Other Factors
Other factors can create stress and cause anxiety-like symptoms, as well as aggravate existing anxiety symptoms, including:
- Medication
- Recreational drugs
- Stimulants
- Sleep deprivation
- Fatigue
- Hyper and hypoventilation
- Low blood sugar
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Dehydration
- Hormone changes
- Pain
Select the relevant link for more information.
---------- Advertisement - Article Continues Below ----------
---------- Advertisement Ends ----------
Treatment: How To Stop Anxiety Chest Tremor Symptoms?
When this symptom is caused or aggravated by other factors, addressing those factors can reduce and eliminate chest tremors.
When this symptom is caused by an anxiety-triggered stress response, calming yourself will end the active stress response and its changes. Chest tremors will subside as your body recovers from the active stress response.
It can take up to 20 minutes or more for the body to recover from a major stress response. This is normal and needn’t be a cause for concern.
When this symptom is caused by hyperstimulation, eliminating hyperstimulation will end this anxiety symptom.
You can eliminate hyperstimulation by:
- Containing anxious behavior.
- Reducing stress.
- Regular deep relaxation.
- Relaxed diaphragmatic breathing.
- Regular light to moderate exercise.
- Regular good sleep.
- Eating a healthy diet of whole and natural foods.
- Avoiding stimulants.
- Passively-accepting your symptoms until they subside.
- Being patient as your body recovers.
Visit our “60 Natural Ways To Reduce Stress” article for more ways to reduce stress.
As the body recovers from hyperstimulation, it stops sending symptoms of hyperstimulation, including chest tremors.
However, eliminating hyperstimulation can take much longer than most people think, causing symptoms to linger longer than expected.
As long as the body is hyperstimulated, even slightly, it can present symptoms of any type, number, intensity, duration, frequency, and at any time, including this one.
Even so, since chest tremors are common symptoms of a stress response and hyperstimulation, they are harmless and needn't be a cause for concern. They will subside when a stress response ends and hyperstimulation has been eliminated. Therefore, there is no reason to worry about anxiety-caused chest tremors.
Since worrying and becoming upset about anxiety symptoms stress the body, these behaviors can interfere with and stall recovery.
Passively accepting your symptoms – allowing them to persist without reacting to, resisting, worrying about, or fighting them – while doing your recovery work will cause their cessation in time.
Acceptance, practice, and patience are key to recovery.
Since the body can take a long time to recover from hyperstimulation, it's best to faithfully work at your recovery despite the lack of apparent progress. If you persevere with your recovery work, you will succeed.
Focusing on your sensations and symptoms makes them more pronounced. If you'd like to lessen their impact, learn to focus your attention elsewhere through distraction, enjoying your hobbies, undertaking pleasing and calming activities, regular deep relaxation, and by recalling pleasant memories or experiences.
Short-term remedies:
Even though eliminating hyperstimulation will eliminate chronic anxiety symptoms, including chest tremors, some people have found the following strategies helpful in reducing episodes of this symptom in the short term.
However, keep in mind that each person can have a unique symptom experience since each person is somewhat physically, chemically, psychologically, and emotionally unique. What might work for one person might not for another.
Reduce stress – Since stress, including anxiety-caused stress, is a common cause of chest tremors, reducing stress can reduce episodes of this symptom.
Any stress reduction strategy can help improve this symptom. Visit our article “60 Ways To Reduce Stress And Anxiety” for natural stress reduction strategies.
Recovery Support members can read chapters 4 and 14 for many natural ways to reduce stress and anxiety.
Regular good sleep – Regular good sleep can reduce stress, cortisol, and the body’s overall level of stimulation. Their reduction can reduce and eliminate anxiety symptoms, including this one.
Regular deep relaxation – Deep relaxation reduces the body’s overall level of stimulation and stress, leading to a reduction in anxiety symptoms, including chest tremors.
Regular light to moderate exercise – Regular light to moderate exercise can reduce stress and use up excess cortisol, which can help reduce anxiety symptoms, including this one.
Avoid stimulants – Stimulants, such as caffeine, stimulate the body by increasing the circulation of cortisol, the body's most powerful stress hormone. To help the body recover from hyperstimulation, we need to reduce the production of stress hormones and stimulation, not increase it. A reduction in stress and stimulation can help reduce symptoms of hyperstimulation, including this one.
Keep well hydrated – Dehydration can cause anxiety-like symptoms and aggravate existing anxiety symptoms. Keeping your body well hydrated can reduce and eliminate anxiety symptoms, including chest tremors.
Recovery Support
The Recovery Support area of our website contains thousands of pages of important self-help information to help individuals overcome anxiety disorder, hyperstimulation, and symptoms.
Due to the vast amount of information, including a private Discussion Forum, many of our Recovery Support members consider it their online recovery support group.
Therapy
Unidentified and unaddressed underlying factors cause issues with anxiety. As such, they are the primary reason why anxiety symptoms persist.
Addressing your underlying factors (Level Two recovery) is most important if you want lasting success.
Addressing Level Two recovery can help you:
- Contain anxious behavior.
- Become unafraid of anxiety symptoms and the strong feelings of anxiety.
- End anxiety symptoms.
- Successfully address the underlying factors that so often cause issues with anxiety.
- End what can feel like out-of-control worry.
All our recommended anxiety therapists have had anxiety disorder and overcame it. Their personal experience with anxiety disorder and their Master's Degree and above professional training give them insight other therapists don't have.
If you want to achieve lasting success over anxiety disorder, any one of our recommended therapists would be a good choice.
Working with an experienced anxiety disorder therapist is the most effective way to treat anxiety disorder, especially if you have persistent symptoms and difficulty containing anxious behavior, such as worry.[5][6][7]
In many cases, working with an experienced therapist is the only way to overcome stubborn anxiety.
Prevalence
In an online poll we conducted, 52 percent of respondents said they had chest tremor symptoms because of their anxiety.
Visit the "Trembling, Shaking, Vibrating, Tremors symptom for more information.
---------- Advertisement - Article Continues Below ----------
---------- Advertisement Ends ----------
Common Anxiety Symptoms
Additional Resources
- For a comprehensive list of Anxiety Disorders Symptoms Signs, Types, Causes, Diagnosis, and Treatment.
- Anxiety and panic attacks symptoms can be powerful experiences. Find out what they are and how to stop them.
- How to stop an anxiety attack and panic.
- Free online anxiety tests to screen for anxiety. Two minute tests with instant results. Such as:
- Anxiety 101 is a summarized description of anxiety, anxiety disorder, and how to overcome it.
Return to our anxiety disorders signs and symptoms page.
anxietycentre.com: Information, support, and therapy for anxiety disorder and its symptoms, including the anxiety chest tremors feelings symptoms.
References
1. Chu, Brianna, et al. “Physiology, Stress Reaction.” StatPearls, 7 May 2024.
2. Godoy, Livea, et al. "A Comprehensive Overview on Stress Neurobiology: Basic Concepts and Clinical Implications." Frontiers In Behavioral Neuroscience, 3, July 2018.
3. Hannibal, Kara E., and Mark D. Bishop. “Chronic Stress, Cortisol Dysfunction, and Pain: A Psychoneuroendocrine Rationale for Stress Management in Pain Rehabilitation.” Advances in Pediatrics., U.S. National Library of Medicine, Dec. 2014.
4. Justice, Nicholas J., et al. “Posttraumatic Stress Disorder-Like Induction Elevates β-Amyloid Levels, Which Directly Activates Corticotropin-Releasing Factor Neurons to Exacerbate Stress Responses.” Journal of Neuroscience, Society for Neuroscience, 11 Feb. 2015.
5. Hofmann, Stefan G., et al. “The Efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Review of Meta-Analyses.” Cognitive Therapy and Research, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1 Oct. 2012.
6. Leichsenring, Falk. “Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy the Gold Standard for Psychotherapy?” JAMA, American Medical Association, 10 Oct. 2017.
7. DISCLAIMER: Because each body is somewhat chemically unique, and because each person will have a unique mix of symptoms and underlying factors, recovery results may vary. Variances can occur for many reasons, including due to the severity of the condition, the ability of the person to apply the recovery concepts, and the commitment to making behavioral change.