Cures for Nervous Tension

Nervous tension is a condition that occasionally afflicts everyone. However, if your suffering is ongoing, you may have a serious problem. Ongoing anxiety and tension can lead to chronic illness. This is why alleviating tension when it arises is so important. Tension is a very personal thing, so recognize your symptoms and determine what solutions work best for helping you release the stress and direct your focus on more pleasant things.

Exercise

• Untreated tension builds up and creates tight, sore muscles. Stretching and physical movement loosens muscles and makes your body stronger. The time spent exercising enables you to get your mind off the tension-causing thoughts, or at least work through them constructively. The next time you are feeling tense about something, go for a long walk. Even if you find no solution to the problem bothering you, you will have increased energy and strength, as well as mental clarity.

Massage

• Massage is another healthy way to cure nervous tension. Massage combines rubbing, pressing and manipulating your skin, muscles, ligaments and tendons. It alleviates muscle tension, pain, stiffness and it speeds healing. It is an effective way to deal with anxiety. Focusing on pleasant physical sensations distracts you from your thoughts, and the human contact is comforting. According to the Mayo Clinic, massage has benefits that go beyond just feeling good and pampering yourself.

Pharmaceuticals

• When nervous tension is difficult to control, your doctor might prescribe medication to ease your anxious feelings. Anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medication help you relax. For instance, your doctor may prescribe a drug that relaxes you if you are nervous about having a tooth pulled or undergoing a pelvic exam. If your tension is on-going, it can lead to a variety of other medical problems such as headaches, elevated blood pressure and destructive behavior like over-eating or consuming excessive amounts of alcohol. Drugs and medical therapy might be necessary to alleviate the resulting effects of tension.

Herbs

• Herbs are an important part of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and provide a natural cure for nervous tension. TCM practitioners prescribe herbs to treat post-traumatic stress, phobias, panic attacks and generalized anxiety disorder. Common herbs included in a tension treatment plan include kava-kava, ginseng and passion flower. Kava-kava improves stress disorders, nervous tension and restlessness, without the loss of mental accuity, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. The herbs may be used to create tea, added to food or taken as supplements in pill form.