Module 5 · Stress & emotional regulation · Moderate evidence

The tension you carry in your body

Tight shoulders, a clenched jaw, a knotted stomach — how stress lives in the body, and how to let it go.

6 min read · Level: Beginner · Free — no account needed to read

The idea

Stress does not only live in the mind. Many people carry it in their bodies as tight shoulders, a clenched jaw, a stiff neck, a knotted stomach or shallow breathing. Often the tension builds so slowly that it goes unnoticed until it turns into a headache, back pain or trouble sleeping.

Tension is the body staying partly ready for action even when there is nothing to fight or run from. Over a long day, or a long stressful season, that readiness can become the new normal. The good news is that the body can be taught to let go again, and practising that makes the relaxed state easier to find.

Simple approaches work: noticing where you hold tension, deliberately tensing and releasing muscles, slow breathing, stretching and moving, and breaks away from screens. Persistent pain or tension that comes with other symptoms deserves a check with a doctor.

Why it works

Unnoticed tension adds to stress, disturbs sleep and makes you more irritable. Learning to spot and release it gives you a direct, physical way to feel calmer.

A real example

The situation

By late afternoon Sara often has a headache and a sore neck. She blames her screen, but the pain continues even on days off.

What happened

She sets a reminder three times a day to check her shoulders and jaw. Almost every time they are tense. A minute of dropping her shoulders, unclenching her jaw and breathing out slowly becomes a habit, and the afternoon headaches become less frequent.

The takeaway

Noticing tension regularly made it possible to release it before it turned into pain.

Use this when you are…

• your shoulders, jaw or stomach feel tight
• stress shows up as headaches or aches
• you find it hard to relax your body in the evening

Common mistakes

• Waiting until tension becomes pain. Short, regular check-ins work better.
• Assuming all tension is emotional. Posture, eyesight and long sitting play a part too.
• Ignoring pain that is severe, sudden or getting worse. That needs a medical check.

What the evidence says

Moderate evidence: Several studies support it, but the effects are smaller, the studies are fewer or less rigorous, or results vary between groups.

Progressive muscle relaxation and slow breathing have reasonable evidence for reducing stress and tension. Evidence for their effect on specific pain conditions is more mixed.

Where this comes from: Stress physiology research; Slow-breathing and breathwork research; WHO “Doing What Matters in Times of Stress”.

Fields that study this: Clinical psychology, Neuroscience.

Try it now: A one-minute body check

1. Notice your jaw, shoulders, hands and stomach, one at a time.
2. For any that feel tight, tense them a little more for five seconds, then let go.
3. Finish with three slow breaths with a longer out-breath.

Practise with a guided technique

• Progressive muscle relaxation — (10–15 min · Moderate evidence)
• Body scan — (8–10 min · Moderate evidence)
• The double-inhale sigh — (1–5 min · Emerging evidence)
• Five-minute mobility — (5 min · Practical evidence)

Questions to think about

• Where in your body do you usually carry stress?
• When during the day does the tension build most?

Try this today

Do the one-minute body check three times today — morning, afternoon and evening.

Afterwards, ask yourself

What did you notice about when and where tension builds?