I am not a medical pro ---- but i really blame the keppra… but that is my opinion and please make no decisions based on anything i say …. i just have no other thoughts and i want you to know i do care and have thought about you a lot… nancyl

Hi Katrina, just wanted to say that I think about you and you are in my prayers.

Yvonne

Katrina,

Print this to show your therapist and Dr. and ask if it could help you.

the soreness and tingling could be caused by the anxiety itself and the endorphins and enzymes that flood the muscles during an attack, but I hope this helps.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)

Progressive muscle relaxation is a systematic technique for achieving a deep state of relaxation. It was developed by Dr. Edmund Jacobson more than fifty years ago. Dr. Jacobson discovered that a muscle could be relaxed by first tensing it for a few seconds and then releasing it. Tensing and releasing various muscle groups throughout the body produced a deep state of relaxation, which Dr. Jacobson found capable of relieving a variety of conditions, from high blood pressure to ulcerative colitis.

In his original book, Progressive Relaxation, Dr. Jacobson developed a serious of 200 different muscle relaxation exercises and a training program that took months to complete. More recently the system has been abbreviated to 15-20 basic exercises, which have been found to be just as effective, if practiced regularly, as the original more elaborate system.

Progressive muscle relaxation is especially helpful for people whose anxiety is strongly associated with muscle tension. This is what often leads you to say that you are "uptight" or "tense". You may experience chronic tightness in your shoulders and neck, which can be effectively relieved by practicing progressive muscle relaxation. Other symptoms that respond well to progressive muscle relaxation include tension headaches, backaches, tightness in the jaw, tightness around the eyes, muscle spasms, high blood pressure, and insomnia. If you are troubled by raching thoughts, you may find that systematically relaxing your muscles tends to help slow down your mind. Dr. Jacobson himself once said, 'An anxious mind cannot exist in a relaxed body."

The immediate effects of progressive muscle relaxation include all the benefits of the relaxation response described earlier and long term effects of regular practice include...

* A decrease in general anxiety

* A decrease in anticipatory anxiety related to phobias

* Reduction in the frequency and duration of panic attacks

* Improved ability to face phobic situations through graded exposure

* Improved concentration

* An increased sense of control over moods

* Increased self esteem

* Increased spontaneity and creativity

Guidelines for Practicing Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)

The following guidelines will help you mad the most use of progressive muscle relaxation. They are also applicable to any form of deep relaxation you undertake to practice regularly, including guided visualization and meditation.

1. Practice at least 20 minutes a day. Two 20 minute periods are preferable. Once a day is mandatory for obtaining generalization effects. (You may want to begin your practice with 30 minute periods. As you gain skill in relaxation techniques you will notice that the amount of time you need to experience the relaxation response will decrease)

2. Find a quiet location to practice where you won't be distracted. Don't permit the phone to ring while you're practicing. Unse a fan or air conditioner to blot out background noise if necessary.

3. Practice at regular times. On awaking, before retiring, or before meals are generally the best times. A consistent daily relaxation routine will increase the likelihood of generalization effects.

4. Practice on an empty stomach. Food digestion after meals will tend to disrupt the deep relaxation.

5. Assume a comfortable position. Your entire body, including your head, should be supported. Lying down on a sofa or bed or sitting in a reclining chair are ways of supporting your body most completely. (When lying down, you may want to place a pillow beneath your knees for further support) Sitting up is preferable to lying down if you are feeling tired and sleepy It's advantageous to experience the full depth of the relaxation response consciously without falling asleep.

6. Loosen any tight garments and take off shoes, watch, glasses, contact lenses, jewelry and so on.

7. Make a decision not to worry about anything. Give yourself permission to put aside the concerns of the day. Allow taking care of yourself and having peace of mind to take precedence over any of your worries. (Success with relaxation depends on giving peace of mind high priority in your overall scheme of values)

8. Assume a passive, detached attitude. This is probably the most important element. You want to adopt a "let it happen" attitude and be free of any worry about how well you're performing the technique. Do not try to relax. Do not try to control your body. Do not judge your performance. The point is to let go.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation Technique

Progressive muscle relaxation technique involves tensing and relaxing, in succession, sixteen different muscle groups of the body. The idea is to tense the muscles hard (not so hard that you strain, however) for about 10 seconds, and then let go of it suddenly. You then give yourself 15-20 seconds to relax, noticing how the muscle group feels when relaxed in contrast to how it felt when tensed, before going on to the next group of muscles.

Some may benefit from saying to themselves, "I am relaxing" "letting go", "Let the tension flow away" or any other relaxing phrase during each relaxation period between successive muscle groups. Maintain focus of your muscles and if your attention wanders, bring it back to the particular muscle group you're working on. The guidelines below decribe the progressive muscle relaxation in detail.

* Make sure you are in a setting that is quiet and comfortable

* When you tense a certain muscle group, do so vigorously, without straining for 7-10 seconds.

* Concentrate on what is happening. Feel the build up of tension in each particular muscle group.

* When you release the muscles, do so abruptly, and then relax for at least 15-20 seconds.

* Allow all the other muscles in your body to remain relaxed, as far as possible while working on a particular muscle group.

* Tense and relax each muscle group once. If a particular area feels especiallytight, you can tense and relax it tow or three more times, waiting 15-20 seconds between each cycle.

1. To begin, take three deep abdominal breathes, exhaling slowly each time. As you exhale, imagine the tension throughout your body begins to flow away.

2. Clench your fists. Hold for 7-10 seconds and then release for 15-20 seconds. Use these same time intervals for all other muscle groups.

3.Tighten your bicepts by drawing your forearms up toward your shoulders and "making a muscle" with both arms. Hold... then relax.

4. Tighten your triceps by extending your arms out straight and locking your elbows. Hold... then relax.

5.Tense the muscles in your forehead by raising your eyebrows as far as you can. hold... and relax. Imagine your forehead muscles becoming smooth and limp as they relax.

6. Tense the muscles around your eyes by clenching your eyelids tightly shut. Hold... and relax.

7. Tighten your jaws by opening your mouth so widely that you stretch the muscles around the hinges of your jaw. hold and relax. Let your lips part and allow your jaw to hang loose.

8. Tighten the muscles in the back of your neck by pulling your head way back as if you ere going to touch yourhead to your back... (be gentle with this muscle group to avoid injury). Focus only on tensing the muscles in your neck. Hold... and relax.

9. Take a few deep breaths and tun into the weight of your head sinking into whatever surface it is resting on.

10. Tighten your shoulders by raising the up as if you were going to touch your ears. Hold... relax

11. Tighten the muscles around your shoulder blades by pushing your shoulder blades back as if you were going to touch them together. Hold the tension in your shoulder blades and then relax. Since this area is often especially tense, you might want to repeat the tense-relax sequence twice.

12. Tighten the muscles in your chest by taking in a deep breath. Hold for up to 10 seconds and then release slowly. Imagine the tension in your chest flowing away with the exhalation.

13. Tighten your stomach muscles by sucking your stomach in. Hold, and then release.

14. Tighten your lower back by arching up. (you may omit this exercise if you have lower back pain) Hold and release

15. Tighten your buttocks by pulliing them together. Hold and relax.

16. Squeeze the muscles in your thighs all the way down to your knees. You will probably have to tighten your hips along with your thighs, since the thigh muscles attach at the pelvis. Hold and then release.

17. Tighten your calf muscles by pulling your toes toward you. (flex carefully to avoid cramps). Hold... then relax.

18. Tighten your feet by curling your toes downward. Hold... then relax.

19. Mentally scan your body for any residual tension. If a particular body part remains tense, repeat one or two more tense-relax cycles for that group of muscles.

20. Now imagine a wave of relaxation slowly spreading throughout your body, starting at your head and gradually spreading down to your toes.

The entire muscle relaxation sequence should take you 20-30 minutes the first time. With each practice you may decrease the time to 15-20 minutes. You may want to record the above exercises on an audio cassette to expedite your early practice sessions.

Jamie

I wonder if you may have arthritis in your knees and arms?? I o and it runs in my family and among many black families I know about. Glad you are feeling better these days!!

Jamie: I am going to print this out. I just sat here reading and trying to do the steps, for just a few minutes. Just loosened me right up. LOL. Everyone should try this. thank you

when I first tried it, I never got through the whole exercise. I kept falling asleep half way through! The good thing is that after doing this routinely for a while, you find you handle stress much better even without the exercise. And after years of taking anxiety meds, I was able to go off them.