Stress is a normal response to a threat or pressure and can even be helpful when it occurs occasionally and in moderation. But when stress becomes chronic, it can have serious emotional and physical effects, including contributing to back pain and increasing the risk of sciatica.
Stress leads to muscle tension, the release of inflammatory substances, and somatization, all of which can trigger or worsen back problems. This often creates a vicious cycle that reinforces both stress and pain.
Breaking this cycle is essential for relieving stress-related back pain. Learning to manage stress and taking steps to prevent and release spinal tension can make a real difference. Activities such as exercise, breathing techniques, posture correction, and quality sleep all support back health.
This article will look at practical strategies to ease stress-related back pain, including targeted stretches, natural remedies, and even practices like sophrology.
Why Does Stress Cause Back Pain?
Stress: A Common Cause of Back Pain
Many people notice that their back pain coincides with periods of high workload, personal worries, or conflicts. This observation is supported by the research of Kristian Nilsen (2007) on 40 individuals. In osteopathic consultations, especially for cervical and shoulder issues, stress is frequently discussed as a common contributor to upper back pain.
While short-term stress is normal, chronic stress can become a real burden for your body. It leads to persistent muscle tension, increased inflammation, and heightened pain perception. Backache is one common consequence of this.
These back pains can, in turn, worsen the initial stress. This vicious cycle affects about 20% of patients with back issues.
Mental health conditions can also cause back pain: 20–30% of individuals with depression experience abnormal back discomfort. This is partly due to disrupted pain signaling in depression, amplifying pain perception.
People who are prone to back problems may also be more likely to experience stress, anxiety, depression, and sleep difficulties.
Stress Causes Muscle Tension and Fatigue
When we experience stress, the body goes into a heightened state of alert, tensing up as a form of self-protection. If stress becomes chronic, muscles, particularly in the back, shoulders, and neck, stay contracted for long periods, leading to fatigue and discomfort. Toxins build up in these overworked muscles, intensifying pain, while ongoing psychological tension prevents the body from fully relaxing. Reduced blood circulation adds to stiffness and soreness.
Back pain can be further aggravated by other factors, such as poor posture, lack of exercise, or a sedentary lifestyle.
Stress Triggers Inflammation and Amplifies Pain
Chronic stress also promotes inflammation by releasing pro-inflammatory substances such as cytokines. Studies show stress can disrupt the immune system, causing inflammation, including in intervertebral discs and tendons.
This inflammation may worsen osteoarthritis flare-ups, resulting in back pain, lumbar pain, or musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs).
Stress acts on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the sympathetic nervous system, releasing hormones like cortisol, adrenaline, and noradrenaline. While these hormones can temporarily reduce pain, chronic stress has the opposite effect, leading to hyperalgesia (heightened pain sensitivity). High cortisol levels disrupt inflammation control and lower the pain threshold.
Prolonged stress also contributes to allostatic load, the wear and tear from long-term stress. The higher the load, the harder it is for the body to recover, making back pain persistent.
Stress Impairs Breathing
Stress often accelerates or restricts breathing, limiting the diaphragm’s function. A tense diaphragm disrupts the thoracic and lower back regions, causing pressure in the chest, upper back pain, and discomfort in the ribs.
Which Areas of the Back Are Most Affected by Stress?
Upper Back
Stress-related upper back pain is often felt as a pressure or tightness between the shoulder blades. These sensations stem from respiratory tension and diaphragm contraction.
Poor posture or prolonged sitting can also contribute to these upper back tensions.
Neck and Shoulders
Stress may cause stiffness and reduced mobility in the neck and shoulders. The trapezius muscles become tense, creating a feeling of weight on the shoulders. Pain can radiate to the head, causing tension headaches.
Lower Back
Stress can also trigger lower back pain, particularly in sedentary individuals. Prolonged sitting, poor posture, or stress-related postural tension strain this area, increasing the risk of lumbar pain, spinal blockages, and sciatica.
How to Recognize Stress-Related Back Pain?
Unlike pain caused by injury or physical strain, stress-related back pain often comes and goes with your emotional state. It typically worsens during stressful periods and eases during rest or holidays, especially when there’s no obvious physical cause.
Common symptoms include:
- Pain and stiffness in the trapezius, neck, and shoulders
- Upper back tightness
- Lumbar tension that causes discomfort when sitting
- Difficulty moving the back, feeling as though it is “frozen.”
- Persistent muscle fatigue, as if the muscles are constantly tensed
Stress and Lumbar Pain
Lumbar pain arises mostly from diaphragm tension or overuse due to stress.
Stress and a “Locked Back”
A stress-locked back may manifest as acute pain, diffuse discomfort limiting mobility, or lumbago. Cortisol and inflammation spikes are often responsible for partial or total spinal blockage.
Stress and Sciatica Risk
Sciatica may appear due to environmental or behavioral factors, such as improper lifting, prolonged sedentary posture, poor ergonomics, or stress-related postural tension.
How to Prevent Stress-Related Back Pain
Preventing stress-related muscular tension requires managing stress and improving lifestyle, environment, and posture to avoid MSDs.
Key strategies include:
- Practicing relaxation exercises
- Organizing time effectively
- Exercising regularly
- Eating a balanced diet
- Staying hydrated
- Limiting caffeine and alcohol
- Maintaining healthy posture
- Optimizing ergonomics at work
Managing Stress Daily
Learning to manage daily stress can help lessen back pain.
- Take time for activities you enjoy: walks in nature, reading, socializing…
- Include relaxation techniques such as meditation, yoga, or mindful breathing for a few minutes each day
- At work, take breaks every 45–60 minutes to stand, stretch, walk, or drink a cup of tea
- Use productivity tools to manage your time and prioritize tasks to reduce overload.
Staying Active to Relieve Stress and Strengthen the Back
Moderate, regular exercise like walking, swimming, yoga, or light core work reduces stress, relaxes back muscles, and boosts mood via endorphin, dopamine, and serotonin release while lowering cortisol.
Warm-up and stretching before and after exercise are essential to prevent post-exercise muscular tension.
Back Strengthening Exercises
Targeted exercises improve spinal stability and mobility without causing imbalance.
- Upper back stretches with shoulder blade engagement (5–10 seconds, repeated multiple times)
- Pilates and core exercises to strengthen deep muscles supporting the spine
- Swimming engages all back muscles gently
Breathing Techniques
Controlled deep breathing activates the parasympathetic system, promoting relaxation.
- Inhale through the nose, let your belly expand fully
- Exhale slowly through the mouth
- A few minutes daily relieves diaphragm tension and relaxes the back
Improving Ergonomics at Work and Home
Proper ergonomics prevents stress-related and general back pain.
- Adjustable desk (e.g., sit-stand)
- An ergonomic chair or an active seat like the Bloon ball chair, which encourages good posture and micro-movements
- Ergonomic accessories: keyboard, mouse…
Maintaining Good Posture and Avoiding Sitting Too Long
- Keep a straight back, head aligned with spine
- Feet flat on the floor, knees and elbows at 90°
- Change positions frequently and avoid prolonged sitting
- Take active breaks
Read our article about ergonomic posture at work.
Improving Sleep Quality
Poor sleep increases stress, fatigue, and muscular tension. Improve your sleep quality by limiting caffeine and screen exposure before bed.
Develop a calming bedtime routine (warm bath, reading, breathing exercises) and optimize your sleep environment (dark, quiet).
Make sure you have a proper mattress and pillow support, and sleep in positions that maintain head-neck-spine alignment.
How to Relieve Stress-Related Back Pain
To get rid of back pain caused by stress, you need to address both the stress itself and your back.
While painkillers can provide temporary relief, a holistic approach is often more effective in the long term.
In fact, according to several recent studies, painkillers are not necessarily the most suitable solution for back pain.
Analyze and Eliminate Stress for Good
The first step in relieving stress-related back pain is to identify, analyze, and act on the sources of stress.
Do not repress your emotions; share them with loved ones or professionals.
Beyond practicing sports, relaxation exercises, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, sometimes it is necessary to tackle stress head-on. You might, for example, turn to sophrology or seek support from a psychologist. Sophrology is a mind-body discipline combining controlled breathing, muscle relaxation, and visualization of calming images. Increasingly, sophrologists are treating patients with lumbar pain to reduce stress, which often amplifies the perception of pain.
Dietary supplements, such as magnesium, can also be helpful in naturally managing stress. Consult your primary care physician before starting any treatment.
Stretches for Relieving Back Pain and Emotional Stress
Various types of stretching help relieve both physical and emotional tension.
For example, the Jacobson method, a progressive muscle relaxation technique, is ideal for consciously relaxing muscles, even at your desk. It involves contracting and then releasing different muscle groups in a guided way, making it highly effective for tense areas like the back, neck, and shoulders.
Other exercises can also help release stress-related muscular tension:
Exercise 1:
- Kneel on the floor, sitting comfortably on your heels.
- Exhale as you lower your head to touch the floor.
- Keep your arms along your legs, palms facing up.
- Hold the position for one minute, breathing deeply.
- Slowly rise back up.
- Repeat 3 times.
Exercise 2:
- Lie on your back on a yoga mat.
- Hug one knee to your chest, then the other.
- Hold for 30 seconds each, embracing your knees with your arms.
- Return to the starting position.
- Repeat 3 times.
Natural Remedies to Combat Back Pain and Stress
Several natural remedies help relax stress-related muscle tightness, contributing to back pain relief.
Thermotherapy, the use of heat or cold to treat pain, is effective. Applying heat, through a hot water bottle, compresses, heated patches, or a warm shower/bath, relaxes muscles and improves blood circulation, easing stiffness and pain. Localized cold therapy, such as ice packs, is beneficial for acute pain or inflammation.
Other traditional remedies for stress-related back pain include herbal medicine, poultices, and massages with essential oils.
Manual Therapies and Electro-Stimulation
Other natural approaches for back pain include:
- Osteopathy: Aims to release deep tension and restore mobility. Osteopaths examine the connections between stress, different body areas, and the back.
- Massage therapy: Effectively reduces muscular tension and boosts the mood thanks to endorphin release and improved blood circulation.
- Physiotherapy: Provides lasting mobility and strengthening. A physiotherapist can massage muscles to relax them and suggest exercises and routines to do at home to relieve pain, strengthen the back, and correct poor posture.
- Electrostimulation: Portable devices deliver low-intensity electrical impulses to tense muscles, helping relax persistent contractions and release endorphins, reducing stress and promoting well-being. Always consult your doctor before use.
When to Consult a Professional
Seek medical advice if pain persists or worsens despite stress management, rest, and natural remedies.
- Sudden, intense, or nighttime pain
- Pain radiating to the left arm or jaw
- Associated symptoms: malaise, nausea, cold sweats, tingling
- Extreme fatigue, loss of motivation, mood disorders
Consult a general practitioner, rheumatologist, physiotherapist, osteopath, or psychologist/psychiatrist as needed.
FAQ — Stress and Back Pain
Can Stress Alone Cause Back Pain?
Yes. Even without an injury or physical strain, stress can lead to muscle tension and amplify the perception of pain, particularly in the back, shoulders, and neck.
How Long Does It Take to Relieve Stress-Related Back Pain?
It depends on the severity of the pain and the level of stress. Mild tension may ease within a few days through stretching, relaxation, and rest, while chronic stress-related pain can take weeks or even months to improve.
What Is the Difference Between Stress-Related and Physical Back Pain?
Pain caused by strain or injury is usually linked to a specific movement, posture, or activity. Stress-related back pain, on the other hand, is often more diffuse, fluctuates with emotional state, and can be aggravated by fatigue or anxiety.
Can Anxiety Cause Back Pain?
Yes. Anxiety can keep muscles in a constant state of tension, particularly in the neck, shoulders, and back, which may trigger or worsen discomfort over time.
How Can I Relieve Stress in the Back?
A combination of strategies works best: stretching, regular physical activity, massages, deep breathing, relaxation techniques, and varying posture throughout the day. Consulting a professional, like a physiotherapist or relaxation therapist, can also help.
How Can I Tell if Back Pain Is Stress-Related?
Stress-related pain often appears without an obvious physical cause and tends to worsen during periods of emotional strain or overload. It’s important to consult a doctor to rule out other underlying conditions.
Where Is Stress-Related Pain Usually Located?
It commonly affects the back, shoulders, and neck — including the cervical and lumbar spine, trapezius muscles, and the area between the shoulder blades.
