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The Connection Between Stress and Physical Pain

  • July 20, 2026

Episode Notes:

In this episode, Dr. Eric Chludzinski of Fanwood Back Relief Center explores the powerful connection between stress and physical pain. Many people don’t realize that emotional and mental tension can manifest as very real, physical symptoms like neck tightness, back pain, and muscle stiffness.

Dr. Chludzinski breaks down what stress actually does to your body on a physiological level, and why so many patients arrive at his office with pain that traces back to everyday stress and anxiety.

If you’ve ever felt your body tense up after a hard week, this episode will help you understand why that happens and what you can do about it.

Hey there, and welcome back. I’m Doctor Eric Chludzinski, and you’re listening to the Fanwood Back Relief Center podcast. Today we’re talking about something that affects just about everyone – stress. But not just the mental kind. We’re talking about what stress actually does to your body, and why so many people end up in my office with real, physical pain that started with emotional or mental tension. If you’ve ever noticed that your neck gets tight after a rough week at work, or your back starts aching when life gets overwhelming… this episode is for you.

So here’s the thing. A lot of people think of stress as something that only lives in your head. And I get that. We tend to separate the mind from the body in our culture. But the truth is, your nervous system doesn’t make that separation. When you experience stress, your brain triggers what’s called the fight-or-flight response. Your body thinks it needs to protect itself. And one of the first things it does is tighten your muscles. Now, if that stress response fires once in a while, that’s fine. That’s normal. But when stress becomes chronic – when it’s just part of your daily life – those muscles stay tense. Day after day. And that’s where the trouble starts.

Here’s what I see all the time in practice. People come in with neck pain, upper back tightness, headaches, shoulder tension – and when we talk through what’s been going on in their life, it almost always connects back to a period of prolonged stress. Work deadlines, family pressure, financial worry, poor sleep. All of it accumulates in the body. The muscles around your spine tighten up, they pull on the joints, and over time that creates real dysfunction. Your posture suffers. Your range of motion decreases. And suddenly something that started as emotional tension has turned into actual physical pain that you can’t just breathe away.

Now here’s what’s interesting. It works both ways. Physical pain increases your stress levels. And increased stress makes your pain worse. It becomes a cycle that’s really hard to break on your own. That’s why I always say treating the spine and the nervous system isn’t separate from treating stress. It’s directly connected.

So what can you actually do about this? A few simple things to start. First, pay attention to where you hold your tension. Most people hold it in their shoulders, their jaw, or the base of their skull. Just noticing it is the first step. Second, movement helps. Even a short walk can interrupt that fight-or-flight response and start to release some of that muscle tension. Third, breathing matters more than people realize. Slow, deliberate breathing signals to your nervous system that the threat has passed. Try it for just two or three minutes and see how your body responds.

Now, when should you come in and see us? If you’ve been dealing with recurring tension headaches, chronic neck or back stiffness, or pain that flares up during stressful times, that’s your body sending you a signal. At Fanwood Back Relief Center, we use a range of approaches depending on what your body needs. Chiropractic adjustments, including gentle techniques like Impulse Adjusting and Arthro-stim Adjusting, help restore proper motion to the spine and take pressure off the nervous system. We also offer Myofascial Release and Trigger Point Therapy, which are incredibly effective for releasing that deep muscle tension that stress leaves behind. Intersegmental Traction Therapy is another great tool for relaxing the muscles along the spine and improving mobility. We look at the whole picture, because you are more than just a sore back.

Whether you’re a busy professional, a parent, an athlete, or you’re pregnant and feeling the physical weight of all of it – we have options for you here.

The bottom line is this. Stress is real, pain is real, and the connection between them is real. You don’t have to just push through it. There are answers, and there is relief.

Thank you so much for spending a few minutes with me today. If anything I said resonated with you, I’d love to see you in the office. Give us a call or visit us at Fanwood Back Relief Center right here in Fanwood, New Jersey. We’re here to help you feel like yourself again. Take care, and we’ll talk soon.