Involuntary muscle contractions during meditation. Is something going on?

[lmfao]

Involuntary isn't necessarily the right word to use in the previous sentence, but I'll describe what I'm going through. 

You know those muscles in our head which we can voluntary contract? They are the muscles which you might contract by gritting your teeth really hard, and your head shakes when straining them. Weight lifters when they are pushing themselves really really hard will grit their teeth and contract these muscles. You dont need to grit your teeth to contract them though. But whenever you do contract them, your head will shake. 

Basically, during my meditation sessions I'll involuntarily/subconsciously contract my head muscles really hard, sometimes alongside my arms. It simultaneously happen with a wave of irratibility, but the irritability will dissappear after a short time. During my 55 minute meditation today for instance, this happened to me about 5 times or more. 

I'm guessing that my mind is just getting agitated from the pain and boredom during meditation. Even when I'm in a very peaceful state during meditation sometimes, a wave of agitation will suddenly arrive and my face will make bizzare expressions. 

Is all of this just my subconscious reacting to the "cleansing" that happens when you meditate? Does anyone here have very similar things happening to them? 

[sarapr]

You mean those muscles that also move the ears a bit?

[AleksM]

@lmfao Read this.

 

[lmfao]

@sarapr you those muscles can be used to move the ears a bit, but straining those muscles doesn't always move your ears. Lol if you want to use them, just make a conscious decision to contract all muscles in your head, and you'll know what I mean. 

I like the reply @Outer you've given lol. 

@AleksM Yeah that link was good, thanks. 

 

[Ibn Sina]

consider a tetanus injection 

[JustinS]

It's just cleansing, don't think too much of it. Let it flow out without getting in the way, and in a few months next thing you know you'll look like you're having an exorcism. Haha kidding, or not. Have fun! 

[Erlend K]

It is possible that you are periodicaly tensing those muscles all day long, but only notice it during the hightened state of awareness you achieve during meditation. The same way a minor back ache or itch, you normally don't even care about, can feel like excruciating pain during meditation.

Muscle tensions during meditation can also be a sign of overconcentration. When it happenes, you might want to check in to see if your mind feels relaxed. If your mind is strained, either relax it or try to stay mindful of the strain, depending on the type of meditation you do.