Is this feeling familiar? You’re receiving a massage, and then suddenly, your massage therapist finds an area in your neck that makes your forehead burn or tingle? Or, perhaps a knot in your shoulder that causes a burning-like sensation in the opposite shoulder? Your therapist likely found a trigger point.

What is a Trigger Point?

According to Clair Davies and Amber Davies, a father-daughter duo who published The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook: Your Self-Treatment Guide for Pain Relief, a trigger point is a “grumpy little spot in a taut band of muscle tissue that hurts when you press on it”. Trigger Points aren’t exactly knots in the muscle; they’re areas in the muscle the trigger pain, limited mobility, or sensations elsewhere in the body ( 10).

On a microscopic level, very small elements of the muscle go into a state of sustained contraction due to a restriction of blood flow to the area. Without proper circulation, that area of the muscle doesn’t receive the energy it needs to function properly, resulting in a shortened muscle. Trigger Points can be described as a crisis of energy (18).

What Causes Trigger Points?

• sudden muscle overload (picking up a box that is too heavy)
• sustained low-level isometric contractions (working at a computer)
• eccentric contractions (walking downhill)
• chronic muscle tension (long-term back pain)
• trauma (car accident)
• stress (friend, family, work drama)
• posture (gardening, digging, chainsawing, looking at a phone)
• overuse (pushing past pain)
• sustained rapid movements (roofing — hammering repeatedly)

What are the symptoms of a Trigger Point?

Trigger points can be responsible for the following and so much more:

• muscle soreness or pain
• muscle weakness
• muscle stiffness
• joint dysfunction (due to muscle imbalance)
• reduced range of motion
• headaches, sinus congestion, dizziness
• nerve compression

Massage therapy, and specifically Trigger Point Therapy, can help to relieve trigger points and, ultimately, pain and discomfort.

How does Trigger Point Therapy work?

1. A trigger point can be “deactivated” through a massage session that focuses on releasing trigger points. Like a deep tissue massage, the massage therapist warms up the muscle before palpating for the trigger point area. Once found, the massage therapist will compress the area for a minimum of ten seconds, usually longer. Applying pressure like this can bring circulation back to the area, thus ending the energy crisis in the muscle fiber.
2. When a trigger point is compressed, it can feel tingly or hot, or not, and sometimes that sensation can be felt in other areas of the body. For example, trigger points in the neck, when found and compressed, can lead to sensations in the head that can feel like headache. However, everyone’s body is different. People experience trigger point pain in a variety of ways.
3. It’s worth noting that the trigger point areas causing pain may not be the source of the pain. Often, the source can be found in the opposing muscle group. For example: You may feel pain in between your shoulder blades (back of the body) but the trigger point there could be caused by your shortened pectoral muscles in the front of your body. Working on the shortened muscles could actually be more helpful than working only where it hurts (21).
4. After releasing trigger points, stretching the area is helpful. It allows the muscle to lengthen which can ultimately lead to a better range of motion with less pain, or —hopefully, none.

How fast does Trigger Point Therapy Work?

It is typical to need more than one session to relieve pain from trigger points. This is because trigger points can occur due to how we move and hold our bodies daily. Since repetitive motion and posture can lead to trigger points, in addition to trigger point therapy, a client would need to consider moving differently to retrain posture and stretch a few times a week, if not daily.

For example, contractors or landscapers who squat, dig, and lift; baristas who stand throughout a shift but hunch over at an espresso machine; people who drive long distances; desk workers, personal trainers and athletes, hair stylists, and massage therapists: every person regardless of daily routines could become aware of their posture as they move throughout their days. Small changes such as these, combined with a few therapy sessions, could lead to pain-free results. I have, however, experienced a client receiving relief after one session, so it is possible!

Trigger Point Therapy is a modality that is worth considering if you’re experiencing pain that just won’t go away. If you’re interested in receiving Trigger Point Therapy, consider booking a session with me (Katie).

Source:

Davies, Clair, NCTMB, and Amber Davies, CMTPT, LMT. The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook: Your Self-Treatment Guide for Pain Relief. 3rd edition, New Harbinger Publications, Inc., 2013