What is a Trigger Point?
A Trigger Point is a Hyperirritable
spot on a muscle fiber that can produce pain and
other symptoms. Sometimes the pain is referred to another spot on the body
that is far away from the actual Trigger Point. For example; there can be
trigger points on a calf muscle, called the Soleus muscle, which can refer pain
to the Jaw... that's right, the Jaw. It cal also refer pain to your
lower back, or knee. There can also be trigger
points in neck muscles that can produce pain up into your head & face
and down into your shoulder, arm, wrist
and even fingers. If left untreated, they can even cause your fingers to
lock.
Trigger
Points (on the upper back ) feel like Knots when you
massage them
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Trigger
Points can be very tricky and can produce many other symptoms in addition to Pain -
Symptoms such
as Numbness, Tingling, Limited Range of Motion, locking, inflammation, Nerve
Entrapment, droopy eyelid, dry cough, and even Impotence
How
are Trigger Points Created?
There
are many factors involved in the development of trigger points. Here are
some examples:
-
poor posture
-
overuse of muscles through continuous long term repetitive movements
-
Auto accidents, falls, injuries
- Sitting for long periods of time ( at work, at school, in car, etc.)
-
surgeries
-
Inactivity
- dehydration
- Stress - Anxiety
- PTSD ( Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Emotional Reasons
- low on certain minerals such as ( magnesium & calcium )
- poor nutrition ( you can be overweight & still be undernourished if
you eat junk-food)
-
poor circulation
Trigger
Point Therapy
Trigger
Points can be released in different ways, depending on their location, intensity
and other mitigating factors. Once the trigger points are released, the
pain and other symptoms created by them will disappear, often immediately
Some ways of releasing trigger points are:
- Manual
massage techniques that applying static or fluid pressure.
-
Massage techniques that lengthen the hyper-contracted / shortened muscles and
reenergize the
hyper-stretched
muscles
-
Hydrotherapy applications of Cold and/or heat
-
Stretching - specific stretches and muscle reeducation
-
Education - teaching you self care & maintenance techniques to manage them
- Mind-Body & Energy work to release stress, anxiety and emotional trauma
( rebalance the Energy system and the Autonomic Nervous System)
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