A Beginner's Guide to Trigger Point Therapy

If you’ve ever touched a muscle and felt pain at a certain point, even if the pain happens in another part of your body, you may have touched a trigger point. These exist all around your body and, when they’re tense or tight, they can cause pain.

Trigger point therapy involves using deeper pressure and proven techniques to stimulate these painful areas in your muscles and fascia tissue.

What Is It and How Does It Work?

Trigger points are spots in muscles that are tense and painful. They are sometimes called “knots.” A trigger point is a band of tissue located within a larger muscle group. These points are often tender when touched and can create pain in the area as well as in distant areas of the body. If you’ve ever been rubbing your neck, for example, and touched a spot that hurt or made you wince, you may have found a trigger point.

What is trigger point therapy? It is the process of massaging sore trigger points to soften the muscle or release the tension from the knot. Properly applying pressure to the area can flush waste material out of the area, improve blood flow, soften and lengthen the muscle, and reduce pain.

What to Expect During Your Massage

While the process is typically known as trigger point therapy, the term does not refer to a single technique. Instead, there are several methods that may be used to relax the muscles and alleviate pain, depending on the person.

When you come in for a massage, the therapist will work to understand your situation, determine where the trigger points are located, and then use various techniques designed to relax these areas and soothe your pain.

During a session, you may feel some discomfort, but you will also experience relief as the tight knots are softened and relaxed.

Benefits

There are many benefits to trigger point therapy. By stretching the affected areas and applying various levels of pressure, the massage therapist can provide relief from pain and improve your range of motion.

How does trigger point therapy work? The goal of each therapy session is not to eliminate the trigger points, but to instead manage them and alleviate the pain you are experiencing. Receiving trigger point therapy can help control your pain, but it can also give you a better understanding of your body mechanics and determine any underlying causes that could be making your knots painful.

Treatment Areas

Trigger points can develop in nearly any muscle and, unfortunately, a trigger point in one area can lead to pain in a different part of the body. Common trigger points are located in the neck, back, shoulders, legs, and at various different points. It takes a deep understanding of the human body to recognize trigger points and how to soothe them.

If you are experiencing pain, a trained and experienced therapist can help determine the causes of this pain and what can be done to resolve your issues.

Risks and Side Effects

When performed by an experienced professional, there are very few severe risks associated with trigger point therapy. You may feel some discomfort during the massage as pressure is applied to the knots in your body. However, you will likely also feel great relief as these areas are softened and relaxed.

Our experienced team can help alleviate pain in your body, improve your range of motion, relax your muscles, and help you live a more comfortable life. For more information on how we can help, please call us at 905-270-3086 or book an appointment online. We are here to help you feel better, move more freely, and live the life you want to live.