Trigger Point Therapy

What is a trigger point therapy?
Trigger point therapy is a form of therapy that focuses on trigger points in the body. These are not the same as the points used in acupressure, but are physical points in the body that cause pain and can be felt by touch. They are very common and are also commonly known as muscle knots.

There are two types of trigger points: active and latent. An active trigger point hurts without being touched and if it is pressed on, it will send the pain to another part of the body. Latent trigger points only hurt when they are touched and they will not send the pain elsewhere in the body.

How does a person develop trigger points?
There can be many causes for trigger points in a person’s body. They may have an injury caused by a car accident, a fall, or many other situations. It may be something that was caused at birth, or it could be something that developed over time (an example of this is poor posture or other long-term strains on muscles).

What are the benefits of trigger point therapy?
The most obvious and instantaneous benefit of trigger point therapy is pain relief, but there are many more benefits that can be achieved over time with trigger point therapy, including the following:

• Increased range of motion
• More flexibility
• Better circulation
• Reduced stiffness

The above benefits all take time and several treatments. This is because multiple treatments help to teach the muscles how to move without causing as much pain.

What happens during trigger point therapy?
During a trigger point therapy session, the practitioner will apply pressure to many areas of the body. This might be slightly painful because the muscle tissue that the therapist will be applying pressure to will be very tender already. By applying this pressure, though, trigger point therapy can help relieve pain, even in other parts of the body. Often, trigger point therapy is done in conjunction with massage. The massage that is performed with the trigger point therapy can help to relax the patient, possibly leading to better results from the trigger point therapy.