Working out muscle knots traditionally involves a bit of pain. What what if there were a more effective way to address them that didn’t have you jumping off of the massage table? Trigger point is the technical term for a knot in the muscle. Pretty accurate names for these things, right? “Knot” in that these points can feel like a binding or a tying in the fibers. “Trigger point” because pressing on them triggers pain. How these form and why, is a topic I’ve covered before

In the last few months, I have seen a number is clients whose pain stems from trigger points. Lots of them. While it is common for trigger points to be a pain source, I have started to notice an interesting pattern as to when they illicit pain. Trigger points carry a few points of debate because they are difficult to study. Imaging techniques such as X Ray and MRI cannot see them leaving the mechanisms behind trigger point pain obscure. And direct palliation, the most reliabl

Massage therapists have a saying: the issues are in the tissues. Looking at this phrase, clearly it is applicable to a profession that releases stress and relieves pain in the soft tissue structures of the body. But it is not often that we refer to physical ailments with this rhyme. Most often, we are discussing trapped emotions and memories. “Memories are stored in the brain. How in the world could an emotion be stored in the body?!” you might be wondering. In a 2014 re

Trigger Points: Modern Gordian Knots As someone who has performed self-massage – yes, that quick rub over the temples and neck counts! –, you have most likely come across the sore, pebble-like spots in your muscles. The aptly called knots. These little buggers are one of the biggest reasons people come to see me: “Please help me get rid of these knots!” Since Trigger Points, the also apt scientific name for knots, play such a significant part in my clients’ pain, I want