Why do bad trigger points happen to good people?

[Shaquantae O]

I'm curious about something... many of my clients have similar situations: poor posture, lots of computer use, not all that active... and yet their physical responses to this situation vary widely.

Some will have just aches and general pains, others will have specific patterns such as upper/lower crossed syndrome... and some have lots of bad trigger points that are very persistent!

Any thoughts on why this is so? Toxicity/inflammation would seem to be one possibility... are your TrP clients on lots of meds? But what about clients on meds that don't have such issues? Any other physical/metaphysical ideas?

 

[Artist]

Yes to all of the above.

I think it's important to remember that our clients are the sum of everything that has happened to them over their entire life. Every accident, no matter how small......every bad habit (diet, smoking, drugs, posture) every job they've had.....every thing.

I also think part of it could be genetic.

I also think part of it is emotional and how they respond physically to their emotions. Do they clinch their jaws, do they "armor" themselves, do they hold their shoulders up and rounded?

You can have two people sitting next to each other in their cubicles doing the same computer work. If one has been relatively upper-body accident free all of their life and is not a "type-A" stressed-to-the-max person, then their shoulders may be tight and achy but they're not going to be loaded with TPs like their neighbor who has been in multiple car accidents and played football in high school and has a bad diet.

There are just so many variables.

Angie

 

[Ons Lacai]

I feel that people who proactively take responsibility for their health and make daily personal maintenance a part of their lifestyle are less likely to experience pain or need anything more than "routine maintenance."

 

[just_ken_here]

That would be a great title for a book!

I have been finding that it also has alot to do with what people eat. Diets high in carbs, sugars and preservatives have more inflammation.

It does also have a lot to do with how they process emotions such as fear and grief.

It really is a whole body thing and I don't think we can ever really know why some tp's are worse.

Julie

 

[Cameron aka Ashley]

I've recently become very interested in trigger points, and as I've become "super-aware" of everyone's TrP's, I've noticed that women seem to have bigger/more painful TrP's in their upper trap. area, and men have them in their lower trap. area.

I could be totally wrong, but I have noticed that this seems to be the case, at least with my clients, and the students in my class.

 

[Animefreak20]

I wonder sometimes about hormonal factors, particularly in my migraine clients. I don't even really know where to look, to find out if a hormone/muscular tension link has been studied.

 

[Mystic Shiva Says]

Ida Rolf covers genetic postural tendencies in her book "Structural Integration". There are also some interesting emotional links in Native American Body Reading. I took a w/e class last year and still check my notes from time to time. It's hard to find published works on Native American body work since they have an oral tradition.

 

[MORRISON ALDRICH]

Ruth Werner writes alot about the stress response system.

Here is one of her article on Massage and Bodywork

Cortisol dissolves connective tissue and suppresses inflammation. (This is why cortisone, a synthetic version of cortisol, is sometimes used to melt old scar tissue or reduce local inflammation.) When we secrete a lot of cortisol, we increase the risk of musculoskeletal injury

http://www.massagetherapy.com/articles/index.php/article_id/1162

Julie

 

[Hannah G]

Thanks for that info and link Julie, I've bookmarked that article to read later!

 

[formula72]

Joshua, since you are working in trigger point therapy, one of the books you may want to invest in is the Travell vol.I&II. A shortened, less expensive version would be both the Claire Davies books.

Trigger points can be created and perpetuated by several things besides posture and stress, such as:

* Poor nutrition (low B & C vitamins)
* Improper breathing habits
* Cold air from a.c. or car a.c. hitting one area of the body for any length
of time
* Injections
* Viral infections
* Diabetes
* Gallstones
* Kidney disease
* Joint dysfunction
* Medications for pain
* Calcium channel blockers
* Depression and anxiety medications
* Thyroid problems
* Anemia
* Nicotine
* massageplanetfeine
* Alcohol
* Chronic anxiety and/or depression

And of course, the obvious improper use of the body or any activity spent too long in sedentary or one position.

 

[Jennifer Lopez]

Excellent, thank you for that list, and the book suggestions.