What Is a Trigger Point Massage?

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Sundae with Natural Sundae and if you've ever wondered what a trigger point massage is I can tell you. Now a trigger point massage is a very specialized form of massage aimed at trigger points. Now you're asking what the heck is a trigger point? Now a trigger point is a very specific point in the body of a muscle usually occur in the muscles along the axial skeleton which means the muscles that help us maintain our posture and help us stand up straight. Now a trigger point is exclusively a hyper irritable or a hyper sensitive point in a muscle that refers pain or triggers pain to another area that may seem totally unrelated to the trigger point itself. For example there are trigger points in our trapezius which is our most superficial back and shoulder muscle. There may be a trigger point right along this muscle but the path of pain actually goes from the back of the ear all the way through the head and through the corner of the eye. And there are also a couple of different types of trigger points, that would be considered the primary trigger point, the source of pain. Now there's also something called a satellite trigger point and that is a trigger point that exists already in the path of the referred pain of another trigger point. Say the trigger point that we just talked about, the trapezius trigger point that refers pain all the way up through our head. Well sitting at our temple is another trigger point that is triggered from that path of pain from the trapezius muscle. So that is called a satellite trigger point. Third type of trigger point is called the secondary trigger point and those types of trigger points are trigger points that develop from the path of pain from the muscle that is stressed out from the primary trigger point. I know it sounds like a lot of information but trigger points again are hyper irritable points of pain in specific parts of the muscle that trigger pain in other areas. And there are many different reasons for a trigger point, lack of oxygen and nutrients when you cut off the oxygen, the area becomes a ischemic which means it is literally - it can't breathe, so lactic - there's no blood flow to flow right through that muscle and clean out all the lactic acid and all the toxins that accumulate. And that makes you sore. Lactic acid makes you sore. So you got lactic acid build up, creating soreness, creating that trigger point. Another reason for a trigger point is injury. If you have a piece of cartilage or bone or muscle or fascia that's impeding a nerve, or impinging a nerve path, that is the cause of a trigger point. That is a real brief explanation of trigger point therapy. I hope you've learned a little bit about it today and if you have a trigger point, go get it worked on. I'm Sundae with Natural Sundae."