What are Trigger Points & How to Address the Pain!

By Dr Stephanie Kim, DNP, FNP-c

Did you know that there are nearly 600 different muscles in our body? Each one with a specific purpose that works in conjunction with our joints to perform daily tasks. Whether we realize it or not, our muscles are constantly being worked. Their function is to contract and relax reflective of the movement. While we breathe, those intercostal muscles between each rib are expanding and contracting. When sleeping, we change positions from our right side to our left, our torso and limbs are being maneuvered with the use of those muscles. The muscles in our neck and shoulders are holding up our head all day while we are looking down at our cellphones. We are sitting at our desk for long periods of time and when we get up to stand, we feel the stiffness in our back from the crooked posture we sat in. We started working out again and realized stretching should’ve probably been done prior to and afterwards. Sometimes, even something as simple as sneezing the wrong way can cause those same muscles to contract and stay contracted.   All of a sudden you feel tightness and pain in your shoulders or in the low back as you rub the area out of habit. If you know what I mean, those are trigger points!

Trigger points are tight bands of muscle that can be secondary to overuse or lack of use. Our muscles are meant to contract and relax, but when our bodies are stressed, they don’t relax as they should. And then our body’s way of compensating for pain is moving the pain somewhere else. Also, that muscle spasm or knot that now hurts, is impacting other muscles and joints around so now, you’re having muscle spasms and it hurts in places where it shouldn’t. Over time, without proper addressing or intervention, this pain could get worse and now your mobility is limited.  Now you’re hesitant to make certain movements because it hurts or you don’t enjoy the activities you used to. 

You’ve tried massage, cold or heat compression therapy, and although there is temporary relief, those knots keep coming back. In conjunction with our multitude of disciplines offered at ProClinix, we now offer trigger point relief via injections. Commonly done at your orthopedic or primary care office, we can also address them here. Typically done with steroids, these trigger point injections are known to help relieve pain. The downside of using steroids is that they are great for pain, but come with possible adverse reactions if used more than a few times a year. In addition, certain comorbidities can hinder steroid use or even be a contraindication for some people. Rather than using a steroid, through a minimally invasive manner, we inject a mild numbing agent. These injections allow those tense muscles to contract and then relax and thereby reduce pain. Because we are using a local anesthetic without steroids, we can do these trigger points more frequently and address those areas of muscle tension regularly. 

While physical therapy provides skilled exercise, chiropractic therapy helps realign your crooked posture, those injections also attack these knots head on without the concern of severe side effects. Afterwards, with minimal to no downtime, you can go about your day and get back to enjoying hiking without having to dread the recovery or even something as simple as being able to stand for longer than 30 minutes without feeling the ache of your back. Our multidisciplinary practice not only provides the therapies you need to get back on track, but also the convenience of being able to address your needs with the same team.