What Are Trigger Points and How Do They Affect Us?

The medical community knows that trigger points are common causes of pain. Also known as myofascial pain syndrome or myofascitis, trigger points are a significant health concern. The issue impacts many people. Understanding it and its effects is essential in knowing how to tackle it.

What Are Trigger Points?

Muscles have cells called fibers that are in bundles. The fibers are thinner and thicker in various areas of the body. Nerves and connective tissues surround these muscle fibers. You can have movement throughout your body because of the contraction and release of the muscle fibers. When they become strained and exhausted, they lead to the formation of trigger points in your body.

Trigger points are sensitive knots that form in the connective tissue or muscles. They imitate tiny hard knots, and you can find trigger points in your shoulders, upper back, or at the base of your neck. They are painful whenever pressed as they send pain signals to the brain through your nervous system. If left untreated, you may experience chronic pain and more debilitating symptoms.

How Trigger Points Occur

Determining how a trigger point occurs is difficult as some forms without pain. You can begin to identify the cause when you start having debilitating muscle spasms.

Sports injuries, repetitive motions, and muscle weakness can cause the forming of trigger points in the body. Poor habits such as lifting, bending, or poor postures can cause too much strain on your muscles. As a result, the mechanical pain can lead to trigger points.

Your muscles can clench when you overuse them continuously, or they become injured, and it causes a strain on your body. On the contrary, trigger points can also form if your muscles become weak due to minimal use. A sedentary lifestyle can lead to their formation.

Factors such as nutritional deficiencies also cause trigger points to form in the body. When the minerals and vitamins found naturally in the body become low, your muscle begins to strain and result in being damaged. Having vitamin insufficiencies contributes to trigger points.

Trigger Point Symptom

Below are signs that you have trigger points in your muscles:

Muscle fibers trembling involuntarily
Poor coordination or balance
Sweating excessively in sports, including in the underarms, palms, and face
Muscle weakness with or without atrophy
Reduced range of motion because of muscle shortening

Most people may not notice these symptoms. However, an athlete can catch them as they may be more pronounced. Most athletes do not perform optimally because of trigger points.

How Trigger Points Impact You

Chronic lower back pain often occurs due to trigger points. When pressed, you feel so much pain as they imitate tense muscle fibers.

Pain from trigger points does not go away; it only worsens if untreated. You may also experience food allergies, fatigue, and other health problems.

Pain is not the only effect that comes from trigger points. Your muscles can shorten due to so much tension. As a result, you will have a limited range of motion. Your muscles also weaken because of the resistance due to the trigger points.

Importance of Trigger Treatment

Untreated trigger points can lead to severe effects such as loss of balance and numbness. However, physical therapy can remedy such issues. Seek treatment from a chiropractor or a physical therapist if you experience trigger point symptoms.

Failure to treat trigger points causes severe pain, more injury, and loss of muscle strength and function. You can also experience disability if you do not get treatment. You should seek physical therapy and medical care for seniors if you are an older adult. Otherwise, you risk permanent disability.

For more about trigger points, visit Whiplash Pain center at our offices in Summerville, Charleston, North Charleston, and Holly Hill, South Carolina. You can also call (843) 281-7837, (843) -350-5022, (843) 636-7246, or (803) 496-3338 to book an appointment today.