Week 12 - and it's all about Trigger Points

I've mentioned in previous posts about treating trigger points with a tennis ball. If this sounds surreal then I will explain.

Trigger points - so the experts write - are painful points, like knots, in muscles. They are a result of overuse or straining of a muscle and can cause actute pain that is difficult to pinpoint. E.g. you can have a pain down the back of your arm your caused by a trigger point under your shoulder blade. A trigger point can be released by pressing hard on it with a thumb or finger(s) or by rolling on a tennis ball. Typically it takes between 30 and 90 seconds of pressing for the pain to go - it's quite wierdly relieving!

The private physio therapy practice I visit treats trigger points whereas, in my experience, NHS pysios do not. In my last post I complained of continuing pain in the back of my shoulder. Some further googling found this article:

http://www.pressurepointer.com/Serratus%20anterior_trigger_points.htm

After rolling around on a tennis ball trying to push the trigger points out of my rotator cuff, it appears that most of the pain was caused by the Serratus Anerior which is partially covered by the shoulder blade. Three days of following the advice in the article above and things feel much better. I almost feel like there is an end in sight to my suffering!