Tyson Poncelet, RMT

So, during my massages there are multiple things that I am actively looking/feeling for to better help you. One of those things are the lovely, thickened areas in a taut band of muscle called Trigger Points.

Trigger points are commonly tender, can cause paresthesia (collective term for tingly/prickly sensations, like the TV static feeling in your foot after sitting on it for too long) or cause other autonomic responses, such as a twitch, when provoked by pressure. See, these things wouldn’t be as annoying to have if they only caused pain where they are located. The problem is that trigger points commonly have a referred pattern of pain. For example, one I get with people often is while working on their shoulders and sinking into the upper trapezius muscle and then they mention that they feel it up into their head. One of the crazier ones that I have ran into is one that is located in the calf that refers all the way to the lower back! And even crazier? They aren’t just in muscles. Trigger points have been found in the tendo-osseous junction (place where tendon attaches to bone) and even your ligaments!

Not only can they lead you on a wild goose chase, but there are also different types of trigger points.
Active- A trigger point with a referred sensations that are familiar with the person and are currently causing pain.
Latent- The sensations of pain only happen with a strong pressure. Although pain is not on the forefront, these can be harmful as they can change activation patterns of muscles or cause weakness.
Primary- Trigger points that cause severe pain locally and referred pain. These are USUSALLY found around the center of a muscle belly.
Secondary/Satellite- These arise in response to existing Primary trigger points in the surrounding muscles and usually clear up once the Primary has been taken care of.