Trigger Point Therapy in Bath and Bristol: How It Works and Why It Helps Your Body

Trigger Point Therapy is a highly effective technique for releasing deep muscle tension, reducing pain, and restoring ease and mobility in the body. It focuses on small, sensitive areas within the muscle known as trigger points. These points can cause local discomfort and referred pain in other parts of the body, sometimes mimicking conditions such as arthritis, tendonitis, or bursitis. Trigger points often develop in muscles and surrounding fascia that have been held in prolonged contraction due to posture, repetitive movement, stress, or emotional tension.

Trigger points occur when a small section of a muscle becomes contracted and shortened. Blood flow to this area is restricted, causing stiffness, pain, and sometimes a pulling sensation in nearby tissues. Because muscles and fascia are intimately connected, releasing a trigger point in the muscle also relieves tension in the surrounding fascia. This dual effect improves circulation, flexibility, and overall function.

During a session, Joanna works slowly and methodically, using palpation to locate trigger points in the muscle. She applies focused, sustained pressure within the client’s tolerance. Initially, the pressure may feel tender or uncomfortable, but it encourages the muscle to release. As the muscle relaxes, the surrounding fascia begins to rehydrate and regain elasticity, allowing the tissue to move more freely. Breathing techniques are often integrated into the session, coordinating pressure with the out-breath to enhance relaxation and comfort.

Trigger Point Therapy offers a wide range of physical benefits. It can relieve chronic pain in muscles and joints, reduce stiffness, improve posture, and restore mobility. Muscles that commonly contain trigger points include the trapezius, levator scapulae, scalenes, erector spinae, pectoralis, gluteals, quadratus lumborum, hamstrings, quadriceps, calves, and muscles of mastication. Tension in these muscles can contribute to headaches, neck and jaw pain, back pain, shoulder or hip discomfort, and numbness or tingling in the extremities.

NeuroMuscular Therapy principles are integral to trigger point work. The nervous system often maintains chronic muscle contraction as a protective response to injury, emotional stress, or habitual posture. This can cause the muscle to remain shortened even after the initial cause has passed. By applying precise pressure and bringing awareness to these areas, Joanna helps the nervous system release the protective holding pattern, allowing the muscle to relax fully and preventing future tension from becoming habitual.

Trigger points can feel like small nodules, pea-sized lumps, or larger areas of tight, cord-like muscle. During a session, Joanna asks clients to report their level of discomfort on a scale from one to ten. Pressure is applied carefully, held for around ninety seconds, released briefly, and reapplied if needed. This methodical approach encourages both muscle and fascia to unwind, helping the body release tension that has built up over weeks, months, or even years.

The effects of Trigger Point Therapy are often immediate. Clients frequently report feeling lighter, looser, and more balanced. Mobility improves, posture is supported, and chronic pain can be significantly reduced. Over time, trigger point therapy fosters a deeper awareness of the body, helping clients maintain relaxation and prevent future discomfort.

By addressing both muscle and fascia, while working with the nervous system, Trigger Point Therapy provides a physically grounded, holistic approach to muscular health. It is not just a treatment for pain, but a method to restore balance, ease, and strength to the body.

Joanna ensures a personalised, hands-on approach, with each session tailored to the client’s individual body, needs, and goals. For anyone looking to release tension, restore mobility and good posture, or manage chronic muscle discomfort, trigger point therapy offers a safe and highly effective solution.

To find out more or book Trigger Point Therapy in Bath or Bristol go here.