Tender Spots

[Kazuha04]

Hi all,

I made a post about a week ago talking about my pain. I have accepted that it is most likely TMS and have begun to treat it as such. There is one thing that I am curious about, which is TMS and trigger points. I have identified that I have two trigger points in my painful hand, one at the base of the pinky finger, and one in the heel of the palm on the left side. These tender spots have been there for a very long time. I was just wondering if that further proves it is TMS? I know that trigger points and oxygen deprivation go hand in hand, so I feel like it makes sense.

I also had an idea, which I'm not sure if it would help or make things worse: When doing somatic tracking, would it be helpful to gently press on these trigger points? My reasoning is that perhaps I can teach my brain that it is safe and ok to apply pressure and feel pain, to gradually get used to the pain brought on by these trigger points. Of course, this does make the pain flare up a bit, and I feel the usual soreness afterwards, which doesn't feel good. Thoughts?

 

[czb145]

Hey Kazuha! I am also fairly new around here (about a month) - I was looking at your other post and found this one from your profile? Just wanted to check in and see how you’re coming along. I was also told by a medical massage practitioner that I had trigger points in my thumb/palm area where I’ve dealt with discomfort. She and I both worked on them and it seemed to provide some relief- however I got the most relief in my thumb when I simply stopped trying to fix it physically, lol.

I’ve unfortunately had a couple new symptoms pop up around that area, but I’m certain it’s symptom imperative at work (even if it’s uncomfortable). Just wanted to weigh in on my hand issue with trigger points. Hope you’re doing well!

 

[JanAtheCPA]

Hi @Kazuha04, and good response from @czb145 for bumping this.

You received great advice from your first thread, so I'm going to simply suggest that focusing on a physical theory like "trigger points" (so popular amongst physios), is ultimately not useful for chronic pain. It's a distraction, in fact. The real trigger points are not physical - they are the negative fears, thoughts and emotions from your primitive TMS brain mechanism.

trigger points and oxygen deprivation go hand in hand,

Personally, I let go of the oxygen deprivation theory pretty early on during my recovery process as being too small in its scope. Mind you, I believe 100% that muscle clenching and shallow breathing both contribute significantly to the tension that is part of the entire chronic symptoms syndrome. Thus, instead of letting your TMS brain worry about the mechanics of oxygen deprivation, I would urge you to spend your time and effort on learning techniques for full-body muscle relaxation and deep therapeutic breathing. The internet is full of recommendations for both of these practices, many of them in the form of meditation. These techniques can also be taught by qualified and experienced personal trainers, massage therapists, and physios.

Also, are you doing any kind of structured program, like our SEP? That's the best way to learn and really start to make progress.