Table Of Content

A LITTLE BOOK OF SELF CARE TRIGGER POINTS US_001_Half_Title.indd 1 13/05/2019 16:31 USE THE POWER OF TOUCH TO LIVE LIFE PAIN-FREE US_002-003_Full_Title.indd 2 03/05/2019 16:43 A LITTLE BOOK OF SELF CARE TRIGGER POINTS USE THE POWER OF TOUCH TO LIVE LIFE PAIN-FREE AMANDA OSWALD US_002-003_Full_Title.indd 3 13/05/2019 16:40 CONTENTS Foreword 06 Senior Editors Lesley Malkin, Rona Skene US Editor Jennette ElNaggar GETTING STARTED Senior Designers Mandy Earey, What are trigger points? 10 Collette Sadler Designers Sadie Thomas, Philippa Nash How trigger points occur 12 Editorial Assistant Kiron Gill Preparing to treat trigger points 14 Illustrator Fortuna Todisco Self-care practice 16 Producer, Pre-production Heather Blagden Senior Producer Luca Bazzoli How to work trigger points 18 Jacket Designer Amy Cox Trigger-point balls and tools 20 Jacket Co-ordinator Lucy Philpott Creative Technical Support TRIGGER-POINT TREATMENTS Sonia Charbonnier Managing Editor Dawn Henderson Head and neck 24 Managing Art Editor Marianne Markham Back of neck 28 Art Director Maxine Pedliham Publishing Director Mary-Clare Jerram Side of neck 1 30 Back of shoulder 1 32 First American Edition, 2019 Published in the United States by DK Publishing Jaw, ear, and face 34 1450 Broadway, Suite 801, New York, NY 10018 Jaw 38 Copyright © Dorling Kindersley Limited Inside mouth 1 40 DK, a Division of Penguin Random House LLC Inside mouth 2 42 19 20 21 22 23 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 001–314495–Sept/2019 Temples 44 Face 46 All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under the copyright Chest 48 reserved above, no part of this publication may be Chest 1 50 reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any Side of chest 52 means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written Shoulders 54 permission of the copyright owner. Published in Back of shoulder 2 58 Great Britain by Dorling Kindserly Limited Back of shoulder 3 60 DISCLAIMER see page 144 Back of shoulder 4 62 A catalog record for this book is available from Side of armpit 1 64 the Library of Congress. Top of shoulder 66 ISBN 978-1-4654-8504-5 Printed and bound in China A WORLD OF IDEAS: SEE ALL THERE IS TO KNOW www.dk.com US_004-005_Imprint_Content.indd 4 02/07/2019 15:56 Arms and hands 68 Legs and knees 116 Side of neck 2 72 Back of thigh 120 Side of armpit 2 74 Inner thigh 122 Chest 2 76 Front of thigh 124 Front of upper arm 78 Side of hip 2 126 Back of upper arm 80 Calf 128 Back of forearm 82 Ankles and feet 130 Front of forearm 84 Shin 132 Palm of hand 86 Side of calf 134 Upper and midback 88 Sole of foot 136 Between the shoulder blades 92 Back 94 Resources 138 Abdomen 96 Index 140 Between the ribs 100 Acknowledgments 144 Diaphragm 102 Abdomen 104 Lower back and hips 106 Side of back 108 Buttocks 110 Side of hip 1 112 Front of pelvis 114 US_004-005_Imprint_Content.indd 5 02/07/2019 15:56 6 FOREWORD For many people, modern medicine is literally a lifesaver. However, many of us are increasingly looking for ways to live healthier lives and to self-treat our health conditions. This book is a practical, hands-on guide for anyone interested in how treating your trigger points can bring relief after years of chronic pain or misdiagnosis. If you’ve ever felt a “knot” in your shoulder and dug in with your fingers to find both tension and relief, then the chances are you’ve found a trigger point—a knot of connective tissue that is tender to the touch and that causes pain or other symptoms. The effects of a trigger point may be felt either where the trigger point is located or elsewhere in the body—this is called “referred” pain. It is the possibility of these, sometimes surprising, referred symptoms that mean trigger points can be overlooked medically and sometimes misdiagnosed as a better-known medical condition. In my clinical work, I see many people experiencing a wide range of chronic pain conditions. Many have found their way to me after years of suffering, rounds of medical treatment, and eventually being told they will just have to live with it. I work with these clients to identify their trigger points as the first step to successfully relieving their pain and treating their condition. My journey into trigger points started with my own chronic pain and a quest to heal myself. I spent many years working in stressful jobs, alternating long hours with vigorous sports including rugby US_006-007_TP_Forward.indd 6 02/07/2019 15:56 7 and long-distance running. Like many people, I dismissed the warning aches and pains that came and went from time to time. Eventually, I developed a prolapsed disc. The pain forced me to stop working and abandon the leisure activities I loved, so I accepted an offer of surgery. Afterward, although I could move again, the pain remained and could not be explained medically. In my efforts to heal myself, I retrained and qualified first as a massage therapist then as a sports-massage therapist. I went on to more advanced bodywork techniques, and during my studies, I heard about myofascial release and trigger points. Suddenly, everything made sense. I learned how trigger points can be found in all areas of the body and cause a wide range of seemingly unrelated symptoms, and ever since I have made it my mission to pass on techniques for self-treating myofascial trigger points. This book provides information on many common trigger points and the patterns of pain and other symptoms associated with them. We steer clear of complex medical jargon in favor of clear and simple step-by-step guides to self-treat trigger points effectively. Put simply, this is the book I wish I’d had when I started my journey to recovery from chronic pain. I hope you find it a useful guide to living pain-free. Amanda Oswald US_006-007_TP_Forward.indd 7 02/07/2019 15:56 US_008-009_TP_Opener.indd 8 03/05/2019 16:44