What is myofascial release?
Myofascial release is a manual therapy commonly used in massage to target the tissues that wrap, connect and support your muscles. It’s also known as trigger point therapy because it targets trigger points — the knots in your muscles causing pain and tightness.
Using gentle, constant pressure your physical therapist finds the trigger points causing your problems and maintains pressure until they feel the tension release.
Why do I need myofascial release therapy?
Myofascial release therapy is helpful when you have any type of tightness or tension. When you feel a knot or bump in your muscle that’s causing discomfort or tightness, it’s actually a stiffness in the fascial tissue, which is woven into your muscles like a spider web.
Targeting these trigger points helps relieve the symptoms they cause. Your PT may perform myofascial release therapy if you have:
- Trauma from a fall or accident
- Scarring from surgery, injury or other conditions
- Inflammatory issues like bursitis, osteoarthritis or plantar fasciitis
- Overuse or repetitive stress injuries
- Nerve problems from herniated disks, carpal tunnel and other conditions
- Lower back pain due to muscle and tendon strains
- Muscle and joint pain from fibromyalgia
- Chronic headaches and migraines
What should I expect during myofascial release treatment?
Myofascial release is a hands-on therapy. Your physical therapist will perform a physical examination directly on your skin in order to identify where your pain and tightness originates. Once they find the trigger point, they’ll slowly apply gentle but constant pressure. They may use kneading or stretching hand movements to loosen and lengthen the fascia until they feel the knot release.
You may have more than one trigger point within a muscle or muscle group, like your low back. Your PT will work around the surrounding tissue to find and treat any other knots contributing to your symptoms.
What will I feel like after myofascial pain release?
As your trigger points release, you should feel less tension and tightness right away. It may still feel like you have sore muscles though — or at least like you’ve done some stretching. These mild symptoms resolve rather quickly and you leave feeling more flexible and experiencing less pain than when you came in.
Myofascial release isn’t a one-and-done treatment. For most conditions, you’ll need multiple visits for therapy to completely get rid of the problems, or in combination with other physical therapy techniques. Your physical therapist will schedule a series of appointments depending on the severity of your condition. It could be a couple of visits, a few months or anywhere in between before your myofascial issue is completely healed.
Myofascial release therapy is also helpful in pain management. So for conditions like chronic back pain or fibromyalgia, regular myofascial release can help you stay loose, active and on top of your pain.
How do I find the right myofascial treatment near me?
Myofascial release is a common hands-on technique used by a wide variety of therapists. In addition to physical therapists, you may see the technique offered by chiropractors, massage therapists, occupational therapists, osteopathic physicians, athletic trainers and sports medicine physicians. You may also see tips online for performing myofascial techniques yourself.
If you’re interested in myofascial therapy — especially for long-term pain management — talk to your health care provider first. They can make a referral to a therapist specially trained in myofascial techniques (which not all therapists are). Or schedule an appointment with any of the PTs at The Iowa Clinic, each of whom are skilled in myofascial release and can complement it with other appropriate treatments to resolve your muscle pain and tightness.