Headaches. Everyone gets them. In fact, they are a "normal" part of life for many. However, having headaches should not be normal. They are one of the many ways your body is telling you that something is not functioning correctly.
Over the next few days, I'm going to be doing a headache series. The first muscle I want to talk about is sternocleidomastoid (SCM). There are seven main trigger points, or "knots", that may form in the SCM. These trigger points can cause tension, migraine, and hangover headaches; face pain; difficulty and discomfort swallowing; visual and eye muscle difficulties; dizziness; vertigo; hearing disturbances; sore neck muscles; and upper chest discomfort.
Who knew so many problems could come from one small muscle?!
Some more common causes of SCM trigger points are whiplash, working overhead, bad posture, poor sleeping positions, chronic coughing, tight collared shirts, and even limping.
So what can massage do for this tired, overused muscle? First, to find the specific dysfunctions, a detailed intake and muscle testing would be performed. Once the problem spots were pinpointed, various techniques would be performed to release the tension and break apart the trigger points. A few common techniques would include rolling, stripping, and pinching. I know these sound like torture but applied with a comfortable amount of pressure these techniques bring a lot of relief!
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