For Everyone

The Winner’s Guide to Pain Relief, by myofascial pain specialist Hal Blatman, MD, and Brad Ekvall, BFA, is ready to teach you how to improve your quality of life.  Read more about it here.

I've used these (and have worn out one manual).  These stretches are easy to follow, and you can pick the stretches you need the most.

Feeling Better Exercises

100 gentle, easy stretches developed by the founder of The Academy for Myofascial Trigger Point Therapy, Tasso Spanos, specifically for people with myofascial trigger point pain and dysfunction.  Patients with chronic myofascial pain or multiple TrPs and fibromyalgia are advised to begin slowly, doing only a small amount of the exercises the first day, with no repetitions.  If this is tolerated, more can be added the next day. For more information on myofascial TrPs and on the CD or video, click here. 

Stretching: 20th Anniversary Ed., by Bob Anderson

This is the book that medical professionals recommend to people just starting to get back in shape.  It features more than 20 new stretching routines, including those for sports enthusiasts, travelers, children, etc.

Stretching for Working America, by Bob Anderson and Sally Carlson

This book was written for the worker — to relieve stress, prevent injury and promote fitness in everyday living.  It contains selected stretches by Bob Anderson and edited text by Sally Carlson, disability cost management specialist.  It features a ten minute routine that can be done standing before and/or after each work shift.  The clear illustrations and easy-to-follow instructions are ideal for the individual worker or can be used as part of an organized program for business, large or small.

Ergonomic Living: How to Create a User-Friendly Home and Office, by Gordon Inkeles, Iris Schencke

This book has everything.  Not just the normal desk ergonomics, although that is in here too.  There is information on how to sleep, how to read, and how to prepare food.  This book may help you cut down on your pain.

The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook (2nd Edition): Your Self-Treatment Guide for Pain Relief, by Clair Davies, N.C.M.T.

So many of the symptoms that are  diagnosed as fibromyalgia and other illnesses are actually due to TrPs.  For example, treating the myofascial pain component of arthritis may significantly reduce the pain load.  This book has easy to understand diagrams and clear instructions  that will enable the average person to locate and treat myofascial TrPs.

Acupressure for Common Ailments, by Chris Jarmey and John Tindall

This small book is a good summary of some common acupressure points and treatment techniques.

Back Pain Relief - The Ultimate Guide: A Comprehensive Back Pain Management
Program, by Robert H. Miller, Christine A. Opie

Miller's book deals with more than back pain.  There are detailed instructions on many forms of bodywork and mind work that you can do for yourself.  Nutrition, exercise, meditation, spirituality — it's all covered here.  There are also two CD disks that are very valuable in developing mind work and bodywork programs.

The Way of Qigong: The Art and Science of Chinese Energy Healing, by Kenneth S. Cohen, 1997

The way of Qigong is a big book, but it is the best I have read on this subject, and I have read many.  It explains not only the fundamentals of qigong, but relates it healing with experimental evidence. Included are sections on breathing, relaxation, energy, and comprehensive appendices.

Pain Free, by Pete Egoscue with Roger Gittines

Pete Egoscue's book is unusual in that it is not written by a medical authority.  Pete Egoscue is a sports injury consultant, and he is exceedingly knowledgeable about the function of the muscles groups.  He has developed low-impact exercises to "reset" your muscle groups and realign your bones. These exercises are deceptively simple but can take all you have to complete.  They are preventative medicine at its best.

Job's Body, by Deane Juhan, Station Press, 1987.  

This book was the text used by one of my massage therapists.  It presents how your body works and the connections of one system to another, with special attention to the muscles, myofascia and nerves that gives a great background on FMS and CMP.

An Introduction to Craniosacral Therapy: Anatomy, Function, and Treatment, by Don Cohen, 1996.  

For Bodyworkers

For extra information on myofascial TrPs by Tasso Spanos, the founder of the original Academy for Myofascial Trigger Point Therapy, including access to a diagnostic chart to help you figure out which TrPs are contributing to interscapular pain, and an exercise CD or video designed specifically for people with myofascial TrPs, click here.  Patients with chronic myofascial pain or multiple TrPs and fibromyalgia are advised to begin the exercise program slowly, doing only a small amount of the exercises the first day, with no repetitions. If this is tolerated with minimal post-exercise soreness, more of the exercises can be added the next day

Clinical Mastery in the Treatment of Myofascial Pain, by Lucy Whyte Ferguson and Robert Gerwin. 

In my opinion, this book should be read and reread by anyone who practices any form of myofascial pain medicine.  If you want to know which order to treat TrP-laden muscles and how to release difficult areas and so much more, it’s here, waiting for you.

Anatomy Trains: Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists, by Thomas W. Myers

This is everything you ever wanted to know about myofascia, including explanations on the microscopic level, with fascinating and detailed drawings.  Superb for care providers and for medically educated patients.

Myofascial trigger points (TrPs) cause muscle dysfunction and loss of range of motion (ROM) even before they cause pain.  Overlapping TrP pain patterns can cause confusion for care providers and patients.  Specific ROM tests can help you distinguish between different TrPs.  A great tool to help care providers find specific TrPs and document the dysfunction and its sources is the range of motion charts.  Visit Round Earth Publishing and check out this valuable resource.

Acupuncture, Trigger Points and Musculoskeletal Pain, Second Edition, by P.E. Baldry, 1993 

This is a marvelous book for physical therapists, acupuncturists and doctors of all types wishing to broaden their knowledge, written by someone with a good background in myofascial trigger points.  This book is too technical for many patients. 

Principles of Manual Medicine, Second Edition, by Philip E. Greenman, 1996

This book is important for any doctor or physical therapist involved with the practice of manual medicine.  This book is too technical for many patients.  

Informed Touch: A Clinician’s Guide to the Evaluation and Treatment of Myofascial Disorders, by Donna Finando LAc, LMT, and Steven Finando, PhD, LAc

This book is written for the acupuncturist but would be a valuable guide to the informed patient and to the body worker.  The authors are thoroughly familiar with myofascial TrPs and integrate them with their method of acupuncture.  

The Myofascial Release Textbook, by Michael J Shea, and Dale Schmidt, 1996. Shea Educational Group, Inc. 13878 Oleander Avenue, Juno Beach FL 33408-1626, Ph 561-863-3350, Fax 561-863-4409.

This is a collection of articles written by Dr. Shea.  It would be of great benefit to any myotherapist or physical therapist.  It answers a lot of questions for any doctor of any type who deals with bodywork in any form or who deals with patients who have myofascial trigger points.

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