Contractures, trigger points, muscle soreness: what acupuncture can offer for everyday muscle tension.
By Dr Alexandre Fleury · Physician acupuncturist · ~4 min read · Updated October 2026
Shoulders creeping up to your ears, a muscle like a “knot,” aches that linger: muscle pain is part of daily life for many of us. Sport, screen work, repetitive movements, stress that tightens the jaw and neck… Understanding where it comes from helps relieve it better.
A contracture is a muscle that stays tense without releasing, which hinders local circulation and keeps the pain going. It may contain trigger points: small nodules that are tender to pressure and sometimes refer pain elsewhere. Muscle soreness, on the other hand, appears 24 to 72 hours after unaccustomed exertion: these are small, benign muscle micro-injuries that heal on their own.
Sedentary habits, prolonged postures, fatigue, lack of sleep and stress are factors that keep these tensions going.
TCM sums up pain with a well-known saying: “Where there is free flow, there is no pain; where there is no free flow, there is pain.” Muscles and tendons are traversed by Qi and Blood: when their flow is hindered — by cold, by exertion, by emotional tension — pain appears.
TCM also links the Liver to the tendons (tension linked to stress and frustration) and the Spleen to the muscles (muscular fatigue, weakness with fragile digestion).
I use classic points, as well as “ashi” points: these are points tender to pressure, which the patient recognises with an “ah, that’s the spot!” They largely overlap with what modern medicine calls trigger points.
Some contractures and pains can be relieved from the very first session. Others are not, even after several sessions. This depends on how long-standing and how intense the trouble is. Acupuncture is a form of support, to be combined with movement, gentle stretching and correcting the factors that keep the tension going.
I use very small, single-use needles, much finer than a blood-test needle. Most of the time you feel a slight prick, then nothing more. Sometimes you feel nothing at all; some areas are more sensitive than others. This sensation lasts a few seconds, then settles.
You may also feel, around the needle, a dull impression of heaviness, warmth or tingling: this is an expected, harmless sensation. If something bothers you, tell me: I can adjust or remove the needle right away.
On a very tense muscle, you may occasionally feel a brief twitch or small spasm when the needle is inserted: this lasts a moment, then passes right away.
When should you seek prompt medical advice?
Seek medical advice without delay if you have:
This article is intended for information and education. It does not replace a medical consultation and does not constitute personalised advice.
