Holistic Therapy: What Do You Need To Know About Dry Needling?

November 14, 2021
/ Fitness
/ By David B

Contents

1 What is Dry Needling?
2 Dry Needling is Different From Acupuncture
3 What Conditions Can Dry Needling Help?
4 Benefits of Dry Needling Therapy
5 Does Receiving Dry Needling Therapy Hurt?
6 Wrapping Up:

We all need a bit of rest and rejuvenation from time to time, considering everyone works hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Adding workouts to the mix, our muscles can get really sore over time if we exert ourselves on a given day. However, there are several methods to de-stress and unwind with the help of holistic healing techniques from around the world. While some love to book a deep tissue healing massage, others opt for cupping therapy to enhance blood flow and muscle recovery. Acupuncture, too, is a fantastic technique chosen by many fitness enthusiasts to help them relax and feel refreshed after the fitness events and competitions. However, have you heard of dry needling before? It is often mistaken as a form of acupuncture but is very different with equally powerful benefits. If you didn’t know enough about dry needling or wanted to know more before you booked a session, this blog will address all of it for you.

Ready to take a deep dive into the healing method? Let’s get right into it!

What is Dry Needling?

Dry needling is a skilled holistic healing procedure undertaken by professional Physical Therapists and Chiropractic Physicians to help in the recovery of neuro-musculoskeletal trauma and pain management. It is also a method well-known to address mobility dysfunction. Dry Needling comprises the use of thin filiform needles that penetrate the patient’s skin, fascia, as well as muscles to reach the trigger points, adhesions, and connective tissues of the body. This can increase the healing rate and reduce pain by alleviating muscle hypertonicity, improving the joint’s range of movement, and rectifying any mobility dysfunction by relieving a trigger point adhesion. Given the holistic nature of acupuncture, dry needling is often mistaken to be in the same boat.

The trigger point refers to the spot of muscle or fascia that turns hypersensitive and tender when pressure is applied. This is made of taut muscular or fascial bands that hinder the flow of oxygenated blood, causing pain and discomfort while restricting a person’s mobility. Overtraining your muscles or having direct muscular trauma creates these trigger points. They can come up while someone goes about their occupation or indulges in recreation and sports-based activities; the muscle capacity cannot handle the use of muscles, thereby causing an increase in stress and blocking the normal recovery process. Dry needling is different from other recovery therapies since it stimulates the trigger points and releases tension, relieving the pain response.

Dry Needling is Different From Acupuncture

Acupuncture refers to the ancient traditional Chinese technique that employs the concept of energy meridians and the flow of Qi. This discipline helps an acupuncturist enhance a client’s energy or Qi, which is our life force. Their work-up and assessment comprise checking the tongue, physique, and pulse of a patient. Traditional acupuncture is widely popular but has been studied and practiced for several millennia.

In contrast to acupuncture, dry needling requires a firm grasp of the concepts of skeletal anatomy and neuroanatomy. This skill helps a professional to find the damaged and tender tissues, trigger points, and taut bands, as well as overused and injured tissue. Dry needle professionals conduct a thorough assessment that comprises orthopedic evaluation, mobility analysis, neurological test with a dermatome, and myotome testing.

What Conditions Can Dry Needling Help?

Mentioned below are some of the physiological issues that can be addressed using the dry needling technique:

Lower Back Pain
Accident injury and trauma to the spine
Neck Pain
Headaches and migraines
Knee Pain or Osteoarthritis
Tennis or Thrower’s Elbow
Shoulder Dysfunction due to adhesive capsulitis, rotator cuff strain, or impingement.
Hip Pain
Muscle Strain
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Achilles Tendinopathy
Plantar Fasciitis
Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome or a Runner’s Knee
Ankle Sprains
IT Band Syndrome
Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome or Shin Splints

Benefits of Dry Needling Therapy

Pain Relief and Reduction in Muscle Stiffness: Dry needle technique focuses on mitigating pain in targeted areas of the anatomy known as trigger points. If you suffer an accident and have to deal with prolonged back and shoulder pain, a dry needle therapist will use needles to relieve the trigger points. These needles release muscular tension, chemicals, inflammation, and pressure that result in your pain response. With repeated sessions, you’ll find a drastic improvement and full mobility.
Enhanced Mobility Range: Just like how dry needles relieve pressure and stress in the trigger points, you will notice improved mobility at the site of the trauma. If you’re a sportsperson who constantly trains hard, you need to have fluidity in motion. Sometimes dehydration and other factors like hormones, anxiety, and stress can cause taut muscles leading to soreness. Dry needle therapy can reduce such pain and revive the function of your joints so that you can perform more efficiently on the field without hurting yourself.
Improves Post-workout and Injury Recovery: Anytime one gets an injury, the most torturous aspect of it is recovery. Yes, injuries to the neck, shoulder, back, knee, and joints take much longer to recover than superficial injuries. However, one can’t stay home forever and has to return to their work and profession quickly. Using dry needling, you can find faster recovery and pain relief within days as opposed to weeks or months. This is the reason why so many are turning to this method of holistic healing.

Does Receiving Dry Needling Therapy Hurt?

Dry Needling consists of the use of tiny filiform needles that penetrate the skin and muscles. You will find that many people assume it is painful, but it is not. Some don’t even notice the pinprick of the needles because the pain in the muscles is so overwhelming. Instead, you’ll notice how the needle can instantly relax the muscles and ease blood flow to these spaces that can boost healing. Your twitch response to a needle will last only a second or two before you relax into it.

Wrapping Up:

The technique of dry needles on muscle is not only highly effective, but it also has no side effects, which is why you can rely on it completely. Apart from minor soreness the day after the therapy, you’ll be feeling fine as a fiddle in no time. If you haven’t given it a shot, you should definitely try it once!