Dealing with pesky tension headaches or persistent muscle knots? While it may sound scary, dry needling is a promising and accessible solution for musculoskeletal pain and movement impairments. Dry needling therapy is provided by trained healthcare professionals, like the physical therapists at IMPACT Physical Therapy and Sports Recovery. To help you determine if dry needling is right for you, we explore the diverse applications of dry needling and its potential to enhance overall well-being and to provide a more active, pain-free lifestyle.
First, let’s define dry needling. Dry needling is a modern medical technique primarily used to target musculoskeletal pain and is practiced by trained medical professionals like physical therapists. This process involves the insertion of fine, sterile needles into specific points of the body, known as “trigger points,” with the goal of releasing tension and relaxing the muscles. Dry needling should not be confused with acupuncture, which stems from traditional Chinese medicine and hones in on recalibrating energy flow in the body.
So, what is dry needling good for? Dry needling has a huge amount of applications and can help ease tension headache pressure, muscle knots, and a variety of overuse or tendonitis issues!
Tight neck and shoulder muscles are often responsible for tension headaches, and dry needling these areas has shown promising results. For example, dry needling the upper trapezius muscle or the suboccipitals located under the skull can often alleviate trigger points that commonly refer pain to the head causing tension headaches.
Repetitive motions or activities can often lead to muscle strain, or tendonitis is various parts of our body. For example, someone who types all day on a computer, or an athlete that has to grip a racquet for their sport, might develop pain and discomfort in the hand, wrist or elbow. The muscles responsible for typing and gripping, when overworked can develop trigger points or taut bands that can cause pain, weakness or impaired function if left untreated. Dry needling the trigger points along the forearm can help alleviate the pressure in the muscle knots allowing the tendon to relax and decreasing the overall pain and tension throughout the hand, arm and elbow.
If you frequently deal with a lot of stress and lead a sedentary lifestyle due to a desk job, you may be all too familiar with muscle knots. Muscle knots are areas of tightness that can be quite painful and restrict movement. While using a foam roller can be a great way to combat tight muscles, dry needling for muscle knots is an effective way to gain relief. Dry needling can be used to target these knots and promote relaxation and enhance blood flow to the affected area.
Think that dry needling is the solution for you? Whether you’re struggling with tension headaches or pain from tendonitis, you can rely on the expert physical therapists at IMPACT Physical Therapy and Sports Recovery to get you back to an active and pain-free lifestyle with the healing power of dry needling sessions! We have several locations throughout Illinois and the Chicagoland area. Request your appointment today, and for all questions related to our dry needling services or our PT services, please call us at 833-299-4672.
