Muscle aches and tension can be challenging to deal with especially when you have an active lifestyle. If the pain stops you from performing your best, you might want to look into getting a dry needling treatment. But before you get intimidated by its name, it's actually a non-invasive treatment that's used to treat muscle and tissue dysfunctions. Although it's often compared to acupuncture, their philosophies may have slight differences. Aside from easing the pain of tight and sore muscles without any medication, consistent dry-needling sessions can offer your body a number of benefits.

What is dry needling?

Dry needling or Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS) is a treatment that inserts fine needles into your skin to ease muscle pain and chronic symptoms. Although they have similar methods to acupuncture, dry needling focuses on releasing tension while acupuncture prioritizes stimulating the nervous system.

Dry needling is based on Western medicine and it caters to your pain patterns to eliminate trigger points or tight bands on your muscles that restrict their function. When performed correctly, dry needling should give you minimal discomfort that's why it's important to only get your treatment from a professional physical therapist. Depending on your symptoms, dry needling can be applied on your shoulders, back, neck, hips, and heels.

5 Benefits of Dry Needling

If you're curious to know how dry needling can help your body, here are 5 benefits that consistent treatments can do:

1. Relieves muscle pain and tension

If muscle pain and tension are hindering you from your daily routine, a few sessions of dry needling can get your limbs back into shape. Through careful assessment, your therapist will determine your trigger points so they can treat any knots directly from the source. Inserting the needles into tight bands of muscles will help inactive them to release tension, pressure, and inflammation to minimize the pain. The feeling of the needle pricking into the skin will also activate your nerve fibers so your brain releases endorphins - which are your body's natural painkillers.

2. Improves mobility

Tight knots in your muscles can make it difficult to move, much less play a high-intensity sport. If your mobility is on the line, dry needling can help improve your movement with a few sessions. Since inserting needles into your trigger points can release pressure and inflammation, your muscles will feel more relaxed so moving will become easier. Even if you're not a ballerina or gymnast, mobility and flexibility in your muscles are still essential for going through the motions of your daily life.

3. Restores blood flow

If your job involves prolonged and strenuous physical activities, you might be suffering from a variety of muscle and joint aches that are caused by overusing your muscles. That's because these contractions restrict the blood supply into your muscles that's why you start to feel pain and soreness in certain areas. Stimulating them through dry needling will eliminate the blocks to restore proper blood circulation and bring back sufficient oxygen into your system.

4. Speeds up recovery

If you're healing from an injury and can't wait to get back on your feet, you can cut back your recovery time with a few sessions of dry needling. Inserting needles into your injured muscles can activate your inflammatory response to produce collagen and proteins which will help repair your muscle's regular function. But before booking your session, make sure to consult your doctor to determine if this treatment will be effective for your recovery.

5. Reduces acute and chronic symptoms

Aside from healing muscle pain and injuries, dry needling can also minimize various symptoms of acute and chronic ailments. If you're constantly suffering from migraines, tennis elbow, myofascial pain, tendonitis, or spinal issues, a few sessions of dry needling will slowly heal your pain. But because dry needling is not a comprehensive procedure, it's also important to remember not to rely solely on it to treat your ailments. It's best to use it as a supplementary treatment to your physiotherapy process as directed by your doctor.

How long do dry needling benefits last?

If you feel refreshed after your first dry needling session, you can expect these effects to last for several days. That's why it's important to give your body sufficient time to rest to help it recover and get the full benefits of your treatment. Some may notice bruising and soreness of their muscles, but these are normal responses that should be gone after a day or two. With additional sessions, you'll feel the benefits last longer until your muscles are back to their regular function.

Ready to try dry needling?

If you want to ease your muscle tension, Lycoming Orthopedic & Sports Acupuncture offers professional dry-needling treatments. Whether it's to minimize your symptoms or to enhance your mobility, our therapists can optimize your sessions to benefit your body. If you want to know more about our services, contact us now to book your first consultation.