How Dry Needling Speeds Up Recovery

Dry needling can help you recover faster and experience long-term pain relief right here in Loveland. With dry needling therapy, thin needles are placed into stiff muscle fibers, also known as trigger points, to relieve pain and restore motion.

Dry needling isn't acupuncture. Traditional acupuncture was developed in China centuries ago and uses multiple needles to balance energy levels. Trigger point therapy is different because it's inserted into areas that help alleviate pain and target specific nerves and muscles to help the body heal. This is why many people turn to dry needling for faster recovery.

Why Recovery Sometimes Stalls

The body knows how to heal itself. However, problems arise when you injure a muscle or consistently use a muscle without allowing it time to rest and repair itself. When this happens, the muscle goes into protective tension and forms trigger points.

"A trigger point is not just a 'tight spot' in the muscle; it is actually an area of localized ischemia, which means there is decreased blood flow to the region and a build-up of metabolic waste." Without proper blood flow to your muscles, your body cannot repair these tears, which causes more pain and leads to even less blood flowing to the injured region.

When you stretch these chronically tight muscles, you are generally just pulling on the tight band at the ends of your muscle, not working on the knot in the middle. To restore motion and gain pain relief, you need to open up this knot.

How Dry Needling Helps With Faster Recovery

One of the reasons dry needling works so well for recovery is that needles bypass the skin and superficial layers to reach right into the "knot."

When the needle is inserted into the trigger point, you will often experience an involuntary response called a "local twitch response." This "local twitch response" is essentially the nervous system's reset button. Here is what happens:

Chemicals that build up around a tight muscle knot are flushed out. These chemicals include substance P, calcium, and potassium. Your brain stops sending pain signals to the muscle.

By opening up these areas and increasing blood flow to the injured region your body can finally begin to heal itself rather than continuing to break down from overstaying at your injury.

Dry Needling vs Other Recovery Methods

Many of our clients come to us relying on your foam roller, massage, or heating pad to help recover. These methods can help, but both are top-down approaches. They are basically rolling on yourself or having someone else do it. They can only push so much pressure onto your muscles. If you have a deep chronic trigger point, many times your massage therapist cannot lay enough pressure directly on the trigger point to release it.

Dry needling is a bottom-up or inside-out approach. Needles can reach deep into the psoas muscle or into all the different layers of your hip rotators. This makes dry needling such a crucial tool to use when addressing trigger points, especially if you have received regular massage in the past and have hit a plateau with your recovery.

Conditions That Recover Faster with Dry Needling

Because dry needling can be used virtually anywhere on the body, it can help with many different conditions. Whether you just came off an injury or have chronic postural issues, adding dry needling to your physical therapy recovery plan can cut down your recovery time dramatically.

Here are some of the most common things we can treat with dry needling:

• Chronic neck and back pain, especially if it radiates into your shoulders or down your legs.
• Tension Headaches.
• Runner's Knee and IT Band Syndrome (release the lateral quad and glutes take pressure off).
• Tennis and golfer's elbow (release those forearm extensors and flexors right at the source).
• Plantar Fasciitis (release the calf muscles as well as the intrinsic muscles of the foot).

In what way will dry needling help me recover faster?

When you combine dry needling with corrective exercises and movement therapies, you will prevent future injury and movements that caused the injury in the first place. Dry needling helps you disarm the land mines, but without proper exercises, your body will continue to step on the land mines.

An example of a physical therapy recovery program may include:

• Assessment: Finding your trigger points and movement dysfunctions.
• Dry needling: deactivate the trigger points
• Mobility exercises: restore motion while the tissues are super limber.
• Strength exercises: regain proper movement patterns.
• Functional training: take those improvements and apply them to real-life activities.
• Home Exercises: continue to progress in between treatments.

By using all these tools together, we can help with not only the symptoms you are feeling (pain, lack of motion) but we can also help treat the root of the problem (movement dysfunction, muscular imbalance, postural problems).

Northern Colorado Spine & Sport's Approach to Dry Needling

So you want to get better, but you just don't know where to start. Let us walk you through what you can expect if you decide to get dry needling for faster recovery at Northern Colorado Spine & Sport:

• Quiet about cleanliness? We use only single-use needles that are sterilized and wipe down every inch of the treatment room 2x.
• Not sure what to expect? Most people feel a slight pinch when the needle is inserted. When the needle hits the trigger point, you may feel a deep ache or cramp for a few seconds. It doesn't sound pleasant, but it doesn't hurt as badly as it sounds, and it's over quickly!
• Will it hurt after? You may feel 24-48 hours of soreness from dry needling. Think of how your body feels after you get a deep tissue massage. Your muscles will be weak and inflamed after the needles do their magic, so take it easy for a day or two. Drink plenty of water and move around, but avoid lifting heavy weights or playing sports until the soreness is gone.
• How long till I feel better? Some patients feel better immediately, while others take a few days to feel the effects. Your physical therapist will go over what to expect and create a treatment plan based on your goals.

Ready To Start Feeling Better?

Whether you are trying to recover from a sports injury or you have been living with chronic pain for years, dry needling is an effective tool that will allow your physical therapists to help you recover faster and do the things you love. Rather than masking the pain with medication or ice packs, dry needling goes right at the cause of your problem. Contact our office today to see if dry needling for faster recovery is right for YOU.

Also Read:

• 5 Unexpected Dry Needling Benefits for Different Conditions
• Does Dry Needling Really Work?
• How Does Dry Needling Work?
• Dry Needling Vs Acupuncture

FAQs on Dry Needling for Faster Recovery

Does dry needling hurt?

Dry needling does not hurt the same for everybody. Some people feel a slight pinch when the needle is inserted, whereas others may feel a deep cramp when the needle reaches the trigger point. Trust us, it doesn't hurt as bad as it sounds, and it will be over before you know it. If it is too uncomfortable, we can always decrease the intensity.

How many sessions will I need?

You should start to notice results after receiving 2-4 dry needling sessions. Every person is different and will respond to dry needling differently. The sooner you come in for treatment, the better results you will see. If you have been injured for a while or are dealing with a chronic condition, it may take 8-12 sessions to see results.

Can I work out after getting Dry Needled?

You should take it easy for 24-48 hours after receiving dry needling. Take a few days and just walk or bike around. Think of getting dry needled as getting a deep tissue massage. You wouldn't go home and run a marathon after someone works on your back. After the soreness subsides, you should be able to gradually start working towards your normal exercise regimen.

Is dry needling covered by insurance?

Every insurance plan is different. Many insurance companies see dry needling as physical therapy and will cover the treatment. Unfortunately, some insurance companies do not cover dry needling. We will verify your benefits for you and help with your claim whenever possible.