What is Dry Needling?
A Beginner’s Guide to This Powerful Pain Relief Tool
At Empower Movement Physical Therapy, we’re always looking for ways to help our patients move better, feel better, and get back to doing what they love FAST. One tool we love using for pain relief and muscle recovery is dry needling. If you’ve never heard of it or the idea of needles makes you pause, don’t worry we’ve got you.
This beginner-friendly guide will break it all down so you can decide if dry needling might be a good fit for your care plan.
So… What Is Dry Needling?
Dry needling is a technique where a trained physical therapist inserts thin, solid needles into muscles or connective tissue (we call them “trigger points”) to relieve pain, improve movement, and speed up healing. Despite how it sounds, there’s no medication injected, the needle itself is the tool and it comes out clean (hence the word “dry”).
Dry needling works by stimulating blood flow, reducing muscle tension, and helps resetting the nervous system’s response to pain.
What Does It Feel Like?
Most patients are surprised by how not scary dry needling is. The needles are thinner than anything used for shots or blood draws. You might feel a small prick going in, followed by a twitch, dull ache, or slight cramp in the muscle (that’s actually a good sign we’ve hit the trigger point).
Afterward, you might feel soreness for a day or two, but that soreness usually fades quickly, leaving you with more mobility and less pain.
Is Dry Needling Safe?
When performed by licensed, trained professionals (like our team at Empower Movement PT), dry needling is a VERY safe and effective treatment. We always walk you through what we’re doing, check in constantly, and customize the treatment to your comfort level and goals.
We also only use sterile, single-use needles and follow strict hygiene protocols to keep everything safe and clean.
Who Is Dry Needling Not For?
Dry needling isn’t right for everyone. If you have a needle phobia, certain medical conditions (like a bleeding disorder) or have any issue with it, we’ll talk through other great options for pain relief and muscle recovery. Our goal is always to meet you where you are.
The Bottom Line
Dry needling is one of our favorite tools to help release stubborn tightness, reduce pain, and get you moving more freely. When combined with personalized movement and hands-on therapy, it can make a powerful difference in how you feel day to day.
Curious if dry needling could help you? Let’s talk. Our therapists are happy to answer questions or include it as part of your next session. Just let us know you’re interested!
Schedule an appointment or call us to learn more.
We’re here to help you feel strong, mobile, and empowered one needle (or not!) at a time.