Post-Accident Rehabilitation: How Dry Needling Can Help With Pain Management

A car accident can take a major toll on your body. Even minor accidents can cause neck, back, and spinal cord injuries that can cause ongoing pain. Dry needling is a therapeutic technique that can help with pain management and assist in post-accident rehabilitation.

But how exactly does dry needling work? And what can it do to help with pain management after you’ve been in an accident? Here, we’ll dive into what dry needling can do to mitigate pain and treat tight muscles.

WHAT DOES DRY NEEDLING DO?

Dry needling uses thin filiform needles to reach trigger points in the problem muscle. Trigger points are tight muscle fibers that can cause pain and restrict your range of motion. When used alongside other physical therapy treatments, dry needling can help to reduce pain, improve blood flow, and restore movement.

Dry needling allows your local physical therapist at B Physical Therapy to access hard-to-reach areas of the body such as nerves, connective tissues, and ligaments. Dry needling can also be used to help treat a wide array of injuries, including musculoskeletal conditions and lower back pain. This is great for many patients because half of all Americans over the age of 18 will develop a musculoskeletal injury at some point in their life that will last longer than three months.

While dry needling may not have immediate results, patients typically begin to experience improvements within a few sessions when this technique is used alongside manual therapy and other therapeutic exercises. Some patients may experience mild bruising, soreness, or fatigue after receiving treatment, but these are side effects are normal and only last for up to 48 hours.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVES TO PAIN MEDICATION

Oftentimes, the pain relief offered to car accident victims takes the form of pain medications. However, even over-the-counter pain medication can be potentially damaging to the body when used over a long period of time. As a result, you may end up causing yourself more pain in the future to treat severe, but temporary, pain now.

Dry needling gives car accident victims the ability to naturally treat their pain without the use of dangerous medications such as opioids. In fact, the filiform needles used in this technique don’t inject any fluid or medication into the body, which is why the technique is called “dry” needling. It’s a great, natural method for pain management.

Interested in giving dry needling for pain management a try? Our top physical therapists at B Physical Therapy have you covered. Contact us today to learn more about how adding dry needling to your post-accident rehabilitation routine can help today.