Drew Brees touts effectiveness of Dry Needling

Drew Brees relies on Dry Needling to prepare for game day

We’ve been saying it for years – dry needling works.  And Drew Brees is a believer!

In the below excerpt from Peter King’s Week 11 NFL Awards article, Drew Brees shares his weekly dry needling routine to get ready for game day. His physical therapist sometimes injects 107 dry needles all over his body to prepare him for game day!

There is a recovery tool practiced by some premier athletes—in football and other sports—called Dry Needling. Last week, on Monday at the Saints’ training facility, one day after Brees played Denver and three days before he played Carolina, the Saints’ trainer put these 107 hypodermic needles in specific trigger areas where Brees felt either pain or discomfort, or in places Brees was trying to do maintenance work to stave off future trouble spots. Sounds pretty painful, getting stuck with 107 needles. “Sometimes,” Brees said as we drove into work that morning, his words captured by NBC audio. “Some you don’t [feel], some you do if it hits a tight spot. It’ll shoot this kind of … we’ll call them zingers … It’ll shoot this like … hitting a nerve or something just shoots down your arm or your back or your leg or something like that, but it means that it’s working. But I’ll do it neck, shoulders, high back, mid back, low back, glutes, IT bands, hips, sometimes hamstrings, groin, calves, foot. It’s great.”

The Dry Needling Process

The way Dry Needling works is a certified practitioner will insert a fine filament needle into the taut band of tissue. This provokes what is called a deep twitch response in the muscle. When this happens it is like hitting the reset button. The muscle will immediately release and lengthen.

The amazing part about this technique is not just the immediacy of the muscular release and the noticeable improvement in mobility, but also the referral pattern of symptoms the recipient will feel. For example, a trigger point in the hip may send a sensation of relief all the way down the outside of the leg. As pain sufferers we often believe we know the generator responsible for our pain. But sometimes its origin may surprise you.

If you are feeling pain, call us today! Baudry physical therapists can use trigger point dry needling techniques to provide relief from muscle tightness, joint mobility, and symptoms of pain and dysfunction.

Learn how dry needling helped this musician return to the stage: Music to our Ears…Client’s hand strength restored with physical therapy

 

PT helps guitar player return to the stage after hand injury

Music to our Ears…Client’s hand strength restored with physical therapy

Steve Neighoff had a somewhat unusual problem.  Steve is a guitarist who suffered from a compressed ulnar nerve in his left arm causing hand pain and weakness. This nerve powers and controls his “picking” hand. Therefore, it was difficult to hold the guitar pick and nearly impossible to play. The lack of strength and the tingling sensation in his left hand left him physically unable to do the thing he loves – play music.

Steve chose Baudry Therapy Center and it was our mission to get him back to playing music again. Here is Steve’s story:

Physical Therapy and Dry Needling at Baudry Therapy Center

My first visit began with a very comprehensive and thorough evaluation. My problem was a very unusual one, so I am grateful for the personalized attention and commitment from Kevin, Rich and the entire staff.  With only a few weeks before an important gig in New Jersey, they did everything to help me achieve my goal of playing again.

After ten intensive therapy sessions and dry needling, I gained strength in my hand and was able to play the guitar. As a result, I started my first session at zero percent and I’m now at 90 percent.

I look forward to finishing physical therapy and want to thank the entire BRIO staff.   Baudry Therapy Center has a unique and wonderful culture. It combines clinical professionalism with compassion and attention to detail. For me, this cultivated a feeling of confidence, calm and a spirit of fun.