My teen had this done multiple times. It was life changing. It was done multiple times over a series of weeks in the neck and traps slowly working from the upper layers of muscles to the lower level of muscles that still had trigger points. My teen had already had TOS surgery but needed exercises to fix the winged scapula and stabilize the shoulders that come partly out of joint upon moving. PT without the needing prior to TOS surgery was actually making the TOS symptoms worse. As the posture improved and the shoulders moved back in place the numbness and loss of blood flow worsened. However, through months of PT which included massage, the knots and incredibly tight muscles never relaxed.

After TOS surgery the joint issues still had to be resolved. The weakened muscles still had to be strengthened. Massage and exercises still weren't doing the trick. The PT learned to perform dry needling and after about a month to six weeks of dry needling once a week with an additional PT and massage session each week, the muscles started to stay relaxed as the muscles learned the new pattern of behavior.

My teen said the pain wasn't all that bad. One time there was a really bad after response. The pain was horrible for days to the point where breathing was difficult, but what happened was that muscles loosened and the body shifted. This was enough to cause all kinds of temporary pain that resolved in a few days. That was the breakthrough session. After that the sessions of dry needling were quicker, easier, and had fewer trigger points to work on.

The physical therapist said that not everyone has such dramatic results so quickly, but for my teen, dry needling was the key. It reset the muscles and allowed the PT to start really making an impact. Since the TOS surgery and the PT which should take about a year, my teen now has proper posture. The clicking and grinding and popping of the shoulder and scapula has all but stopped. The shoulder is starting to stay in the joint better as the other muscles gain strength to hold it in place.

We have seen people in PT that have claimed that dry needling was terribly painful, but that really wasn't my teen's experience.