What is the difference between Acupuncture and Dry needling?

If you’ve ever heard of both acupuncture and dry needling, you might wonder—are they the same thing? They both use thin needles, but that’s where the similarity ends. Understanding the difference can help you make the best choice for your health.

Acupuncture: A Holistic Healing Art

Acupuncture comes from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), practiced for thousands of years. It’s based on the idea that our body has a vital energy called Qi (pronounced "chee") that flows along pathways called meridians. When this flow is blocked or unbalanced, it can cause pain or illness.

Acupuncturists use needles to gently stimulate specific points on the body to restore balance, relieve symptoms, and promote overall health. Acupuncture treats many conditions—not just pain, but also stress, digestion, sleep problems, and women’s health, among others. Acupuncture is practised by fully qualified TCM practitioners with years of study in both Eastern and Western medical theory.

Dry Needling: Targeting Muscle Pain

Dry needling is a modern technique developed in Western medicine, mainly used by physiotherapists to treat muscle pain. It involves inserting needles into tight knots or “trigger points” in muscles to release tension and reduce pain.

Unlike acupuncture, dry needling usually focuses only on muscles and doesn’t consider the body’s energy or overall health. It’s often more focused on quick pain relief rather than holistic healing. Dry needling is performed by physiotherapists, chiropractors, massage therapists, podiatrists or other professionals after short training courses (sometimes just a weekend) and it does not follow the principles of TCM or meridian theory.

💬 Why It Matters

At Linking Path Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture, we believe in gentle, intentional, and comprehensive care. Acupuncture is more than just needles — it’s a whole-person approach grounded in centuries of wisdom and modern evidence.

Many patients find acupuncture to be more relaxing, better tailored to their body, and effective for a wider range of health concerns.

Many patients find acupuncture more relaxing and gentle. Because it looks at your whole body and health, acupuncture can provide deeper and longer-lasting benefits.

If you’ve tried dry needling and didn’t like it—maybe it felt painful or didn’t help much—you might find acupuncture a much better experience. Our goal at Linking Path Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture is to support your body’s natural healing with care and respect for your unique needs.

If you’d like to learn more about how acupuncture might help you, feel free to get in touch or book a consultation. We’re here to guide you on your journey to better health!