By: Dr. Goodman, DC + Dr. Bradberry, DC | ReliefNow Laser Charlotte | Charlotte, North Carolina
Performing artists place extraordinary physical demands on their bodies. Ballet dancers, modern dancers, musicians, and theatrical performers train for hours daily and perform under load. In the truest clinical sense, they are athletes. The repetitive micro-trauma of their craft produces overuse injuries that can sideline careers, and the care they need differs from standard sports medicine in one important way: the specificity of their demands. A ballet dancer cannot simply take six weeks off to recover, and a musician cannot modify her wrist mechanics to accommodate pain.
Who Treats Charlotte’s Performing Artists?
At ReliefNow Laser Charlotte, Dr. Eric Goodman has direct clinical experience working with classically trained ballet dancers, one of the most technically demanding athletic populations a clinician can treat. That background matters. Dancers and musicians carry injury patterns that come from years of asymmetrical, repetitive technical work, and recognizing those patterns takes familiarity with how performers actually move.
Dr. Douglas Bradberry brings a complementary background in sports-focused care. He holds the CCSP designation, an advanced credential in chiropractic sports medicine, and has worked extensively with high-level athletes. Together, the two clinicians approach performing artists the way they would approach any serious athlete: with attention to the mechanics of the whole body, not just the site of pain.
Why Performing Arts Injuries Need Specialized Attention
Charlotte’s performing arts community is anchored by Charlotte Ballet, the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, and the performing arts programs at UNC Charlotte. It includes professional and pre-professional dancers, musicians, and performers whose careers depend on staying healthy. Their most common injuries follow predictable patterns. Ballet dancers see ankle and foot overuse. Musicians and overhead dancers develop shoulder and wrist conditions. Hip labral injuries are common in dance, and lumbar stress shows up across every performing art.
These are the kinds of musculoskeletal conditions that photobiomodulation has been studied for. A 2017 systematic review published in Lasers in Medical Science examined the use of photobiomodulation in musculoskeletal injury and reported associations with reduced recovery time and improved tissue repair. Separately, research in the Journal of Dance Medicine and Science has documented the high prevalence of injury among competitive performers, which underscores why dedicated clinical attention matters for this population.
What ReliefNow Laser Charlotte Offers Performers
The clinic’s Regenerative Medical Laser protocol is a non-invasive, light-based therapy used as part of a broader treatment approach. Class IV laser therapy works at the cellular level, and the clinic uses it alongside hands-on and movement-based care rather than as a standalone fix. Whether a given performer is a good candidate, and what a course of care might look like, is something the clinicians assess during an individual consultation.
Dr. Goodman’s training in neurokinetic therapy is particularly relevant for dancers and musicians. It focuses on identifying the inhibition and compensation patterns that develop from asymmetrical technical demands, the same patterns that often sit underneath a performer’s recurring injuries. His rehabilitation training also includes movement-based restoration, the return-to-performance work that artists need so they can get back on stage or back to their instrument, not just out of pain.
To learn more, visit ReliefNow Laser Charlotte’s provider page. Patient education videos are available on the ReliefNow Nation YouTube channel.
Contact ReliefNow Laser Charlotte at 460 Park Rd, Charlotte, NC 28209, or call 704-527-7246.
About the Authors
Dr. Eric Goodman, DC, studied biology at UNC Charlotte and chiropractic at Palmer College, with post-graduate training in neurokinetic therapy, acupuncture, laser therapy, rehabilitation, and nutrition. He has worked with ballet dancers, Ironman athletes, and CrossFit competitors. Dr. Douglas Bradberry, DC, studied at the University of Florida and graduated with honors from Palmer College, holding the CCSP designation in chiropractic sports medicine. Both are providers in the national ReliefNow network, founded by Dr. Robert Hanopole, DC.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider before beginning any treatment program.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional diagnosis, treatment, or care. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read here. Individual results may vary, and no specific outcome is guaranteed.
