DaVinci Tool Red & Blue -USA Made- Extra Firm Neck Tension Relief & Pressure Point Massage Tool - Occipital Release Tool - Cervical Traction Device- Suboccipital Release Device - Neck Stretcher

Love it! Does exactly what it describes and much more with different areas of the body! I could just throw out the lacrosse ball! I recommend getting both because one is obviously more firm than the other. You same money by getting both! Plus there are areas that I need the red one and some that I need the blue one. And as other people have said... This is for trigger point therapy... Yes it hurts... It hurts so good! I would have felt like I wasted my money if it didn't hurt somewhat! The point is to break up those tight knots and this is perfect! It's a good hurt!

After a few weeks of owning this I can say that it is a great tool to target tight muscles and get in there to work out deeper tension. I was using a baseball before and it wasn't cutting it. I took this tool on a trip that required lots of flying and driving. Before, when I traveled, I would return home with neck and back pain from too much sitting. This time I had the DaVinci with me to help find relief. I had much less pain after my trip than I have in the past. It's small enough to carry in a purse while you're flying and you can manipulate it in your seat on the plane without disrupting anyone else. I personally like the blue (firm) DaVinci because the soft one tends to get bendy if you lay on it. The firm one holds its shape better. However, I am ok with very deep massages and ok with a little pain. If you're more sensitive, the soft one is probably better for you. This is a good low-tech device that is sturdy and will help release your tension.

So far, I've used the softer (red) of the two. I'm a (retired) massage therapist and have issues with tight neck muscles. This works good for placing (while lying on your back) immediately under the skull to help release, stretch, relax those muscles. This will give most people a good bit of relief from normal everyday tightness from reading, looking at a computer, muscular-tension headaches, etc. You can also position this lower down the neck. still why lying on your back, to stretch out the muscles that attach to the spine all the way down the neck. I found it a bit hard to position correctly for use on the upper back, however. A handle or strap might be a good addition for making positioning easier. It gets easier to use it at the lower level (lumbars) but the red one started to bend slightly when I started to ease my body weight onto it so I ceased. I haven't tried the blue one yet but suspect it will hold up better under the weight - but may feel uncomfortable due to its more rigid makeup. Due to small size, it really was uncomfortable using around the hip joint - a softball still works better for me there. Due to the triangular shape, the stability makes for a good way to put pressure on the bottom of the feet. I would use this for trigger point work but not for a relaxing foot massage.

I have tried a million remedies/tools for TMJ disorder, which I have had for years (perpetual jaw and temple soreness and sensitivity). In a couple days of using this tool, I loosened muscles in my neck I had been trying for years to release. The sub-occipitalis points and their effect on pain on the forward parts of my head (temples, forehead) have been a revelation. If you have chronic pain anywhere, but especially TMJ disorder: study up on trigger points, buy this tool (and maybe a couple other cheap ones like a foam roller and softball), experiment with pressure and angles, be patient. Mindfulness helps too, as a direct therapy and to make yourself more patient with the process of working the triggers out over weeks and months. The softer version and firmer version both work well. I recommend both. If you are totally new to "hurts so good" trigger point release and only want to buy one version, then get the red one.

I am a Massage Therapist who usually uses my fingers to do an occipital release, where I put my palms under the head and press the fingertips of both hands between the base of the skull ("Occiput") and the 1st vertebra ("Atlas"), then coax the client to relax the muscles to allow the neck to "melt" down around my fingers. While this can be one of the most thoroughly effective methods for releasing head and neck tension that often causes headaches, many clients have very thick and tight muscles in the back of the neck, and it can take 10 minutes or more for them to fully relax, which after 10 years of practice has become quite taxing on my hands. There are a couple of problems with using the DaVinci tool for occipital release. The main one is that if you put it on a bed or massage table to lay back on it, it will sink into the table unevenly, tilting toward your back, rather than toward your head. This will sometimes cause it to move on your neck to an uncomfortable position. While I was hoping to be able to place the tool and leave it there while I work on the legs, instead, I have to manually hold it in the correct position, at least until the client's head has sunk back into the table. With some clients, I can then leave it there and go to work on the legs, but with some, it starts to move into an uncomfortable position when I do. When use the tool on myself it works great on a yoga mat, but I have to manually hold it in position on the bed or massage table, which is not a big deal. The other problems with using the tool for occipital release are that only the rounded edge is remotely comfortable on the neck. The other two edges are entirely too sharp, even on the softer tool, and this is coming from someone who prefers intense pressure during massage. I also don't see why one would need the harder blue tool. The red one works just fine and is not overly soft for any sort of self therapy, but then I only weigh 130 lbs., so maybe some people might cause the soft red tool to bend under their weight, as some reviews have suggested.

First and foremost, I want to sincerely thank this company for creating this wonderful device. I loved it so much, I purchased another set of 2. I keep 2 in my gym bag permanently now. Trust me when I tell you this, the low reviews for this product is due to the fact that most people have no clue how trigger point therapy works, or how it feels. Thank you again. I love this product!

These are HARD plastic items. So hard that they caused bruising and short term nerve damage until I could get to a doctor who fixed me. I was out of work. It gave me a headache which is something I've never before. These should never be sold on Amazon as they are a health hazard. I did not give them away I threw them away so no one else got hurt. I would like my money back but by the time I went to the doctor and was feeling better Amazon said my window closed July 6th. Its now July 19th. Yes, it took me over a month to get better and get back to my job.

Great tools for working cervical spine! I'm a massage therapist, and have issues with attachment points, this tool has worked to relieve pain I have, I've also recommended to several of my clients (waiting to hear their feedback). I can tell very little difference between the hard rubber (red) and the blue (hard plastic) though. One of them would have worked fine for me. Eventually I'll check out the other uses, but for cervical (neck) area works like a gem. I like the idea that you can just lay on it, and lean more to one side to add additional pressure to your problem areas. I have used Body Back Buddy in past, which I've liked, but you end up tensing your arms and shoulders to use it. With Da Vinci tool, you can relax into it. Thanks for a great product!!!