A traditional medicine technique used in China and Western Asia, cupping has thousands of years of history. Using cups to create suction in certain places on your body, the therapy typically targets pain, recovery, or relaxation.
At Active Care Chiropractic & Rehabilitation in Lafayette Hill, the Main Line, East Falls, Elkins Park, Manayunk and Hatfield, Pennsylvania, we use an updated version of cupping enhanced with contemporary technology to accomplish the same treatment goals as traditional practices.
This guide is for those new to cupping, describing what you’ll experience during your first cupping session, as well as some background on the process.
The cups used negative pressure to stimulate body tissue. There are various ways in which the low pressure inside the cups can be created, but today it’s common to find cups with valves. A hand-held vacuum attaches to the valve and creates the negative pressure that draws tissue up into the cup for its stimulatory action.
Pain relief is typically the reason patients seek cupping therapy, but since it increases blood flow, promotes healing, and reduces muscle tension, it can also improve symptoms caused by:
The most common form of cupping today is dry cupping. Wet cupping involves making small punctures in the skin to draw out small amounts of blood.
It’s believed that dry cupping provides many of the same benefits as wet cupping through the process of vasodilation. The suction of dry cupping pulls toxins and unwanted metabolic by-products into the circulatory and lymphatic systems for natural disposal by the body.
Prepare for your session by skipping moisturizers that day, and perhaps by increasing your water intake in the 24 hours ahead of your appointment. We’ll review your symptoms and medical history prior to the active part of your treatment.
You’ll lie face down on a massage-style table and your practitioner exposes the treatment area. Placement of the cups depends on your physical symptoms, typically targeting the back and shoulders, sometimes including the legs.
Pump suction draws tissue into the cups, which in turn pulls on tissue beneath your skin’s surface. This breaks up adhesions, stimulates blood flow, and in general supports and triggers your body’s natural repair processes.
You’ll feel pulling and tightness from the suction, but it’s not painful. There’s a pressure sensation rather than discomfort. The cups stay under pressure for up to 15 minutes depending on the goals of your treatment.
After the cups are removed, you’ll feel warm and loose. Lightheadedness is possible, though this is a rare side effect of treatment.
You will have circular marks red or purple in color. Though the resemblance is close, these aren’t bruises in the strictest sense since there’s no damage to muscle tissue. These marks will clear up in three to seven days.
While cupping is unusual compared with the norms of Western medicine, it’s a safe procedure that won’t conflict with other aspects of your treatment plan.
Learn more about modern cupping techniques by contacting Active Care Chiropractic & Rehabilitation at our nearest office. Call or click to book your appointment today.
