Cupping is an extraordinary technique that has been passed down for thousands of years and continues to be widely used across many cultures. It involves using plastic cups to create suction. Basically, the suction moves stagnant blood which is the core idea of cupping. We’re taking debris, fluid, and stagnant blood from deep inside the tissue, pulling it up to the surface, and allowing your body to flush it. Once it flushes through, you can heal.
When toxins or cell waste stagnate in the muscles or joints, the body has a difficult time with waste disposal and we often experience this as discomfort or pain.
Cupping draws stagnant blood and other fluids that have fallen out of healthy circulation up to skin level and away from the injury so that healthy free circulation can be restored to the affected area. Skin, the body’s largest organ, contains about 20% of your blood volume at any given time. The skin has a beautiful network of capillaries that make it a fantastic vehicle to transport all the stagnation that cupping pulls from it.
The cups used in cupping therapy provides a vacuum that pulls stagnant toxins to the skins surface to resume the body’s normal flushing process. This introduces faster healing and reduction in chronic pain issues.
Bruising is caused by impact trauma leading to breakage of capillaries and a reactionary rush of fluids to the damaged location from the tissue injury. There is no compression in cup therapy. The marks are the result of having internal unwanted toxins pulled up to the skin.
Cupping Therapy Q&A
Why would anyone do this?
Cupping is an excellent diagnostic method. We can use cupping to better understand whether the problem is toxin build up, muscle spasm, or something else.
What’s up with those marks?
It’s a common misconception, however, the marks left by cupping are not bruises. The marks are the result of having internal unwanted toxins pulled up to the skin.
How long will the marks last?
Marks typical disappear after an hour but could be there for up to 3 weeks.
Does cupping therapy hurt?
Everyone’s pain tolerance is different. There is a pulling sensation at the skin and muscle layer that results in a tight feeling under the cups but most patients tolerate it well.