Cupping Therapy

Like acupuncture, cupping is a traditional Chinese medicine known for healing multiple illnesses and health conditions. Typically, cupping is the art of using cups against your skin to create a localized gentle vacuum suction that helps in speedy recovery of any uncomfortable pain, muscle tensions, and other disorders through increased blood circulation.

There are two types of cupping – dry and wet.

Dry cupping involves the therapist putting a flammable substance like alcohol, herbs or paper in a cup and lighting it on fire (“fire cupping therapy”). Once the fire goes out, the cup is placed upside down on the skin. The air inside the cup cools, creating a vacuum. This causes the skin to rise and for blood vessels to expand. The cup is usually left in place for about 3 minutes.

Wet cupping, also called “hijama,” takes the process of dry cupping a step further. Once the cup has been left in place for 3-5 minutes, the therapist will administer little cuts to the raised skin allowing release of toxic blood and fluid. The therapist may apply pressure to speed up the fluid flow process, and another cup is placed on the same area to draw out the liquids.