by Lindsey Lawson MS EAMP, Acupuncturist and Chinese Herbalist

I love cupping. It is useful for both  diagnosis and treatment of various conditions. Western conditions that can benefit from cupping include respiratory issues (chest congestion, asthma, and cough), pain conditions (acute and chronic neck and back pain, headaches), menstrual irregularities (PMS, cramping),stress (including sleep issues and tension,) and some gastrointestinal issues.

As an acupuncturist at Glow, I’ve been trained in the Eastern art of diagnosis according to the patients symptoms. For instance, the Oriental medical condition cupping treats is stasis or stasis with heat. This means that it is effective is treating any conditions with fixed stabbing type pain (vs. diffuse, achy pain which is better with pressure.)

Cupping is a suction technique which creates pumping action inside the muscle by drawing blood to the surface and allowing new blood to flow into the muscle to allow repair and healing. It’s kind of like a reverse massage.This can either be done using a lit cotton ball to create a vacuum (called fire cupping) or with specialized cups  that allow air to be pumped out (called air cupping.)It leaves round “hickies “ on the back which can be purple, red or dark-colored. The color and duration of the marks  indicates the amount of stasis or heat in the body. The more stagnation (or stasis) that is present, the more purple the marks. The more heat that is present the redder the marks.

Cupping is usually done on the back but can be done anywhere that suction can be created. For contradictions as well as a history of cupping see this article in Acupuncture Today.