Chinese Massage Cupping Therapy

The art of cupping is many thousands of years old and has been employed in various cultures around the world including the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Chinese. The Chinese have long used cupping as one of their forms of therapy.

Cupping consists of two techniques; stationery cupping on acupuncture points, and moving or gliding of the cups as in massage. Over the years many different materials have been used, from bone and bamboo to glass and plastic. Suction cups are now made from a special medical silicone that is very hygienic and easy to clean.

Massage cupping is popular for pain point trigger therapy and also shallow and deep tissue massage treatment.

During stationery treatment the cups are placed on the surface of the skin and left for five to fifteen minutes at a time which causes purple-red marks due to blood-flow to the point of suction. These disappear within a few days.

Massage cupping is a dynamic method of massaging that improves blood circulation. With the aid of herbal massage mediums (oils) the cups glide easily and the treatment has a longer lasting effect.

Reported sensations after treatment are deep relaxation, warmth and tingling long after the treatment has ended. Different massage techniques are used from circular, stimulating to long draining movements with varied pressure depending on the cups used.

The benefits of cupping are numerous and include pain relief, improving chi energy flow, drainage of excess toxins and lymph fluids, releasing of knots and stiffness, improving scars, reducing cellulite and relaxing muscles. There is much written about the cupping treatment and the many benefits are widely published.

Cupping is a massage method really worth trying.