TURNING YOU PURPLE IS NOT THE GOAL!
Common misconceptions about cupping:
– the dark ‘marks’ mean it’s working
– it helps you to “detox” (another one of those buzz words we love so much)
– only athletes use cupping therapy.
Did you know cupping is A BRANCH WITHIN CHINESE MEDICINE?
Massage therapists, chiropractors and physical therapists sometimes practice cupping as an adjunct therapy to their main scope; what’s missing, however, is the DIAGNOSTIC component of their training and practice! As Chinese medicine practitioners we can learn a lot about a patient within one cupping session just by observing:
1. How much tension (aka, suction) to use with the cups – more tension is not better, too little tension tells you nothing.
2. How quickly someone begins to present with “marks” during a session.
3. The color of the “marks” left behind.
4. Checking in with how the marks continue to present over the next 24 hours – do they get darker or begin to fade?
5. How long do the marks take to fade completely?
While acquiring these “marks” are likely and not abnormal, they are not the sole goal/objective of a session. No “marks” after a proper session is an EXCELLENT sign; this happens over the course of treatment with consistent work! Certain kinds of ‘marks’/colors can equal an imbalance within the system, these imbalances will also be evident in other ways, including pulse presentation. This is what makes proper technique and training essential!