Remember Michael Phelps and all those big circle bruises? He used cupping to help loosen his muscles while competing in the Olympics. I think its fair to say that being pregnant is equally demanding on your body. And we are excited to announce that we will now be offering cupping at Maternal Massage.
What is cupping?
Originally developed in China, cupping is an alternative therapy that involves the use of cups (go figure) to create suction along the skin. This suction and negative pressure is believed to help loosen muscles, increase blood flow and even sedate the nervous system. It is used to relieve aches and pains, stiff muscles, anxiety, fatigue, migraines and more.
Cupping can affect tissues up to four inches deep— this will impact:
- Blood vessels increasing blood flow to the area.
- Muscles – relax muscles in spasm, decrease trigger point pain, and remove inflammation.
- Scar tissue & Fascia – will help break up adhesions and decompress this tissue
Cupping Technique At Maternal Massage
It is important to note that we are adding this as an additional therapy, not in replacement of massage. We will use it as a tool to complement deep tissue massage. These work well together because cupping will use negative pressure to pull up on tissue while massage uses positive pressure to push on the tissue. This combination can help release the tissues further than one alone.
One of the main questions we have received about this is, “am I going to have Phelps’ brusies?” The answer is no. Because we will use this in conjunction with massage, our methods will not leave you with big deep bruises. Any bruises will generally be light and go away quickly.
In order to make sure we have enough time to address issues with cupping as well as massage, this is only offered by special request in a 75+ minute massage. Cupping will add $10 on to any regular massage price and must be consulted with the therapist in advance to determine if cupping would be beneficial to the area of pain. Call or text 385-351-5626 to consult about adding cupping to your next treatment.