Cupping is an ancient Chinese medicine technique where sickness, disease, and toxins are drawn out of the body. Want just a cupping session? No problem! You asked for it and we delivered. We offer affordable 30-minute (follow up) cupping sessions. Please note that your first session needs to be 1 hour so that we can do a safe health intake and will include acupuncture.
Watch how we practice cupping! Check out our fire cupping video that went viral on Facebook
Our famous cupping technique has received lots of attention including the National Post and the most viral cupping video to date in the world (over 1.3 million views on Diply (Facebook). We are so excited to incorporate fire cupping at no extra cost.
Cupping is an ancient Chinese medicine technique where sickness, disease, and toxins are drawn out of the body. Want just a cupping session? No problem! You asked for it and we delivered. We offer affordable 30-minute (follow up) cupping sessions.
*Please note that your first session needs to be a one hour so that we can do a safe health intake and may include acupuncture.
HOLIDAY NOTICE- 30 Minute Follow Cupping Sessions will resume January 2024 to maximize schedule availability throughout Holiday busy season. Cupping will still be offered at no extra charge in our 1 hour Clinical Acupuncture appointments and will include needling.
Watch how we practice cupping! Check out our fire cupping video that went viral on Facebook
Our famous cupping technique has received lots of attention including the National Post and the most viral cupping video to date in the world (over 1.3 million views on Diply (Facebook). We are so excited to incorporate fire cupping at no extra cost.
As Featured In/Awards
Old fashioned fire cupping therapy with sparkling glass cups
CUPPING WILL ALWAYS BE INCORPORATED INTO ANY 1 HOUR TREATMENT YOU HAVE WITH US AT NO ADDITIONAL COST
No cheap plastic suction cups here. We only apply clean glass bulbs to the skin. This is the primitive, old-fashioned way of doing it; also knows as “fire-cupping”. You may have seen the circular marks that cupping temporarily leaves behind. These marks mean circulation was flushed into the area that the therapist focused on. Cupping is amazing for colds and flu’s, shoulder and back tension and chronic pain. Please note, for all you die-hard cupping fans, we are happy to offer a no-frills 30 minute cupping session, however all first time appointments must be a one hour minimum. This is to ensure that there is enough time for proper and safe patient intake.
SAFETY FIRST BEFORE CUPPING THERAPY
Only after we complete intake at your first appointment will the therapist make the call if cupping is right for you. In most cases it’s perfectly safe, however please be advised it will not be provided if the therapist doesn’t think it’s safe or helpful for your body. We welcome cupping appointments however ultimately it’s our call as not all of our services are appropriate for certain people and conditions. We won’t be able to determine this over the phone, only when you come in for your first appointment for a proper health consultation.
Want a quick cupping session?
We got your back!
At Acupuncture Center Toronto there is no extra charge for incorporating cupping into any 1 hour clinical acupuncture appointment. We only use soothing cupping techniques that maximize healing and minimize discomfort. Cupping is an ancient Chinese medicine modality dating back thousands of years where suction cups are placed on the skin to suck out pain and disease. The cups are said to suck out pain-causing agents. In Chinese Medicine, we view some of these agents as excess moisture, dampness, cold, heat and blood stagnation. The therapy is considered a mainstream treatment in hospitals in China. It has been scientifically proven to reduce inflammation, unbind contracted muscles and tendons, and promote blood flow to heal injuries. Because it promotes blood and lymph circulation so well, we use cupping for treatment of cellulite, varicose veins, and scar tissue. Adhesed tissues structures (forming “knots”) are broken down and disappear.
Please know the application of cupping needs to be deemed safe by the therapist. Usually we can accommodate cupping requests however it is at their discretion.
About the cupping therapy procedure
At Acupuncture Center Toronto, when we use cupping we don’t use gimmicky suction tools and prefer to use more traditional methods of healing. Glass Bulb shaped cups are safely applied to the skin utilizing heat to remove the oxygen from the cups. We do it the old-fashioned way by using glass cups and fire to torch the cups for incredible suction. The glass bulbs are applied to the problem area and are left on for about 3-10 minutes. We can either leave the cups on or massage with them. Sliding the cups on the muscles and applying pressure feels soothing and invigorating. The cups gently pull and grab the muscles and instantly start working their magic.
Our technique should feel as incredible as the results. With any other of the techniques we use, if any part of the treatment is uncomfortable we encourage patients to let us know. If you aren’t relaxed, you won’t heal.
Conditions cupping can heal
Our technique that helps both stiff and painful shoulder conditions. The suction lifts the skin from the subcutaneious layers, helping to separate and free areas affected by injury, overuse and poor posture from sitting at a computer. We are experts in “strategic” placement of the cups. Often the upper medial scapula is is the culprit for getting tight. This is often a VERY important treatment area. Tendons, muscles and boney structures stick together and form adhesion (also known as “knots”). This is the #1 area of the body we work on in the clinic. We are experts at treating all shoulder problems. The precise placement of the cups over this overused body part unfreezes the shoulder. It can not only help with local issues but can also help circulate blood to the head. We find if we can unblock the shoulders, the neck and head benefit too. Headaches and migraines also will be helped by unblocking the shoulders. Patients describe that their shoulders drop and feel much looser after treatment.
Click here to read more about how we treat the neck and shoulders.
Cupping is very effective and producing an increase of blood and lymph fluids to painful areas which reduces inflammation. Fresh blood regenerates within capillaries to rescue damaged muscle tissue. This treatment is great after low back strain or overuse from exercise. It helps with soreness by breaking down lactic acid build up which causes post workout soreness. Because cupping has such a profound effect on loosening the muscles, it also helps with spinal alignment.
It also helps with lower back pain as well as hip pain. We usually will apply larger sized cups to hug the larger muscles found in these regions. Applying the cups to the Quadratus Lumborum and gluts sucks out nagging pain. Issues with the spine such as herniated/bulging disks, sciatica and radiating back pain are relieved with cupping affected areas. For low back and hip pain we will commonly place the cups on the precise affected region of the low back, hips as well as any radiating pain travelling down the legs.
The knees are a great treatment area for fire cupping therapy. We can apply the cups on the back of the knees to help restore tendon, ligament and joint damage. Cups can also be placed on the IT band, quads and hamstrings which are all accessory knee areas. We have helped thousands of patients with various knee injuries and issues including knee replacement recovery/prevention, meniscus tears, cartilage degradation, arthritis and general knee weakness. We also are experts at treating “runner’s knee”. Often sliding the cups with massage motions down the IT band helps lighten, loosen and restore the joint for optimal performance. In short, cupping is incredible for this hard-working joint.
Our treatment is a great tool to help relieve chronic migraines and headaches. In our downtown Toronto clinic, we use cupping to reduce the frequency, intensity and duration of all kinds of headaches. Often promoting fresh blood and circulation to the head by cupping the upper back, neck and shoulders is an incredibly powerful addition to acupuncture. We will assess and palpate your head, neck and shoulders to determine the best place on your body to apply the cups to release pain.
Muscle tension is in the top 3 things we treat using our famous fire cupping. We use fire to remove the oxygen to form a tight seal over tense muscles. The gripping of the tissue works wonders for loosening adhesion, ridding lactic acid and softening tight hard muscle groups. We also use in on areas of the body Experience the relief from the cups releasing. It’s worth the purple marks!
You may have heard about cupping in the news or have experienced it in acupuncture treatments. The ancient healing art involves using a glass or plastic cups to provide vacuum suction when applied on the skin. Unlike massage, this technique uses negative pressure to release rigid tissues, drain excess fluids, loosen adhesions, and bring blood flow to skin and muscles. It also releases lactic acid and tissue stagnation. Our athlete patients find cupping effective to help give them that extra performance boost and restore overused tight muscles.
Cupping therapy at Acupuncture Center Toronto. We use the traditional fire torch method for best results.
We often treat all kinds of tendonitis. Tendonitis is often the uncomfortable or painful result of injury or overuse (also known as repetitive strain injury). Our technique often to help restore the tendons, muscles and affected joints. It helps tendonitis by increasing range of motion and decreasing associated stiffness, soreness and pain. It also decreases swelling, increases blood circulation to the affected area and therefore helps to eliminate pain. We treat tons of athletes who have noted that cupping helps boost their performance, chips away at past injuries and scar tissue and generally makes their muscles and joints a lot looser.
Cupping therapy can be an effective combination treatment with acupuncture for helping digestive issues. Applying cups directly over the abdomen and epigastric areas can help regulate digestive processes. In our Toronto clinic we have found it to soothe constipation, bloating, abdominal pain/cramping, symptoms of IBS and many other digestive conditions.
