Fire Cupping 拔罐

Glass cups warmed with a flame and set on the skin, drawing gently upward as the air inside cools.

A physician pressing a glass cup onto a patient's back while holding a lit flame in the other hand, with several cups already in place.

What it is

A glass cup is briefly warmed with a flame and placed on the skin. As the air inside cools it contracts, and the cup draws gently upward. The flame never touches you — it heats the air in the cup, and the cup is placed after.

This is fire cupping rather than the plastic pump kind. The physician chooses where the cups go after the consultation, and may move them along the muscle rather than leaving them still.

What a session is like

You lie down and the cups stay in place for several minutes. The sensation is a firm, steady pull — most people describe it as a deep stretch rather than a pinch. Say so at the time if a cup feels too strong; it can be released and reset immediately.

In the clinic

Back cupping 背部拔罐

Physician Joy placing glass cups along the back. The flame warms the air inside each cup so it grips the skin as it cools; it is never applied to the skin itself.

A full set of glass cups in place across a patient's back. — A full set of glass cups in place across the back. Cups are usually left on for around ten minutes, and the skin under each one lifts slightly from the suction. The marks fade over a few days.

Tummy cupping 腹部拔罐

Coloured ceramic cups placed in a ring across a patient's abdomen. — Ceramic cups placed across the abdomen. Ceramic holds heat longer than glass, and cups on the abdomen are usually placed more lightly than on the back.

The marks, and how long they last

Cupping therapy is an ancient practice that involves placing specialized cups on the skin to create suction. This suction draws the skin and underlying tissues into the cup, which increases blood flow, loosens muscles, and helps to detoxify the body. The marks that appear after a cupping session are not bruises but rather a result of the embedded toxins being lifted. The appearance of these marks can vary widely depending on several factors, including the individual's health, the intensity of the suction, and the location of the cups. The colour of the marks may range from bright red to dark red to purple to dark purple, they are usually painless and fade over time, typically within a few days to two weeks.

Worth planning around if you have a wedding, a holiday or anything sleeveless coming up. Tell the physician and she can work on areas your clothing covers.

Before your first session

Tell the physician at the start if you are pregnant, take blood-thinning medication, bruise very easily, or have any skin condition, recent burn, wound or mole in the area. None of these means you cannot be treated — they change where the cups go and how strongly.

Afterwards

Keep the area covered and warm for the rest of the day, and leave swimming, a sauna or a hot shower directly on the marks for another time. Drinking water is the usual advice.

Prices for every treatment are on the pricelist. View the pricelist

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This page describes what the treatment involves. It is not medical advice, and it is not a promise about what any individual course of treatment will do. What is appropriate for you is decided at consultation.