When you come to our office in pain, we may determine that cupping, along with other therapies, is the best treatment plan for your condition.

Cupping therapy has many benefits, enhancing the effectiveness of chiropractic adjustments.

Before an adjustment, cupping can relax muscles and improve your circulation. This makes your tissues more receptive to realignment.

Cupping can also help promote healing through increased blood flow and muscle relaxation.

It helps with postural imbalances, as well, relaxing overactive muscles and activating under-active ones.

At Golden Chiropractic, we use RockPods for cupping therapy. Dr. Goldi is certified in Functional Movement Techniques (FMT) with RockPods.

Cupping therapy has many benefits, that's why all of our healthcare professionals offer it. If you need relief from: 

• painful trigger points
• painful muscle tension
• limited mobility and range of motion

cupping may help. If we believe cupping would help you, we'll apply RockPods—silicone cups that stick to your skin to help relieve your pain and soreness, as well as improve your range of movement.

How does cupping work?

RockPods are rubbery suction pods. They use negative (decompressive) pressure to lift, separate, and stretch underlying soft tissues. The pods allow us to grab, pull, and push fascia to treat pain, mobility, and movement dysfunctions. 

What does myofascial cupping do?

FMT Myofascial Cupping affects the body’s nervous, immune, and fascial systems. Cupping encourages the body’s natural healing process by encouraging flow and discouraging congestion. Myofascial cupping:

• increases blood flow to a region, which delivers oxygen to the tissues. This encourages both healing and congestion removal
• causes anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-cell death chemicals in the body
• stretches tight fascia and muscles

Conditions we have treated with RockPods

We’ve treated patients with neck tension, shoulder pain, low back pain and exercise related muscle soreness. These patients see faster results, increased movement, and decreased pain.

Dr. Goldi treated a former water polo athlete with chronic right shoulder pain. The patient was already receiving chiropractic adjustments and myofascial blading. After adding cupping therapy to her treatment she notes:

“It feels less pinchy in the front of my shoulder when I raise my arm. (After cupping) I get a feeling of warmth in my shoulder that feels like I had a hot pack on my shoulder for 30 minutes. I can feel the increased blood flow and my shoulder moves again!”

How is myofascial cupping different from other chiropractic treatments?

Myofascial cupping is the opposite of massage and myofascial blading. Rather than pushing and compressing soft tissue, the cups lift and decompress. We can push and pull on the cups to create a shearing affect between the layers of fascia. This helps increase mobility in tense areas like the shoulders, hips, and IT bands.  The cups also stimulate nerve receptors in the skin which has a sedative effect on pain.

There are three main cupping techniques: fixed dry cupping, flash cupping, and massage cupping.

• Fixed dry cupping is used on a fascial adhesion or trigger point for a short time to reduce or eliminate it. The cups are applied directly to the site of pain or dysfunction and left there for 90 seconds to 5 minutes. Fixed cupping may cause slight discomfort. It may also cause discoloration marks that look like round bruises. These marks are normal, generally disappear within a couple of days, and indicate that a healing process is occuring.
• Flash cupping is applying the cup and pulling it off the skin quickly, then repeating that process. The cups are applied for less than five seconds before being pulled off.  This technique is great for managing pain. Flash cupping generally does not leave visible marks.
• Massage cupping applies the cups on an affected area and moves them over the surface in a gliding motion. The skin and muscles aren’t compressed like a traditional massage. They are pulled into the cup. Massage cupping generally does not leave visible marks.

Where are RockPods applied on my body?

RockPods are typically applied on the neck, shoulders, back, sacrum, hip, thigh, calves, and upper arms. RockPods stimulate the body’s natural healing process to:

• treat chronic pain
• relieve tension
• sedate the nervous system
• ease musculoskeletal pain and discomfort
• treat sports injuries, mobility and movement dysfunctions

Interested in seeing the benefits of myofascial cupping for yourself? Ask us about how cupping might help you at your next appointment. Our Aptos chirorpactors are experts at using cupping to ease your pain and promote healing. Book online here. 

Learn more about the history of cupping here.