Susan Jackson

At the conclusion of the somewhat violent, yet satisfying, experience that was my first Chinese massage, I had a choice to make. My masseur brought a yellow plastic box into the room as the other masseur jabbed a final few fingers into Crysty’s back. Both started pointing to the box, and it didn’t take me long to say, “Yeah!” after one slid the lid off to reveal two dozen small, globe-shaped glass jars. We were about to be cupped.

Now, at this point, I wasn’t sure about the exact health benefits of cupping, but did know that fire, suction, and round purple bruises were in my future. Illogically enough, I popped my thumbs up, smiled, and rolled over to have the bad juju sucked out of me. My post-suck research uncovered that cupping is a form of acupressure used to improve circulation, and treat a host of ailments.

Pre-suck, the masseur fired-up the insides of each globe, creating low-pressure areas that would latch onto and pull our skin upwards into the glass. Minutes later, Crysty and I were outfitted to play a pair of dinosaurs on The Jetsons. After we snapped a few awkward photos and giggled a bit, the masseurs removed each cup with a thwunk sound and we skedaddled to discuss whether or not we felt any different than when we arrived.

It is honestly difficult to say whether or not the mild soreness I’m now experiencing in my back is from the intense massage, the cupping bruises, or both, but I’m not unhappy about it. The practice is thousands of years old and wouldn’t still be around if it…sucked.