The type of cupping we offer is dry cupping. This is opposed to wet cupping, in which small cuts are made before the cups are applied, to draw blood out of the body.
Cupping can be given as both a stand-alone treatment, and with other treatments such as deep tissue massage and soft tissue release. Where massage uses compression of the tissues to stretch muscles and relieve pain, cupping uses decompression (or vacuum pressure) to lift tissue and offer pain relief.
During your treatment, your practitioner will warm up the muscles using light massage before applying the cups.
Dry cupping is particularly useful for myofascial release. Fascia is the vast connective tissue that surrounds all muscles, organs, bones, nerves and soft tissues within the body – myofascial means ‘fascia of the muscle’. Fascia is one continuous layer or sheet, and when the fascia becomes stuck (i.e. you/your practitioner can feel a ‘knot’ or restriction) it prevents normal function of the muscle and can restrict range of motion of the affected joint.
Through cupping, we lift the surface of the muscle which allows the fascia to loosen, with the aim of restoring muscle use and range of motion. Clients with occupational back and shoulder pain, ITB syndrome, and plantar fasciitis, often feel the most benefit from cupping.
Price for Dry Cupping Therapy (may incorporate deep tissue massage, stretching, myofascial release):
£30 for 30 minutes
£45 for 45 minutes
£50 for 1 hour
£70 for 1.5 hours
£85 for 2 hours
30/45-minute appointments usually focus on areas with specific problems (for example, tightness in leg muscles, neck and shoulder pain, lower back issues, etc).
1-hour appointments are usually for more in-depth work in specific areas, allowing more focus on working deeper into specific muscle groups.
1.5 hour appointments are the minimum we recommend for a full body massage including cupping. This would include back, neck and shoulders, legs and feet, arms and hands, chest and stomach, face and head, with cupping done in appropriate areas (not the face, head or stomach).
A 2-hour appointment allows us to carry out a full body massage whilst allowing time to focus on problem areas using several cupping techniques for maximum effect.
Willowtree Therapies 