The Relaxing Treatment Favorited By Celebs Like GP & Jen You've Been Curious About But Haven't Tried...Yet

I was running on 5 hours of sleep (tops) and a weekend of multiple lattes, bagels, and my favorite ginger biscuits from the OG gourmet artisanal bakery in the Ocean State.

In other words, yours truly was a health and wellness hot mess.

Good thing I'd already scheduled an appointment at Emerging Energy in Providence to try cupping, the ancient Chinese treatment that via special suction cups (made from materials like glass or plastic) applied to the back as well as other areas of the bod, is said to help improve circulation (I was told by another holistic practionioner eons ago that my circulation is shall-we-say less than stellar.), detoxify, relieve pain and inflammation, and promote both healing and relaxation.

When I told a close friend about the appointment, she demanded that I fill her in on “absolutely everything” immediately following because apparently several of Bravo’s Real Housewives are also big fans of cupping.

Thing is, cupping therapy has become pretty popular over the last few years, beginning famously with paparazzi shots of Gwyneth Paltrow and Jen Aniston showing off the red, circular marks on their backs (in strapless on the red carpet no less!) in the early 2000’s.

And more recently, with the 2016-ish buzz around Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps' affinity for the treatment, also known as reverse massage and in fact a form of acupuncture dating back thousands of years.

While standard massage pushes into tissue, cupping is all about the vacuum created by the suction that pulls tissue up, resulting in an improvement in blood flow to muscles, tendons, & connective tissue.

Now, for whatever reason, I'd only just gotten around to giving it a whirl, but I would definitely go back again. 

After motoring over to Emerging Energy’s space in the Jewelry District - and having a nice consult/chat (stiff shoulders from hunching over my lap top, definitely an ongoing issue for me) with Dr. Mary Claire Dilks, also a regular contributor to this blog btw - it was time.

Yeah, I was a little nervous about the whole thing, but the mild tugging I felt at the get-go was really no biggie.

Walking out the door, I felt refreshed and a whole lot less crummy than when I'd started out earlier that morning, and I was totally ok with the minor red-ish marks on my back too because (as I understand it) they usually heal in about 3 to 5 days.

For more about cupping from Dr. Mary Claire Dilks of Emerging Energy Acupuncture, click here.

+ Photo Credits: All photos above are courtesy of Olivia Gird Photography. (Yes, that is Dr Dilks cupping, but no, that's not me on the table.)

++ This post has been updated from one that has appeared on the blog previously.