Massage Cupping Therapy on Cesarean Section Scars

Cupping Therapy Question and Answer Series

Intro

Thank you for joining us for another installment of our Cupping Therapy Q&A Series. Here, we feature clinical questions submitted to us by ACE Massage Cupping Therapy practitioners. Our educators offer some brief insight on the topic so that you can expand your working knowledge on this revolutionary bodywork therapy and its benefits.

Question

I know Anita has mentioned how helpful cupping can be for C-section scars, and to help integrate the skin above and below the scar, allowing the tissue to normalize. I wonder if there is a recommended protocol for technique and how much time / frequency to get the tissue integrated once again, rather than the scar separating the tissue above and below it?

Answer

I wish we could just give a standard protocol for treatments, but scar tissue can vary greatly from person to person. If you have done manual scar work, you know the techniques that are used; lifting, rolling, cross fiber, etc. We do the same with the cup, and these movements are so much more comfortable with the cup lifting the tissue, rather than the fingers pinching and lifting/rolling the tissue. Extreme care must be taken if the scar is hypertrophic or keloid, so as not to stimulate more scar tissue production.

I often begin by observing the tissue in and around the cup to see how deep and wide the scar tissue has spread, and if the are any adhesions. I usually begin with gentle pumping movements to eliminate any possible damage to the tissue. Please be sure to pump the upper inguinal node regions before draining the congestion from above the scar. I like to warm the congestion with a heated rice pack or hydrocollator pack to help liquefy the “solid bloat.”

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About the Author

Anita J. Shannon has been a licensed massage therapist and licensed cosmetologist since 1983. She specializes in skin care, body treatments, clinical aromatherapy, and various modalities of massage therapy. She has been a national educator since 1990, appearing at numerous national spa and massage conventions each year. For four years, Anita appeared as a co-host on the television program “Health Options Today” with Dr. Mitchell Ghen.

Anita is the founder and director of Advanced Continuing Education (ACE), an NCBTMB CE provider established in 2001. Anita has presented hundreds of workshops on ACE Massage Cupping and MediCupping therapy throughout the US and internationally since 2002. Anita has been published on the subject of cupping therapy in industry publications such as Massage Today, Massage Magazine, and Les Nouvelles Esthetiques. She has published two educational videos on ACE Massage Cupping bodywork, two on MediCupping therapy and one on TheraCupping home care, and is currently writing a book on VacuTherapies. In 2011, Anita was inducted into the Massage Therapy Hall of Fame.

In 2016, Anita opened ACE Institute Online, an online education portal designed to bring cupping therapy training into the digital age. Since its debut in 2016, ACE Institute Online has introduced the revolutionary techniques found in ACE Massage Cupping and MediCupping to over ten thousand students worldwide.