Have you ever been in so much pain you would try anything?
Have you ever been skeptical of “natural medicine cures”? Well I’m that guy! I’m very science based, logical and practical. But when my back seized up and I couldn’t walk while visiting Toronto, I had no choice but look for a fix. I was in so much pain. I mean a tremendous amount of pain. I had no health coverage (I’m a US citizen), little time and was staying in Yorkville at the Four Seasons. One of my Torontonian co-workers suggested I check out the cupping services provided by Acupuncture Center Toronto. Baloney I thought! NO WAY was I going to do that. My co-worker swore up and down that he too had also was very skeptical but after going to the Center only 2 visits his long term shoulder pain was cured. He saw a girl named Carrie I believe. After a long flight and clearly no way out of a painful situation, I decided to book an appointment.
I must profess that I did look at other cupping clinic’s before I booked. Acupuncture Center Toronto was not only right across from my hotel in Yorkville (in downtown Toronto), but it also had the best reviews and prices. I checked out a few other in the neighborhood and something about those just didn’t feel right. I especially liked that cupping was included and I could get acupuncture as well without having to pay extra for it. I had a few extra questions, left a voicemail and was pretty surprised that someone got back to me fairly quickly considering it was a Sunday afternoon. I did feel that the person on the phone was friendly and helpful too. Good customer service is very important to me especially in a strange city with little to no knowledge of what weird therapy I was about to enlist myself into.
I was directed to book an appointment online which ended up being simple. The bookings system was very easy to use. I mean like a no brainer. I even used my Facebook as a login. I set up the appointment and after reading the bio’s settled with booking with Camille. Not too soon after, Camille called me to introduce herself and asked if I had any other questions. I had never booked a massage or any other appointment where the therapist themselves actually cared enough to call me. My nerves about the weirdness of cupping were already a bit soothed(well kind of). Camille was extremely professional and told me how to prepare for the appointment.
Cupping day
The actual appointment lasted an hour. She asked me questions about my back, took my pulse and did a bunch of other Chinese Medicine questions to make sure she knew what to do. There seemed to be a method to her questioning. As she asked me the questions, I looked around the room and it was very pleasant and clean. Totally like nothing I had experienced in Washington when getting Acupuncture in Chinatown. Nothing. There was soothing music, spotless environment, bubbling water sound thingy and the bed felt warm. Already my back started to ease off.
Camille started with acupuncture. She put them in the perfect spots. Better than any massage therapist had been able to locate the sore spots. Very quickly she knew. Was she a mind reader? Then came the cupping. Boy was I scared. I was face down in the toilet seat bowl face thing and I couldn’t see much but I could see that she was preparing some fire. I saw an orange flame and then boom, the first cup went on. It felt very strong and sucky. Then plop, plop plop more cups. Before I knew it my entire back was covered. It felt amazing. My back tension instantly was feeling much better. The cups were cold but once they were all on it was totally fine. Not comfortable but not painful. I was assured it would all be worth the discomfort. Camille was right, when I got up from the table, my back was sore but no longer in excruciating pain. The next day I could stand up straight and was even able to do some sight-seeing in Toronto. I suggest Acupuncture Center Toronto for cupping. I had a great experience and I hope you do too.
Acupuncture Center Toronto’s website: https://acupuncturecentertoronto.com
- By Jarrod Faulkner