Blood Stasis Therapy
Blood Stasis Therapy: Bloodletting and Wet Cupping
What is blood stasis?
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), blood stasis refers to restricted blood flow caused by increased pressure in tissues like tendons, ligaments, muscles, nerves, organs, the spinal cord, and brain. This is similar to conditions in Western medicine, such as compartment syndrome and deep vein thrombosis (DVT), where tissue swelling compresses veins and obstructs circulation.
When tissue pressure exceeds venous pressure, it leads to stagnation, impeding the normal flow of blood and bioelectricity (qi). Aging, injury, or disease can damage venous valves, causing deoxygenated or “dead” blood to pool, often creating visible spider and varicose veins. This stagnated blood can lead to issues such as pain, inflammation, poor circulation, and disease.
The body’s venous system has three parts: deep veins, superficial veins, and perforating veins. While superficial veins are visible and bluish, deep veins (responsible for about 90% of blood return to the heart) lie beneath the muscles. Perforating veins connect these systems, allowing blood to reroute. Blood Stasis Therapy (BST) helps reduce congestion and promote healing by supporting this rerouting process.
Understanding Blood Stasis Syndrome (BSS)
Blood Stasis Syndrome (BSS) in TCM is a condition where blood circulates too slowly or pools due to disruptions in vital bioelectric pathways like heart qi deficiency, yin deficiency or qi stagnation. Blood stasis therapy is an ancient practice that focuses on reestablishing smooth circulation and energy flow throughout the body.
This holistic approach integrates bloodletting, acupuncture, herbal medicine and lifestyle modifications to address blockages, enhance vitality, and alleviate various health concerns. TCM has long been used to treat chronic diseases, pain, and circulation problems, providing relief and supporting long-term wellness. Practitioners diagnose BSS based on a patient’s history, clinical signs including purplish skin, spider and varicose veins, bruising, and pain.
Bloodletting Therapy
Bloodletting, or bleeding, is a therapy designed to combat stagnated and dead blood. Bleeding at designated areas draws blood off superficial veins, reducing pressure on arteries, nerves, muscles, and organs via the perforating veins. This removal of congested blood relieves pain and expedites healing.
Bloodletting therapy in a traditional technique where a small lancet or needle pricks certain points on the body to release stagnant blood. The process typically involves drawing darker blood, indicating stagnation, and continuing until the blood changes to a brighter red—a sign that circulation has improved. Common treatment areas include the elbows, legs, knees, ears, and back.
This therapy can help treat conditions affecting various parts of the body, such as:
- Nerves, joints, muscles and the spine
- Eye, ear, nose and throat conditions
- Headaches, migraines, tinnitus
- Anxiety, depression, brain fog
- Chronic pain, muscle tension, sciatica
Wet Cupping Therapy
Wet cupping is another form of bloodletting, often used on the back, where small punctures are made, and a sterile disposable suction cup is placed over them to draw out stagnant blood. This method is particularly effective in treating conditions in the neck, back, shoulders, arms, hands, legs, knees and feet.
What Conditions Can These Therapies Treat?
Bloodletting and Wet Cupping have been used for centuries to address a wide variety of health concerns, including:
- Neurological issues: headaches, migraines, Bell’s palsy, trigeminal neuralgia, concussions
- Eye & Ear conditions: optic neuritis, temporal arteritis, stye, ptosis, conjunctivitis, keratitis, spasms around the eye, otitis media, tinnitus
- Nose conditions: chronic sinusitis, rosacea, nosebleed
- Mouth conditions: soreness and swelling of the mouth, lips, tongue and throat, toothache, jaw pain, TMJ and difficulty opening the mouth
- Throat conditions: tonsillitis, pharyngitis, esophageal pain
- Neck issues: benign thyroid tumors, goiter, neck pain and stiffness
- Cardiovascular health: chest pain, angina, cardiac conditions, coronary heart disease, palpitations, high blood pressure, varicose veins, stroke recovery
- Respiratory conditions: asthma, difficulty breathing, bronchitis
- Gastric and digestive health: gastrointestinal disorders, pain, nausea, vomiting
- Organ health: kidney conditions, nephritis, hepatitis, gallstones, interstitial cystitis
- Skin conditions: acne, eczema, shingles, poison ivy/oak
- Gynecological conditions: amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea, endometriosis, infertility, mastitis, uterine fibroids
- Psychological health: stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia, cognition issues, brain fog (including post-COVID)
- Surgical recovery: post-mastectomy syndrome, post-surgical pain and healing, lymph node removal pain, entrapped nerve
- Back conditions: upper and lower back pain, coccyx pain, spinal cord injury
- Upper limb conditions: shoulder, arm, wrist, hand and finger pain and numbness, carpal tunnel syndrome
- Lower limb conditions: pain and swelling of legs, pain and numbness radiating down legs, sciatica, hip pain, knee pain (bone-on-bone), ankle pain
- Foot issues: pain, numbness, heel pain, plantar fasciitis
- Chronic conditions: hemorrhoids, gout, herpes and sores of the lips and genitals, chronic pain, non-healing ulcers and injuries, nonunion of bones
- Exocrine gland conditions: blockage of axillary sweat glands, sweaty palms (hyperhidrosis)
- Fever
- Bedwetting in children
To learn more about bloodletting, please see “The Complete Guide to Chinese Medicine Bloodletting” by Dean Mouscher, from which the above content is drawn.
Are There Risks or Side Effects?
While generally safe when performed by a licensed practitioner, blood stasis may cause mild side effects like bruising, discomfort or temporary soreness at the treatment site. Rare risks include infection or nerve damage if procedures are not done properly. To minimize these risks, it’s important to work with a qualified practitioner who can guide you through the process safely.