Jini Carlson Massage Therapy Blog

What follows is a Case Study Project done by Katie Terrien on Cupping for her Anthropology class.   I was honored and blessed that it was me that she chose to interview for this project.  – Jini

Katie Terrien

Dr. Bade

Anth. 301

December 01, 2009

Case Study Project

When deciding on a topic for my case study, I remembered a friend of mine from work, her name is Kirby. She regularly gets cupping done by a women named Jini Carlson. I’ve had numerous conversations with Kirby at work about cupping; I have always been interested in the therapy method.  I thought the case study assignment would be a great opportunity to not only meet Jini, but to learn and fully understand the therapy method and the healer.  Upon meeting with Jini I realized just how special she was as a healer and how she helps people reach their full potential both physically and mentally.

Before meeting with her I wanted to do some research of my own.  I found a book titled Traditional Chinese medicine: cupping therapy; the book gave me a brief history of cupping and I learned quite a bit.  Cupping is an ancient Chinese method for healing dating back thousand of years.  The author points out that “At first it was applied using cattle horn, and was consequently also called horn therapy” (pg. 03).  Cupping or horn therapy was traditionally used to pull the pus and blood up from a boil; today cupping is used for all kinds of ailments; from boils, coughs, colds, indigestion, muscle aches, and numerous other conditions, there has even been documentation of using cupping to treat tuberculosis. Cupping methods have changed over time and today many healers use plastic cups and air pressure in place of glass cups and flame.  Jini practices cupping along with Chakra Balancing, Ear coning and Massage.

After researching cupping and understanding the history of it I asked Kirby if she would call Jini and ask her if I might meet with her.  Kirby said no problem and within a few days I had Jini’s number.  I called Jini and she said she would be willing to give me some of her time.  Thankful and excited we made a date; I meet with Jini on Wednesday November 18^th, 2009.  I drove to her office located in Kearny Mesa, San Diego; Jini rents a cozy space within the business district of  Kearny Mesa.  The building where she rents the space is called: Alternative Health Center.  I meet with her in the afternoon on a beautiful sunny day; when I entered the building it was a quiet and calming atmosphere the first door I saw said “quiet please brain therapy in session”; I thought to myself what the heck is that? I was in the waiting room for no more than a couple of minutes when a woman walked out to water a plant; I immediately thought “this must be Jini”. My first impression of Jini was that she represented the picture of health and beauty.  Jini was very friendly, petite, with long silver hair, beautiful skin, teeth, and a great smile.  Her eyes were warm and inviting, I felt at ease from the moment I introduced myself.  She smiled said it was nice to meet me and then took me into her room where she performs all of her healing techniques for her patients.

The room was quiet and tranquil, scented candles had been placed around the room and a small waterfall fountain created a beautiful peaceful sound that immediately relaxed me.  Jini had placed her massage table in the center of the room; I noticed a wicker shelf in one corner that had a small Buddha statue, along with crystals and other diagnostic tools.  We had spoken on the phone and she knew I was interested in her cupping method and that I was a friend of Kirby’s.  My first question to Jini was if she considered herself a healer and if so, would it be ok for me to refer to her as such. She immediately replied “absolutely”; later she gave me her business card, it states that she is a Holistic Health Practitioner.  Jini has been practicing for 20 years; she is now 61 years old and doesn’t look a day over 50.  I asked her why and how she became a healer and she shared her personal journey.

Her father had suffered a stroke about 20 years ago and her mother, eager to help her husband recover researched strokes and ways to help with recovery.  Jini’s mother found that massage therapy helps the circulation in the body and healing.  Her mother decided to take massage classes and see if she could help her husband recover. After some time Jini’s mother was successfully helping her husband recover and soon word spread that she was a great masseuse and friends and family wanted in on the action. Her mother became successful as a masseuse; friends, family, and friends of friends soon were her cliental.  Jini, inspired by her mother’s success also became interested in becoming a masseuse. However, Jini already held a full time job; but that didn’t stop her and she started going to school part-time along with working.  Jini said that after 20 years of working her full time job that was stressful both mentally and physically her body gave out on her; it happened to be around the same time she was finishing up massage school.  After going to a doctor, she was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and her doctor gave her options for treatments.  Unsatisfied with her options and aware that other choices were out there Jini spoke with her massage teacher and found other alternatives than what AMA offers.  Jini decided not to go the AMA route and try alternative healing methods; she also was introduced to a product called Juice Plus+.

Jini shared with me some information about Juice Plus+; it is a nutritional product that is all natural. It is whole food based and is made by juicing fresh fruits and vegetables.  The fruits and veggies are concentrated into powder and put into capsule form.  The product has had clinical research and been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.  Jini is such a fan of Juice Plus+ that she sells the product and takes it daily as part of her daily nutrients.  Jini said she was exposed to Juice Plus+ through a friend she was doing massage trades with during her recovery and treatment of Fibromyalgia.  She said that along with taking Juice Plus+ on a regular basis and undergoing alternative health care she .was back to part-time work within six weeks! That is amazing considering that some patients who are diagnosed with Fibromyalgia have much longer and painful experiences.  Jini said through her experiences she was convinced that she was going to lead a much healthier lifestyle, and share it with others.  She was back at working part-time at her job (which she was no longer happy doing) and as fate would have it (my words not hers) her company was bought out; she was offered a nice severance package to leave.  Jini stated “I laughed all the way to the bank”; with the money she received from her severance package, her massage license, and her new way of life, Jini started renting a space to become a full time healer. She wanted to help herself and others create a new healthier and happier way of living.

Jini treats 8-9 clients a week so she can give her full potential to each one.  I asked her if she has any rituals that she goes through before treating each client; she said absolutely.  Jini explained her ritual is to meditate every morning when she gets up along with stretching, to get her mind and body ready for the day.  When I asked about her healer/patient relationships she stated that most her clients have been with her long term, she doesn’t do “walk-ins” she has formed and maintained personal relationships with all her clients. I asked Kirby about their relationship and she said she has been going to Jini for a few years and continues to go to her because of their close relationship.  I asked Jini if there are any cautions when undergoing cupping that the patients should be aware of.  Jini said no, that cupping is safe and great alternative for people who are sensitive to touch.  Jini shared with me that Kirby for example is ticklish and traditional hand massages are too much for Kirby, “she can’t sit still”.

Jini did say that although she’s never done cupping on an elderly person one should be cautious due to the fact that the elderly have much more delicate skin, so the pressure on the skin could cause it to break, or the bruising that occurs during cupping could take much longer to go away; however, she doesn’t know for sure it’s just her opinion.  I did some research on cautions of cupping, and Jini was correct; I found that there are a few cautions when do cupping.  In the book titled Essence of traditional Chinese Medicine the author states “Cupping therapy is not recommended for highly nervous persons, people with sensitive or loose skin, and people who are very skinny” (pg. 132).   However, those cautions are for the glass/heat cupping method; I asked Jini if she used the glass cupping method or preferred the newer plastic cupping method.  She already had her diagnostic tools out ready to show me, Jini uses the plastic cupping method because it is safer for both the healer and the patient; and easier to perform.  By saying safer I don’t mean to imply that anything about the act cupping is unsafe; I simply mean because no fire/heat is involved there is no chance of an accidental fire. Another benefit of heatless cupping is that the healer has more control over the pressure as well as the patient.

The actual act of cupping goes as follows: there are different size cups for different areas of the body, and a hand held compression/suction system attaches to individual cups.  The compression system looks, and is used much like the machine a doctor uses to take your blood pressure.  Once the patient has told Jini where they hurt, (most commonly the cups are placed on different areas of the back).  Jini applies the cup on that specific area and attaches the hand held compression system and simply squeezes the bulb at the end which creates negative pressure that in turn creates suction.  Each cup is left on the specific area for up to 15 minutes, to break to suction the healer simply presses down on the surrounding skin to break the seal.

When researching traditional Chinese cupping where the healer uses heat from a flame oppose to the hand held air pump Jini uses; the author describes the process in the book titled Pharmacodynamic Basis of Herbal Medicine: Second Edition “Lighting a match into the glass cup and removing it quickly and applying the cup to the skin” (pg.68). The author also states “The flame creates a vacuum, and the cup sticks tightly to the skin” (pg. 68).  Cupping can also be practiced on one’s self; Jini said she does cupping to herself, but only within comfortable reach.  Again in my research I learned that cupping is a common household practice in many Chinese homes.

After researching cupping and getting speak to Jini personally I was curious to get the patients perspective, so again, I asked Kirby for some help. I was curious as to how often Kirby got cupping done, how it felt, how much it cost, how long her visits are, and how she met Jini.  Kirby helpful as always gave me these answers; Kirby as I already stated above has known Jini for a few years and found Jini on the internet.  Kirby was exposed to cupping through a friend of hers who also gets it done.  However, her friend does not live locally and that is why Kirby searched the internet and found Jini.  Kirby said she tries to get cupping done every few months but wishes she could do it more often.  She pays about $75.00 per treatment and each treatment lasts for one hour. Kirby is a dancer, works in the restaurants business, and a cancer survivor; she says that cupping helps her alleviate muscle soreness and pain.  Kirby said the therapy is relaxing and feels good, the bruising that occurs is not painful just the result of cupping done properly.  Cupping is one of the best ways to get a deep tissue massage, cupping can affect tissue in the body for up to four inches releasing toxins and stimulating circulation, and decreasing blockage in the veins and arteries.

Before doing this case study I was simply interested in what cupping was out of pure curiosity; now I feel knowledgeable about the subject and eager to try it out myself.  Jini has opened a new door for me, we have actually created a friendship and she has invited me to continue to share in wellness conferences and experiences.  We now email back and forth and she is helping become more knowledgeable in my decisions regarding my personal health.  This had been a great experience for my self as well for those involved in the process. In conclusion, I’ve truly enjoyed this experience, meeting Jini, opening up new avenues in life, and maintaining lasting friendships.

Works Cited

Chirali, II. Z. (1999). Traditional chinese medicine: cuppnig therapy. Edinburgh, New York: Churhill Livingstone.

Ebadi, M. (2006). Pharmacodynamic basis of herbal medicine:second edition. unknown: Taylor and Francis group.

Fu, C. (2003). Essence of traditional chinese medicine. Singapore: Asiapac Books.