In 2016, I suffered from plantar fasciitis. I am a retired Marine so I went to military hospitals for treatment. I tried rest. I tried pain killers. I tried tennis balls, racket balls, foam rollers, and ice. Nothing worked. Up until this point I had always turned to Western medicine, but this time it failed me. Every morning I would wake up, and get up on my left side. I would start my day by tapping my right heel on the floor while continuing to balance on my left side. When I could take the pain, I would begin to tap my toes on the floor. When I could handle that, I would start rocking my entire right foot on the floor. Next, I would take baby steps. Every morning it would take me 10 minutes to get to the bathroom. The pain was horrible. 

Someone suggested trying hijamah (cupping). I had heard of it, and believed in it, but I just thought that it was something that people used a thousand years ago. Everything else had failed, so I gave hijamah a try. The night that I did hijamah on my foot, I felt slightly better. The next morning, I woke up and began my morning ritual. I got up on my left side. I tapped my right heel on the floor. To my surprise, there was no pain. I tapped my toes on the ground, and there was no pain. I couldn’t believe it! I decided to take a regular step, fully expecting the pain to return. I walked to the bathroom pain free.

Over the next few days, I began reevaluating how I treated sickness. I was used to treating the symptoms, usually with a prescription, and not treating the actual source of the problem. I remembered how our grandparents used things like ginger, turmeric, and black seed to treat illness. I was so impressed with hijamah that I began studying everything I could find on the subject. 

In 2018, I took a beginners course in hijamah (cupping) therapy. With this certification I began doing hijamah on friends and family. I liked it so much that I continued my hijamah therapy studies and took, and completed, the Higher Diploma in Hijamah Therapy certification. In both programs, I graduated with distinction. 

In 2020, I created Authentic Cupping Llc. Now, I see clients in my Columbia clinic, and I do home visits. I really enjoy my interactions with people, and I love to see their health improve. Performing cupping has been truly fulfilling.