Gua Sha (pronounced gwa sha) is rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM.) Gua Sha’s meaning loosely translates to scraping, rubbing or pushing, and it’s essentially a tool-assisted massage for your face.
At Yinn Body, we’re conscious lovers and natural health enthusiasts. We love Gua Sha facials as a quick, simple and all-natural way to produce radiant, glowing skin.
TCM teaches us that qi energy (pronounced chi) must flow throughout our body for us to feel and look our best. The smooth edges of gua sha are used to circulate stagnant qi, help improve circulation and promote healing.
Benefits include:
-
Promotes blood circulation
TCM teaches us that Tai Yin meridians (composed of the lung and spleen) and Yang Ming meridians (composed of the large intestines and the stomach) are responsible for your skin's overall health. Scraping the skin with a Gua Sha stimulates your Yang Ming meridians and signals to the body that you need more blood circulation.
-
Improves fine lines and wrinkles
Gua Sha has been proven to improve the sign of small and newly formed wrinkles.
-
Promotes lymphatic drainage
Eliminates fluid build-up, thus reducing puffiness.
-
Relieves muscle tension
Regular Gua Sha facials can untangle knotted areas and release built-up tension in muscles in the face and rest of the body.
-
Creates a contoured look
Gua Sha engages tissue to eliminate fluid build-up in the lymph nodes, giving the illusion of a more contoured face.
Why agate?
Grey agate is a stone of strength, grounding, and protection. It’s used to relieve fatigue, releases positive energy, and remove negative thoughts’ influence. This stone also helps with emotional trauma, self-confidence and concentration, bringing about emotional, physical and intellectual balance.
How To
1. Cleanse face - You don’t want dirt getting in the way when scraping
2. Apply oil or serum - This is the perfect barrier between the Gua Sha and your skin, protecting the top layer from abrasion
3. Locate the stomach meridian just under the eye - Work upwards and outwards from yin to yang
4. Move the tool from the forehead upwards with gentle pressure
5. Move from nose to ear on the cheek in a swoon motion
6. Play with the different edges - The heart shape is great for the jawline and harder to reach areas like under the eyes and cheek bones, while the jagged edges are ideal for lymphatic drainage and feel great on the forehead
7. Repeat actions for 5-10 minutes until the skin is flushed
Utilising Edges
Concave Side
The concave side of a Gua Sha is ideal to use on wider areas of your body like the neck, shoulder, and spine
Teeth Edge
Stimulates fine lines and wrinkles, used from the chin to the cheeks, temples, and forehead
Pointed Convex Edge
This part of the Gua Sha is most beneficial to scoop the brows
Hot tips
- Always scrape in one direction; you will attract more blood flow in the specific area
- Use the Gua Sha 2-3 times per week for no more than 10 minutes
-
Gua Sha facials are not recommended for those with rashes, burns or blood coagulation issues
Love to learn more about health? Check out How Jing Can Impact Your Sex Life.