Gua Sha is an alternative medicine therapy that involves "scraping" the skin with a stone to improve circulation and relieve muscular tension. It is an ancient Chinese therapy that focuses on eliminating stagnant energy in the body (referred to as "chi") to reduce underlying inflammation that is responsible for pain and chronic tension. Gua Sha also helps promote lymphatic drainage, increases lactic acid release from muscles, and also assists in the break down of built up scar tissue. This modality can be performed on any muscular area, such as the back, legs and shoulders, but gua sha has recently gained popularity for being used on the face. It has been referred to as "natures botox" due to the muscle toning benefits that gua sha provides.
Is Gua Sha for you?
1. If You Suffer From Headaches or Migraines
If you regularly experience teaches or migraines, then gua sha can help by providing relief from muscular tension and sinus pressure, often associated with most head pain. TMJ, or jaw clenching, can also be the cause of headaches and performing gua sha on a jawline that is tense can often prevent problems before they happen.
2. If You Experience Muscle Soreness or Tension
Those who work out or have a desk job may experience more muscular discomfort that could be relieved through the use of gua sha. Scraping atop the neck muscles, upper back muscle, and lower back muscles may provide incredible relief for several ailments. Even utilizing this technique on legs and gluten that are sore or tense from working out can help release lactic acid from the muscle and speed up recovery time.
3. If You Want to Improve Your Immune System
Because gua sha moves the lymphatic fluid around, it provides immune system boosting benefits. Typically, modern-day people do not experience enough natural movement to supply the lymph nodes with the stimulation they need to accomplish proper drainage. Office jobs that require sitting, long commutes and lack of aerobic exercises contribute to this lack, but the movement that comes from gua sha can be an excellent solution for this common problem. You can ensure that you are "scraping" in the correct direction by following the cart below.
