Gua Sha has taken the world by storm, and this time-honoured technique has become a crucial part of many people's self-care routines.
In today's fast-paced world, stressors can turn into chronic stress that leaves you fatigued, in pain, and struggling to keep up with the demands of everyday life. In the midst of the chaos, it can feel impossible to deactivate your 'fight or flight" response and reconnect to a grounded state of mind that enables your body to start healing itself , on the inside and out.
Gua Sha is an ancient Chinese wellness technique that improves circulation, healing, inflammation, chronic pain, and has an astounding mental benefit along with its physical benefits.
Here's everything you need to know about Gua Sha, and how you can find a registered Gua Sha practitioner in Newmarket, Ontario.
What is Gua Sha?
Gua Sha refers to both the Bian Stone tool used, along with the technique practitioners use. The flat tool is made of semi-precious stone and is used to massage areas of your body that are holding stagnant energy, including:
The face
The back
The arms
The legs
The buttocks
Some of the most popular semi-precious stones used to create Gua Sha tools include:
Rose quartz
Black obsidian
Jade
Amethyst
In traditional Chinese medicine, your chi (or 'energy') needs to flow throughout your body in order for you to feel your best. Injury, stress, and illness can all create blockages in your chi. Gua Sha is a powerful massage therapy where practitioners use the flat tool to gently scrape the skin in a way that promotes circulation, healing, mental and emotional wellness.
Here are the Top 3 Benefits of Gua Sha + Massage Therapy:
1. Revitalize Your Skin
Many people mistakenly believe that Gua Sha shouldn't be used on sensitive skin with active acne - but research shows that Gua Sha is perfectly safe, even beneficial, for acne-prone skin and those with rosacea.
The Gua Sha tool can help reduce acne flare-ups, calm red skin, remove congestion, and improve circulation. Along with its benefits for acne, it also reduces puffiness, smooths wrinkles and fine lines, brightens the completion, and reduces the appearance of scars.
2. Relieve Pain
Many of us live with chronic pain which can come in the form of muscle tension, limited movement, the natural aging process, etc. The deep pressure used in Gua Sha gets into areas where energy is stagnating, releasing muscular tension, reliving inflammation, and improving joint pain.
Some of the types of pain Gua Sha can heal include:
Migraines
Temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ)
Back pain
Neck pain
Tendon strain
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Postnatal pain (including scar healing, mastitis, and stretch marks)
3. Ground Yourself
Grounding yourself is a self-care practice that helps you pull away from negative emotions and rebalance your mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing. Grounding techniques include meditation, mindfulness, exercise, and Gua Sha.
Along with its physical benefits, the slow, gentle pace of Gua Sha is highly relaxing and enables you to tune into your self-awareness. Gua Sha activates the parasympathic nervous system, which slows breathing, promotes digestion, and lowers blood pressure.
How to Find a Gua Sha Practitioner in Newmarket, Ontario
At Thrive Urban Wellness, our registered Gua Sha massage therapy practitioners use a Mother Qi Bian Stone that contains over thirty trace elements that improve the signs of aging, release tension, and ease pain.
By expertly sweeping the stone over the face and body, you can look forward to a full-body acupressure massage that works to clear energy blockages and re-balance your mental and physical wellness.
Contact us to speak to a practitioner or schedule an appointment with a Gua Sha massage therapy practitioner.