Gua sha is a natural, alternative therapy that involves scraping your skin with a massage tool to improve your circulation. This ancient Chinese healing technique may offer a unique approach to better health, addressing issues like chronic pain.
In gua sha, a technician scrapes your skin with short or long strokes to stimulate microcirculation of the soft tissue, which increases blood flow. They make these strokes with a smooth-edged instrument known as a gua massage tool. The technician applies massage oil to your skin, and then uses the tool to repeatedly scrape your skin in a downward motion.
Gua sha is intended to address stagnant energy, called chi, in the body that practitioners believe may be responsible for inflammation. Inflammation is the underlying cause of several conditions associated with chronic pain. Rubbing the skin’s surface is thought to help break up this energy, reduce inflammation, and promote healing.
Gua sha is generally performed on a person’s back, buttocks, neck, arms, and legs. A gentle version of it is even used on the face as a facial technique. Your technician may apply mild pressure, and gradually increase intensity to determine how much force you can handle.
Benefits of gua sha
Gua sha may reduce inflammation, so it’s often used to treat ailments that cause chronic pain, such as arthritis and fibromyalgia, as well as those that trigger muscle and joint pain.
Gua sha may also relieve symptoms of other conditions:
1. Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B is a viral infection that causes liver inflammation, liver damage, and liver scarring. Research suggests that gua sha may reduce chronic liver inflammation.
2. Migraine headaches
If your migraine headaches don’t respond to over-the-counter medications, gua sha may help.
3. Breast engorgement
Breast engorgement is a condition experienced by many breastfeeding women. This is when the breasts overfill with milk. It usually occurs in the first weeks of breastfeeding or if the mother is away from the infant for any reason. Breasts become swollen and painful, making it difficult for babies to latch. This is usually a temporary condition.
4. Neck pain
Gua sha technique may also prove effective for remedying chronic neck pain.
5. Tourette syndrome
Tourette syndrome involves involuntary movements such as facial tics, throat clearing, and vocal outbursts.
6. Perimenopausal syndrome
Perimenopause occurs as women move closer to menopause. Symptoms include:
- insomnia
- irregular periods
- anxiety
- fatigue
- hot flashes
Side effects and risks
Gua sha causes tiny blood vessels near the surface of the skin called capillaries to burst. This creates the distinctive red or purple bruises, known as sha.
The bruises usually take a few days or a week to heal and can be tender while healing. People can take an over-the-counter painkiller, such as ibuprofen, to help with pain and reduce swelling.
A person should protect the bruised area and take care not to bump it. Applying an ice pack can help to reduce inflammation and ease any pain.
Gua sha practitioners should not break the skin during the treatment, but there is a risk it could happen. Broken skin increases the possibility of infection, so a gua sha practitioner should always sterilize their tools between treatments.