What you need to know about Gua sha

Gua sha is a technique in which a smooth-edged tool, such as Chinese soup spoon or pieces of honed jade, is pressed and stroked on a lubricated area of the body until a mark appears. Press-stroking is to be performed sequentially - line by line and in one direction - until the entire area is completed.

When done correctly, Gua Sha should not be painful. The mark is a result of bruising and broken capillary blood vessels (sha). Raising sha removes abnormal qi and blood stagnation, and reduces inflammation; therefore, it provides immune protection, and improves the circulation of the body. According to Western medicine, it functions on: the nervous system to enhance human defense mechanism, and the circulative system which speeds up the circulation of blood and lymph to enhance metabolism.

Referral link: ctcmpao.on.ca