What is Gua Sha?
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) therapies include: Bian (stone scraping), acupuncture, moxibustion, herbal medicine, and Tui Na (Chinese therapeutic massage). “Bian therapy” refers to the use of Bian stones for Gua Sha, which is considered the foremost technique among the six major methods of TCM, often referred to as the “mother of acupuncture and the ancestor of Gua Sha point therapy.”
The term “Gua” utilizes a water buffalo horn scraping board for clearing heat and detoxifying, or a Bian stone scraping board for tonifying Qi and calming the spirit, combined with a medium that invigorates blood circulation and resolves stasis. This method follows the meridian pathways of TCM, selecting points and scraping the skin surface to expel metabolic waste and pathological products from the microcirculation, thus serving as an external treatment in TCM.
Why perform Gua Sha? “To become wealthy, one must first repair the roads.” Similarly, for a person to achieve health and longevity, they must first clear the pathways of the body. If a city’s roads are blocked, what happens? The garbage cannot be transported out, leading to an accumulation of waste that emits foul odors and pollutes the environment; meanwhile, essential supplies cannot enter the city, leaving citizens without food. Thus, the city becomes semi-paralyzed, entering a state of sub-health. If this were a human body, what would happen if the pathways were blocked? Likewise, if the body’s waste cannot be fully expelled, it accumulates, eventually forming various lumps and nodules, or even tumors. The consequences of blocked pathways also prevent the necessary nutrients from entering the body, leading to fatigue and a sense of malaise. If at this point, one merely supplements nutrition without first clearing the pathways, the person may experience “excess heat,” resulting in a situation where the body cannot benefit from supplementation.
What tools are most suitable for Gua Sha?
Gua Sha originates from the ancient Bian technique. Tools can include coins, porcelain soup spoons, jade, and buffalo horn, among others.
Bian, acupuncture, moxibustion, herbal medicine, and Tui Na are several ancient medical practices described in the Huangdi Neijing (Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine).
Bian therapy is paramount, with Bian stones being the earliest tools used for Gua Sha. The best Bian stones are those made from Sìbīn Bian stones, which are crafted from Sìbīn floating stones.
Regardless of the material, many people have a preconceived notion that Gua Sha is painful before they have experienced the Aiyisheng Bian stone Gua Sha tool. From a scientific perspective, studies have shown that the ultrasonic pulses generated with each scrape, along with the emitted frequencies, indicate that Bian stone Gua Sha boards are the most commendable.
Heated Bian stones accelerate the circulation of Qi and blood on the body’s surface, making it more comfortable for the recipient to relax, thus enhancing metabolism and facilitating quicker and less painful Gua Sha.
Designed Gua Sha tools with vibration functions can alleviate fatigue and accelerate microcirculation.
Gua Sha is one of the simplest and easiest methods of health maintenance, and a wireless Bian stone Gua Sha tool is a must-have for every household.
Why is Gua Sha particularly suitable for modern health maintenance?
“Stagnation leads to deficiency” is a characteristic of modern people’s constitution. Modern individuals often consume excessive food, placing a heavy burden on the digestive system, compounded by irregular lifestyles, high work stress, excessive mental exertion, lack of physical activity, and insufficient sleep. This can easily lead to fatigue, endocrine disorders, and metabolic imbalances, causing an accumulation of waste in the body that obstructs the flow of Qi and blood, resulting in microcirculation issues. Over time, this not only affects health but can also trigger diseases. Gua Sha can quickly detoxify, improve microcirculation, invigorate blood flow, enhance immune regulation, and cleanse the internal environment, making it an excellent health maintenance technique suited to the characteristics of modern individuals.
What are the effects of Gua Sha?
1. Rapid detoxification and prevention of various chronic diseases
Accumulation of toxins in the body is a significant trigger for sub-health and disease. → Scraping out Sha can quickly detoxify.
2. Rapid cleansing of the internal environment, anti-aging, and beauty benefits
An unclean internal environment leads to premature aging → Gua Sha cleanses both internally and externally, purifying the internal environment.
3. Enhancing immune regulation and improving disease resistance
Unhealthy lifestyles lead to weakened immune function in modern individuals → The process of Sha dissipating can enhance immune function.
4. Rapidly invigorating blood flow and alleviating bodily pain
Qi stagnation and blood stasis are the primary causes of painful diseases → Gua Sha serves to “unblock” and “drain”.
How is Sha formed?
The waste produced by the body is normally expelled through the circulation of Qi and blood. However, if the body is fatigued, exposed to cold, or aging, the circulation of Qi and blood slows down. When this happens, waste can seep into the skin and muscle layers, forming Sha. For example, it is like rivers in nature; during summer, rivers flow quickly, but in winter, the flow slows down, leading to sedimentation. Over time, this results in mud that blocks the riverbed!
What precautions should be taken before and after Gua Sha?
1. Before Gua Sha, please disinfect the Gua Sha tools (using 75° alcohol).
2. During Gua Sha, ensure the room is warm, ideally around 25 degrees Celsius.
3. After Gua Sha, as the pores open and evil Qi is expelled, some body fluids will be consumed. Therefore, it is best to have the patient drink a cup of warm water (preferably lightly sweetened) and rest for 15-20 minutes.
4. Avoid cold showers within one day after Gua Sha; after 2-3 hours, a hot shower is acceptable. After Gua Sha on the scalp, it is best not to wash the hair on the same day.
5. After sweating from Gua Sha, avoid cold and wind to prevent external pathogens from entering the body through the open pores.
6. After Gua Sha, simply wipe the area with a tissue or towel to remove the Gua Sha oil.
7. Some chronic conditions should be treated with conventional medication alongside Gua Sha therapy, while acute conditions should be promptly addressed in a hospital, with Gua Sha as an adjunct therapy.
Why should Gua Sha be performed regularly?
Gua Sha involves applying the scraping board to the skin, using pressure to scrape out the metabolic waste located between the skin and muscles, which is then expelled from the body along with the circulation of Qi and blood. In simpler terms, it helps the body clean itself, facilitating the smooth flow of Qi and blood, much like repairing a river. When sediment accumulates, it is essential to clear the riverbed to allow the water to flow normally. Similarly, our bodies need regular cleaning to prevent significant blockages from forming.
Are there any contraindications for Gua Sha?
1. Gua Sha is prohibited on the abdomen and lower back of pregnant women, as well as on women’s nipples. (Pregnant women are advised against Gua Sha therapy; if necessary, please seek a professional.)
2. Gua Sha is prohibited for diseases with a tendency to bleed, such as leukemia and thrombocytopenia.
3. Gua Sha is prohibited for individuals with severe skin allergies or skin diseases, such as ulcers or sores.
4. Gua Sha is prohibited on fresh or unhealed wounds, areas of trauma or fractures, and on infants with open fontanelles.
5. Gua Sha is prohibited on the five sense organs (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, mouth, lips), and on the front and back yin areas.
6. Gua Sha is prohibited for individuals who are intoxicated, overly hungry, overly full, excessively thirsty, or extremely fatigued, to avoid fainting during the procedure.
7. Gua Sha is prohibited for individuals with severe heart disease leading to heart failure, kidney disease with renal failure, ascites due to liver cirrhosis, severe diabetes, or significant systemic edema.
8. Gua Sha should be used cautiously for the elderly, those with chronic illnesses, or those who are extremely weak or emaciated (it is advisable to first use moxibustion to tonify Qi, followed by gentle Gua Sha).
9. Gua Sha techniques should be avoided on areas with prominent blood vessels; gentle pressure techniques can be used to avoid blood vessels. For patients with varicose veins or edema in the lower limbs, scraping should be done from the bottom up (using the thick edge) with light pressure.
Is longer scraping better?
Longer scraping is not necessarily better. Gua Sha is a process of expelling evil from the surface. The Sha appearance is not produced by the scraper but is pushed to the surface by the recipient’s Qi and blood, expelling deep-seated waste, phlegm, and blockages. If no Sha appears after scraping the same area for over ten times, do not force the scraping.
What do different colors of Sha signify?
Red Sha, in dot form: often indicates an exterior syndrome, short duration, mild condition, and quick recovery.
Purple Sha, light purple: indicates deficiency leading to stasis, with Qi and blood deficiency.
Deep purple: indicates excess leading to stasis, with Qi and blood stasis. Deep black Sha lumps: often indicate an interior syndrome, long duration, severe condition, and slow recovery.
White Sha: only white protrusions without visible Sha color, often seen in patients with Qi and blood deficiency.
Blue Sha: no visible Sha during scraping, but blue marks appear the next day in the scraped area, often seen in patients with liver blood deficiency.
How to simply analyze Sha appearance?
Cold syndrome: slow and sparse Sha appearance, or abundant Sha with deep dark color. Skin appears dull and lacks luster.
Heat syndrome: rapid Sha appearance, abundant Sha with bright red or purple-red color, skin feels warm.
Deficiency syndrome: Sha is difficult to produce, or appears slowly and sparsely, with small nodules or a sense of emptiness, softness, and soreness in the area.
Excess syndrome: Sha appears rapidly. The amount of Sha correlates with the degree of blood stasis. Often accompanied by stabbing pain, distension, large and hard nodules, and stiffness in the local soft tissue. Acute conditions caused by heat evil: bright Sha color.
Chronic conditions caused by cold evil: dull Sha color.
Excessive turbid Qi: foul-smelling discharge.
Qi stagnation syndrome: a feeling of distension or fullness under the scraping board.
Qi deficiency syndrome: pores rapidly open after scraping, with soreness or a sense of emptiness under the board.
Qi and blood deficiency: sparse Sha appearance.
Blood stasis syndrome: sharp pain during scraping.
Long-standing blood stasis: nodules appear during scraping.
(For the same condition) Excess heat syndrome, blood stasis syndrome: abundant Sha, bright color.
(For the same condition) Yin deficiency syndrome: sparse Sha, with full and bright Sha particles.
(For the same condition) Phlegm and stasis syndrome: abundant Sha, with rapid thickening of the skin.
(For the same condition) Excess dampness or phlegm-damp syndrome: sparse Sha, with rapid thickening of the skin.
How to use Sha to analyze the severity of the condition?
Mild condition, short duration: Sha appears shallow, bright red, with scattered Sha particles, shallow nodules, small, soft, and light pain in sensitive areas.
Severe condition, long duration: Sha appears deeper, dark red or blue-purple. Sha particles are dense, nodules are deep, large, hard, and sensitive areas are painful.
How to explain the principles of Gua Sha to clients using simple stories?
[Client asks] 1. This is pseudoscience; this is just capillary rupture. What does Gua Sha have to do with my shoulder and neck?
2. Why does Sha appear in some areas and not in others? Why do I have so much Sha? Why do I have so little Sha?
3. Why does my husband have little Sha? Why can’t I scrape out much Sha? When will I get better?
4. Can I just buy a Gua Sha tool to use at home? I don’t want to buy a moxibustion device; it seems too complicated.
[Knowledge point] Principles of Gua Sha
[Handling method] Use language that clients can understand to clarify misconceptions.
Gua Sha Clarification Language 1: Acknowledge Scientific Explanations
Dear, you are correct; scientifically speaking, Gua Sha involves the rupture of capillaries, which helps metabolize some waste from the skin’s surface. Let’s analyze this from a physics perspective: when our metabolism is impaired due to lack of exercise or exposure to cold, our blood vessels can become clogged with waste. As the capillaries narrow, it becomes increasingly difficult to expel waste and receive nutrients, leading to poor microcirculation and stiffness.
Gua Sha helps to rapidly expel stagnant blood from clogged capillaries, using external force to rupture the capillaries and facilitate waste metabolism. The reason some areas produce Sha while others do not is that the blood vessels in those problematic areas are harder due to waste accumulation, similar to two water pipes—one hard and one soft. The hard one is more likely to burst, while the soft one is less likely to break due to its elasticity.
Scientifically, much of the waste in our bodies must be metabolized with water, through urination, sweating, menstruation, and Gua Sha, which are all similar processes.
Gua Sha Clarification Language 2: Explain the Weeding and Tilling Principle
Dear, if I explain this using TCM or Western medicine, you might get confused. Let me give you an example to illustrate why we perform Gua Sha.
Our bodies are like land; exposed to wind and rain, they become thick and hard. When it comes time to plant crops, they won’t grow well. What do farmers do? They first weed and till the soil. Only by preparing the land can they effectively plant and fertilize. Our bodies are the same; we must first clear the microcirculation to allow Qi and blood pathways to flow smoothly for better growth. Wouldn’t you agree? Just like when we cook, if the pot is dirty, we must clean it to make the food taste better.
Gua Sha Clarification Language 3: The Consequences of Poor Microcirculation
Circulation refers to the back-and-forth flow, while microcirculation is the blood flow between micro-arteries, capillary networks, and micro-veins.
Microcirculation exists throughout the body: in the head, eyes, breasts, heart, liver, pancreas, kidneys, trunk, limbs, and reproductive system…
In TCM, there is a saying: “If there is no flow, there is pain.” Symptoms such as soreness, numbness, distension, pain, itching, nodules, hyperplasia, cysts, and tumors can arise. Poor circulation in the head can lead to dizziness, headaches, memory decline, dementia, strokes, and cerebral hemorrhages; in the eyes, it can cause dryness, itchiness, blurred vision, cataracts, and retinal bleeding; in the face, it can lead to rashes, spots, and acne; in the respiratory system, it can cause rhinitis, pharyngitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, asthma, and lung cancer; in the breasts, it can lead to lobular hyperplasia, breast cysts, and breast cancer; in the liver, it can cause liver fibrosis, ascites, and liver cancer; in the pancreas, it can lead to acute pancreatitis and diabetes; in the kidneys, it can cause pyelonephritis, glomerulonephritis, kidney cysts, prostate enlargement, and renal failure; in the uterus, it can lead to blocked fallopian tubes, infertility, uterine polyps, cysts, tumors, and uterine cancer; in the extremities, it can cause swelling, numbness, distension, pain, and chilblains.