Gua Sha Therapy

Gua Sha is an important technique in the practice of Traditional Chinese Medicine. "Gua" means "to scrape", and "Sha" means "sand". Hence, this name implies scraping the skin with the rounded edge of an instrument to encourage the formation of petechiae - red spots on the surface of the skin that resemble sand.

The scraping is done by rubbing the skin vigorously with a smooth blunt object until it reddens. This pulls any underlying congestion out to the surface of the skin, allowing the natural flow of energy to restore itself. It is generally done on the site of congestion such as the neck, shoulders, along the spine, chest, behind the elbows and knees, and between the eyebrows. Fevers, painful joints, indigestion, heat stroke, headaches, stiff neck, and shoulders all respond well to this technique. The skin will get very red where there is congestion, even resulting in small red skin marks. The redness may show for several days, but will go away.

  Common Gua Sha Tools

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