What is Gua Sha?

Gua Sha is a fascial technique that is used to help break down fascial restriction, increase blood flow to areas of restriction. This treatment has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for 1000’s of years. The Term “GUA” means to scrape or rub and “SHA’ is reddish elevated patch of side. The purpose of Gua Sha is to help improve QI flow and blood circulation, balance Ying and Yang., Remove pathogenic reactors, discharge or drain stagnant toxins and refresh the mind. With Gua Sha you can have red like bruising on the areas worked and it is noted that you do not receive a gua sha treatment until the red marks are gone, which will take a few days after treatment.

Gua sha can be used in a therapeutic setting or a relaxation setting. In the therapeutic setting there is a heavy force of scraping with a resin tool on a trigger point or a restricted area. The first time a client is introduced to this treatment it is done for a short time to introduce to technique to the client, as clients get introduced to Gua Sha the whole 1 hour treatment can be dedicated to gua sha to different parts of the body.
Working on the fascial restriction will help the body decrease muscle tension and adhesions, one of my favourite places to use Gua Sha is on the feet to help with Plantar Fasciitis .

With Relaxation GUA SHA I normally add this to my Scalp and face massage treatment, this is a more gentler treatment to help decrease stress, decrease head ache, TMJ issues, decrease and infalmmation and puffiness of the face. This is done by slowly passing gua sha tools over the face, scalp and side of the neck.

If you are interested in trying Gua Sha do not hesitate to book an appointment today!

Kathleen White
Registered Massage Therapist