Gua Sha: the DIY Facelift

By Dora Vandekamp

If you’re looking for the most effective beauty treatment on the market, look no further than the Gua sha, an ancient East Asian anti-aging tool. For over 2,000 years, the Gua sha has been used to erase fine lines and banish wrinkles. Famous for its potential to create a natural facelift, the Gua sha is once again making waves in the beauty world.

The Gua sha is revered in countries such as China, Taiwan, and Indonesia for its powerful effects in treating a variety of ailments and illnesses. The method of Gua sha for the body is also called “coining,” “spooning,” and “scraping,” and entails using a hard object with a smooth edge to “scrape away” aging, stagnation, and toxins. This process of scraping the object across the skin creates therapeutic bruising, and is called “raising sha.”

The facial Gua sha is made of jade or rose quartz crystal and is used more gently as a massage tool to make skin appear smoother and brighter. The Gua sha works with the meridians, which are the pathways in the body along which energy flows. There are twelve meridians associated with specific organs. Each meridian has a corresponding organ, such as the liver, heart and lungs. By opening the meridians on the face, the Gua sha stimulates the Qi or prana energy, bringing warmth to the surface of the skin, and releasing toxins. As the face is gently scraped in an upwards motion, the facial lymph nodes are drained, making the skin appear tighter and lifted.

According to Gianna De La Torre L.Ac. of Acu-Intuit Los Angeles, Gua sha "brings blood flow to the surface of the face, and releases muscles, stimulates blood flow, and stimulates collagen production, creating skin that looks more plump and toned.” Studies show that practicing Gua sha daily improves microcirculation up to 400 percent, and combats pigmentation, dark circles, and puffiness.

The best news about Gua sha? You can practice it yourself!

How to Gua sha

Begin by rubbing a few drops of jojoba oil or rosehip oil onto the face so that the skin’s surface is lightly lubricated. Place the flat side of the Gua sha at the base of your neck and move in upward strokes towards the face. Use light pressure through out. Continue this pattern along the neck, and along the face in an upward motion and outward towards the ears and sides of the face. Perform this ritual daily as part of your skincare routine for optimal results. Cleanse your Gua sha after each use with warm water and mild soap.

Beautiful skin is always in. By incorporating this powerful ancient beauty ritual into your daily routine, you can attain that natural facelift in no time.