Gua Sha Treatment with Jade Tools
Gua sha comes from the Chinese
words "cao gio" which literally means "catch the wind".
Excessive wind causes illness including colds, flu, fever, digestive disorders,
pain, urinary and gynecological disorders, headaches and fibromyalgia.
. Gua sha treatment is Chinese medicine, but gua sha has been considered
a home treatment, or folk medicine,
and gua sha is usually not practiced by Chinese doctors. It is really
a very simple procedure to learn, and to practice.
The commercialism of gua sha
treatment has led to other uses of gua
sha, and there are books available that describe gua sha treatment for
almost every ailment. Gua sha breast health treatments, and gua sha facials
are becoming popular, although these kinds of treatments are not what
gua sha was intended for. These specialized gua sha treatments should
be practiced only by qualified practitioners.
Gua sha used as it was intended
is simple and effective for treating excessive wind illness. The scraping
creates a red mark, a "portal for
the wind to get out", and relieves stagnation and removes heat.
Most gua sha tools are made
from buffalo horn, however Calm Spirit doesn't want to use any body part
of an animal that would cause it to suffer. Also, jade and body qi are
very compatible, so pure and natural jade is really the best tool to use
for gua sha. Calm Spirit found a jade carver to make the styles of tools
that were available in buffalo horn, and additional tools as suggested
by Dr Charles Li who lives and practices
in Beijing. We went through years of having
jade gua sha tools manufactured, and considerable expense, and now
they are available for anyone who wants to buy, or sell, them.
To give a gua sha treatment, you also need to use gua sha oil, which is specially formulated as a warming oil. Gua sha oil also has an effective consistency that works well with the tools and lasts throughout the treatment.
Start gua sha
treatment on the back, neck and shoulders. Inspect the
area to be scraped for wounds, moles, or any bumps because you must avoid
these with the gua sha tool. Then rub the gua sha oil on the area to be
scraped. Hold the jade gua sha tool at a thirty degree angle to the
skin with the smooth edge touching the skin. Rub the skin in downward
strokes using moderate pressure. Stroke one area at a time until you
see a red mark. When the area does not get darker as you scrape, then
you can move to the next area.
The red mark,
petechiae, should fade in 2-3 days. If it is very slow to
fade, it indicates poor blood circulation and there may be a more
serious deficiency that will require treatments of acupuncture, herbs,
cupping, etc.
Since gua sha treatment removes stuck qi, the person receiving the treatment should feel immediate changes in their condition.
The best book about gua sha is by Arya Nielsen, simply titled "Gua Sha" and some of the above information from the book is shared on this website.
After gua sha treatment, you can smooth the body qi with a jade roller, using the larger end for major body areas, and the small end for smaller body areas.
View Ying Yu Jade gua sha tool collection
The jade gua sha tools are
different shapes, with curved and more pointed areas for working the acupuncture
points. Jade pointers and
jade needles also very effective for working on stubborn stuck qi at the
acupoints.
