When you look up gua sha on the Internet, you see quite a lot of good things about it. Better skin complexion, improved blood circulation – the mother lode of health in just the stroking of a stone. However, nothing is ever perfect, and every good thing has at least one side effect – and when you look at the “after” pictures of this Chinese scraping technique, it might make you curious.
So, does gua sha have any side effects that you need to be aware of? Are there any people that should not try gua sha on their own? Well, this guide should inform you of the things that you need to take precaution for.
If the Gua Sha technique is performed correctly, then there should not be any side effects. Grated, you will get the bruising, which is the result of your capillary blood vessels bursting under the pressure of the stone. This is the goal of guasha, as the toxins will be able to flow out of your blood and be released through the skin.
Aside from the redness caused by the tiny blood vessels bursting, the other side effects may also include short-term tenderness, swelling, and occasional pain. The pain, however, should disappear in around a day – the effects going down faster if you take some medicine to reduce inflammation. The bruises should last anything from two days to one week, but the technique itself is a natural remedy to release toxins.
Gua sha by itself is not dangerous. However, if the massage is not performed correctly or if excessive pressure is applied, it might hurt the membrane covering the muscles. This level of muscle tissue trauma is very rare, but if it does happen, it might cause your muscles to overtax your kidneys with an excessive relief of protein. Again, this condition is very rare.
If guasha is done correctly, the skin should not be broken. If it does, it heightens to the risk of infection – something that can be made even worse if the person giving the massage did not use sterilized tools. In the end, if gua sha is done properly, it should be completely safe and not at all painful.
Gua sha rubbing is a great healing technique for a variety of people. Still, it might not be a good choice for certain people. You should not attempt gua sha if you:
In most cases, there should be no issues with you getting a gua sha massage. However, you might want to discuss things with your doctor – particularly if you have any pre-existing conditions.
You’ve seen it everywhere on the Internet: gua sha scraping has taken over the world of skincare. We have jade rollers that boast clear skin, and we have the guasha board that is said to encourage lymph drainage and relieve tension. However, aside from the marvelous effects we keep reading about, there is one more thing that we can’t help but notice: what in the world are those red spots left behind?
Upon looking at the pictures of people after a gua sha session, many would be reluctant to use the tool – that’s because they don’t want to end up with a nasty bruise all over their skin. But are those bruises actually bad? Do they cause pain? How long does it take until they go away? This article should shed some light on that.
During a Gua Sha massage, you are practically using a relatively sharp guasha tool to make even strokes on your skin. This action can boost blood circulation and relieve the tension in your skin – one that may leave you with some light bruising. This may often appear as red or purple spots, often called sha or petechiae.
To put it as simply as possible, guasha causes the small blood vessels directly beneath the surface of the skin (i.e. the capillaries) to burst – creating that distinctive bruised look. As the strokes break up fascia, the toxins of your body can flow out much quicker – allowing you to heal from the inside out.
The duration of the bruising depends on the person getting the massage, in all honesty. It might take as little as two days to clear out, or it may go on as much as an entire week. In most cases, it’s up to your blood circulation and as sensitive as you are to bruising. People with iron deficiencies are also believed to have longer-lasting bruises.
At the same time, the better your blood circulation, the less those bruises should last. Gua sha is a technique with the ability to improve your blood circulation – so, the more you scrape your skin with such a tool, the faster your skin tissue should be able to heal.
When it comes to gua sha, there is one thing that you should remember: if it hurts, then the person giving you the massage is not doing something right. Rather than feeling pain, you should feel rejuvenated. Even though you are left with some bruises, the effect should be completely harmless.
In the end, a gua sha session may leave you with a bit of bruising, depending on the intensity of the massage. However, those bruises are a good thing. It means that a pathway for the toxins to get out of your body has been made. Now, you can reap the benefits.
