The Benefits of Gua Sha Facial Massage

Have you heard of Gua Sha? Or perhaps you’ve seen the beautiful jade and stone facial tools filling up your Instagram feed and wondered how it worked. As someone who is prone to puffiness, I’ve long been on the lookout for products or techniques that help to reduce it, but at first glance even I was a little intimidated by the bizarre tools. Then Margot at The Choosy Chick convinced me to take a closer look and I haven’t looked back. The facial massage technique is simple and easy to do (it even comes with a little cheat sheet!) and it does such a great job at reducing my puffiness and so much more. I also discovered the gorgeous jade face mask that I use any chance I get now.

What Is Gua Sha Facial Massage?

Gua Sha comes from traditional Chinese medicine and it began as a scraping massage for the body, where a stone tool is used in the massage to help drain lymph nodes, stimulate circulation, and reduce inflammation. Facial Gua Sha is based on the traditional treatment, but scaled down to a lighter, more gentle technique.

Some of the benefits of Gua Sha:

• Increase circulation
• Stimulates cell renewal
• Reduces puffiness
• Smooths fine lines
• Increases collagen
• Improves firmness
• Relaxing
• Has been shown to help with headaches and migraines

The Gua Sha tool is shaped to gently glide across your skin with the help of a face oil. I’ve been using GingerChi’s Gua Sha tool with their Regenerating Face Serum, but any face you have should work. It’s really helped with puffiness, so I’ve seen the biggest results in that area, but I’ve also noticed how it seems to give my face a lift and make everything look tighter. While I’m excited about all of that, I have kept using it mainly because of how relaxing it is. I like to use it in the morning before getting ready. It really preps my skin and makes me look more awake!

The Jade Mask

THIS. Where has this been my whole life? It’s a lifesaver for headaches, fatigue, or even just bad moods. Plus, how gorgeous is it? I put the jade face mask on and relax for a few minutes and the cool jade stones soothe my forehead, temple, and eyes. It takes away any tension or pain, and because of the cooler nature of the stones, it also helps with puffiness in the eye area. I think because it has some weight and you really feel it against your skin, also attributes to its soothing power. In Chinese medicine, they say jade is good for detoxifying and healing the body. Whether you subscribe to that or not, I can attest to this being an excellent remedy to stress headaches and a quick way to smooth fine wrinkles. It’s also a nice way to focus while you meditate or just take a few minutes of peace and quiet.

Have you ever used jade tools or experience Gua Sha? Once you start, it’s hard to go back! They say with long term use it can even help tighten skin and define cheekbones, your jawline and give your face a more lifted look. All of the items I mentioned are available at The Choosy Chick!

*Affiliate links used. All thoughts and opinions are always my own.