Photo credit: Brianne Wills
Gua Sha is an ancient Chinese healing method that can be done all over the body (including the scalp) to promote lymphatic drainage, promote healing, reduce inflammation and dark under eye circles. There is a lot to be learned about the technique, the history, uses, etc., that I won't get into here; however, Google will offer you a wealth of information.
I do facial gua sha, where I use a jade tool on my face to help with circulation and sculpt my face muscles. Additionally, since facial gua sha is done with an light oil on the face to help the tool glide, I find that it is helpful in working in my argan oil which of course, is very beneficial for the skin. I started gua sha because I noticed swollen lymph nodes in front of my ears. The doctors couldn't figure it out, even after ultrasounds. Of course they gave me medications, which were of minimal help. I think it is always a good idea to learn what I can about my body. And while I don't pretend to be a medical doctor, I strongly believe that sometimes there are alternative methods and healing outside of pharmaceuticals and modern medicine. Even more powerfully, both can be used to maintain health.
I learned that the lymph system is the only system that doesn't regulate itself, meaning while the heart has arteries and veins to pump blood, the lymph system doesn't have that. So sometimes it could use some help with circulation. This article here explains a bit more, they explain that the lymph system is "...like a garbage disposal. The interstitial fluids that collect beneath your skin need to be flushed into the body’s natural detoxification system. Gua sha works to move those collected fluids into the lymphatic system where they get cleaned and mixed back into your bloodstream."
I started gua sha to help with lymphatic drainage. I was skeptical but figured it couldn't hurt. All I needed was some tools and a bit of time. Considering I'd spent money and time on worse things (and people!) why not give it a try? Long story short, it works. It works so well. It works nearly immediately and I'm impressed.
Through gua sha, I discovered something else. I'm a bit harsh with myself, a bit impatient, a bit too rough at times. The technique requires delicate, slow, light facial strokes. While doing gua sha on my face, I often catch myself pressing too hard, moving too quickly, and/or watching the time. An "express" gua sha session takes me about 8 minutes, if I'm feeling in the mood to indulge a bit I can spend nearly 20 minutes. Eight minutes or twenty, isn't a lot of time to ask of myself to set aside for my own wellness. So, when I catch myself rushing, I bring myself back to center by reminding myself that there is no race and there is no finish line. Only me taking care of me. Likewise, when I realize I'm pressing too hard it usually because of a thought process about something that gives me worry or stress. And usually, it is a thing not worthy of the stress.
Gua sha helps me to be intentional with the act of being gentle to myself. As a Black woman, the world is often not very gentle to me at all. People can be very harsh, especially for dark skinned Black woman we often get mishandled and mistreated. We often aren't given softness because white supremacy has people brainwashed that the darker you are as a Black woman the less you are deserving of care.
Even in a world that, due to its own depravity and sickness believes I don't deserve care, gentleness or kindness I'd be dishonoring god if I didn't give it to myself. This very old Chinese practice has allowed me to see what was unconscious to me. It allowed me to see how I'd been internalizing the way the world treats me at times and acted out those patterns on myself.
On top of my initial reasons for trying gua sha, gua sha is now also an intentional act of service to myself, a mediation, a re-centering, a reclaiming of myself for myself.
Have you tried gua sha? If so, how has it helped? If not, would you be willing to give it a try? Or, what do you do to ensure you are being gentle to yourself?