Contents 1. What Is Facial Gua Sha? ................................................................................................................................ 4 What are the benefits of facial gua sha? ......................................................................................................... 4 Why is the gua sha tool better than my fingers?.............................................................................................. 4 Is facial gua sha painful? ................................................................................................................................. 5 Does facial gua sha cause bruises? ................................................................................................................ 5 Why this tool? .................................................................................................................................................. 5 Is facial gua sha for me and my skin type? ..................................................................................................... 5 2. Know the Basics .............................................................................................................................................. 6 Acupressure Points ......................................................................................................................................... 6 Reflexology Zones........................................................................................................................................... 9 Lymphatic System ......................................................................................................................................... 11 3. Telltale Signs on Our Face ............................................................................................................................ 12 4. How to Use This Book ................................................................................................................................... 16 5. About The Tool .............................................................................................................................................. 17 6. The Strokes ................................................................................................................................................... 18 7. The 7-Step Routine ....................................................................................................................................... 20 8. Tackling Stubborn Aging Signs ..................................................................................................................... 23 “11” Wrinkles/ Frown Lines ............................................................................................................................ 23 Crow‟s Feet Wrinkles .................................................................................................................................... 24 Forehead Wrinkles ........................................................................................................................................ 25 Wrinkles at Corner of Mouth and Cheek ....................................................................................................... 26 Freckles ......................................................................................................................................................... 27 Sagging Skin ................................................................................................................................................. 28 Puffy Face ..................................................................................................................................................... 29 Dark Circles ................................................................................................................................................... 30 Eye Bags ....................................................................................................................................................... 31 Melasma/ Chloasma on Forehead ................................................................................................................ 32 Melasma/ Chloasma at Outer Bottom Corner of Eye .................................................................................... 33 Melasma/ Chloasma on Cheek ..................................................................................................................... 34 Shop Acupressure Products by Dragon Acupuncture ........................................................................................... 35 Sources ................................................................................................................................................................. 36 About Us ....................................................................................................................................................... 36 The information on acupressure points for beauty and facial scraping massage techniques contained in this book are best of our knowledge as well as research. The information is not intended as a substitute for the medical advice of physicians. Speak with your trusted professionals prior to practicing methods in this book. Please keep in mind that reactions and results may vary with each individual. Copyright © 2018 Easytech Trading Pte. Ltd. Except as provided by the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher. 3 | Facial Gua Sha 1. What Is Facial Gua Sha? Gua Sha, a natural alternative therapy invented by the Ancient Chinese, involves scraping your skin with a massage tool to stimulate microcirculation of the soft tissue, which increases blood circulation. Through these strokes, it is believed that the stagnant energy (“qi”), responsible for the inflammation causing chronic pain and sickness, can be stimulated to flow smoothly again. Facial gua sha is a much gentler version of the gua sha applied on the body. It is not expected to cause bruises or skin rashes on the face and can be practiced frequently to improve various skin conditions. By applying simple varying strokes to selected reflexology zones and acupressure points, we can address a wide range of skin problems effectively. Instant results in erasing fine lines, puffiness and achieving better complexion are often observed. Over time, enduring aging signs such as wrinkles and sagging skin can be reduced. And all you need is a special facial gua sha tool that is gentle on your skin and a few minutes of your time each day. The massage techniques in this book incorporate theories of gua sha (acupressure), facelift massage and lymphatic drainage. So three things happen when the skin is scraped: 1. Surface of skin and particular acupoints are stimulated to increase blood circulation and flow of “qi” (results in better complexion and reduces various skin problems) 2. Tense facial muscles are relaxed as pressure is applied (reduces depth of wrinkle lines), and 3. Stagnant lymph is activated to clear out toxins (reduces puffiness) What are the benefits of facial gua sha? With practice and patience, facial gua sha can achieve the following Firms up your sagging facial muscles Smoothens the skin and reduces the appearance of wrinkles on your face Improves dark circles and bags under the eyes (the kind you get from advancing age) Lightens age spots and other skin discolorations Your complexion gets rosier and more radiant Helps clear up acne, rosacea, and other skin diseases on your face This is inexpensive. You can do it at the comfort of your home. Treat yourself to home facial spa anytime you want. Why is the gua sha tool better than my fingers? The tool is better than your fingers in various ways. Firstly, your fingernails won‟t get in the way or accidentally scratch your face. And you won‟t tire your finger joints when you apply pressures on your finger tips for some time. Moreover, the tool is smooth all around, cool to touch and can reach every corners of your face. You will be amazed at how easy it is to adjust pressure simply by positioning and tilting the tool in different ways. 4 | Copyright 2018. All rights reserved. TCMTips.com Facial Gua Sha Is facial gua sha painful? No, it is not supposed to be painful at all. As you perform gua sha on yourself, you are able to apply varying pressure that is at balance between “pain” and “comfort”. As a rule of thumb, we typically apply more pressure to areas with muscles, for example cheeks, as compared to those with little muscles such as neck and eye regions. As you scrape, you may come across spots where you feel dull aches. These spots are often regions of congestion of “qi” according to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) or areas with lymphatic blockage. At these spots, we continue to scrape but with lighter pressures and slower strokes. With several more sessions, you can feel that the pain goes away and with that the particular facial problem related to this congestion gets mitigated. Does facial gua sha cause bruises? Unlike body gua sha, we hold the gua sha tool at a much smaller angle to the face (for more details, refer to Chapter 6) and apply much less force as the face is more sensitive than other parts of the body. As such, bruises or “sha” (rashes due to breaking of capillaries) are not expected. If redness persists