Along with the sens (energy meridians found in the body), a hill tribe woman’s secret to youth lies in gua sha.
Ping Zhang, DOM, L.Ac, a New York based Traditional Chinese Medicine says: “Gua sha was originally used for two conditions: the abrupt, immediate, sudden collapse of the body from heatstroke, and could be performed with whatever tool that is able to scrape – a spoon, shell, bone, horn. “
Cecily Braden, a holistic esthetician claims that the benefits of gua sha were infact discovered by mistake.
Here in the Thai hills, women often have a small scraping tool in their vanity box. Atleast once a week, a woman scrapes her face, neck and sometimes her whole body before applying thanaka powder.
Gua sha relieves tension, boosts blood circulation and encourages lymphatic drainage. The technique might leave redness for a couple of hours, but, rest assured healthier that youthful skin will appear as the skin heals.