Gua Sha

Several weeks ago I had the pleasure of spending my weekend learning the Chinese scraping technique, Gua Sha, for the purpose of myofascial release. It was a very informative course and I had a lot of fun learning about the process and the science behind it.
Traditional Gua Sha and the form of it that I learned, also known as Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization (IASTM), are very similar to each other. Both forms use handheld tools with smooth edges to scrape along lubricated skin in a linear fashion. However, there are also many differences between the traditional methods and IASTM.

So, what is Gua Sha?

With traditional Gua Sha, practitioners are not treating a specific issue, but rather are focusing their application on the Chinese Medicine meridians to move the bad Chi (energy) out through the skin. They know they have achieved this when they raise the “Sha”, which is a reddening of the skin, known in the western world as petichiae (Peh-Tee-Key-Uh). These marks can range from light red to dark purple and can often look like, and are frequently mistaken for, bruising. In reality, petichiae is caused by plasma (a component that makes up blood) leaking out from the capillaries and does not damage the capillaries in any way, unlike bruising. Since the traditional method requires the raising of “Sha” to herald its success, many people in the western world get turned off to the traditional methods because the pressure required to achieve the practitioners desired results can be intense and painful.

What’s different about what you do?

IASTM approaches things a little differently. Rather than focusing on the meridians, I use my tools to treat areas where pain has been reported and where I detect restrictions in the fascia. See Dr. Waggoner’s blog on fascia here. While I am working on the areas of pain and dysfunction, I make sure to keep my pressure at a level that is effective but still comfortable (I try to keep things at a 3 on a 1-10 pain scale but definitely will not go above a 5). During the process, I focus on how the muscles and connective tissues are changing and stop when they start to feel like they are normalizing, rather than waiting for petichiae to show up.

How does it work?

When Gua Sha is applied to an affected area it stimulates a localized inflammatory response, which is the body’s way of healing itself. Essentially the scraping is breaking apart the excessive scar tissue and fibrosis’ that can form for a variety of reasons, including surgery, immobilization, strains, sprains, and a few other reasons.

Should I try Gua Sha or IASTM?

Pretty much anyone can benefit from Gua Sha/IASTM as long as the person who is giving the treatment knows what they are doing and as long as there is good communication happening during the process. It should be noted that, although raising petechiae is not necessary with the IASTM approach, it is still a possibility, especially people with fair complexions. People on certain medications or people with certain conditions may bruise with treatment and should discuss the potential benefits and drawbacks before receiving scraping. Realistically, the only time that Gua Sha is unhelpful to a condition is in the case of active bursitis, at which point it is necessary to wait until the condition is controlled before beginning any work near the affected bursa.
All that is to say that, if you have areas of pain and tightness, that is helped by massage but does not get as much relief as you would like, consider trying something new. You never know, you may end up loving it. And if you have any questions feel free to contact the office.