My Nugget: Rhinitis and Gua Sha

Every now and again I wake up with puffy cheeks and eyes and a stuffy nose. I don’t know what causes it other than it’s probably an allergen. We’ve bought an air filter for the bedroom and possibly because the filter needed replacing it hasn’t been working so well.

A friend of mine recently mentioned using Gua Sha to help relieve the puffiness and aid lymphatic drainage around the sinuses. Gua Sha, if you’re new to it, it’s an East Asian technique used to gently stroke or scrape the skin to stimulate removal of toxins. The tool used to do this is usually made of jade or quartz, though you can also get stainless steel ones.

According to traditional Chinese medicine, good health relies on chi, or energy, to easily flow through your body. If this important force gets blocked in an area, you can start to have health issues. Gua Sha is believed to get this vital energy "unstuck" and flowing again.This isn’t just useful for rhinitis but also any other inflammation that causes a stuffy nose like a cold.

Luckily for me, I got gifted a massage for my 50th birthday which I decided to finally use yesterday. My lovely masseuse Kristin, who also happens to be my friend was very happy to show me how to use my new Gua Sha tool. She shared that it wasn’t only great for lymphatic drainage but also as a way to preserve your looks by boosting circulation and to care for your skin. If using it on the face do use moisturiser or an oil so it doesn’t drag your skin.

Gua Sha can be used on not only the face but also other areas of the body to clear blocked energy (to allow ‘Chi’ or ‘Prana’ to flow). So I’m adding this into my self care routine.

I’ve found a couple of articles which are helpful if you’re curious to try it out for yourself at home. The first is more focused on the use of Gua Sha to treat the symptoms of seasonal allergies like rhinitis, and the second includes more Gua Sha methods to firm and tone the face and tension relief:

Gua Sha for Seasonal Allergies

How to use Gua Sha for Tension Relief and Lymphatic Drainage