Gua Sha Strokes - Two Basic Principles

Gua Sha Strokes

According to TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine, there are two principles of treatment - Tonification and Reduction, aka Sedation, aka Drainage.

They are also applied to Gua Sha.

When scraping, one can use one of three methods:

Tonification 补法

Reduction 泻法

Half Tonification Half Reduction Combo Method 平补平泻

Tonifying Strokes

The speed of tonifying strokes is low.

Such Gua Sha strokes are slow and gentle. The stroking time is relatively long. Petechia is not showing up.

It's suitable for elder, people with weakened immune system, etc. It can be applied for facial gua sha on daily basis.

Reducing Strokes

Reducing strokes are fast and relatively vigorous. The contact with skin and the treatment time is relatively short. Petechia is a common consequence and is not regarded as unacceptable.

It can be followed by application of cupping.

It's applied in cases of acute or newly developed illness only for patients with strong health.

Watch this short video to get a basic understanding of how fast the strokes should be in case of reducing and tonifying meethods.

Half Tonifying Half Reducing Strokes

can be placed in the middle between the two.

It is further divided into three stroking methods:

• strong and slow
• gentle and fast
• average speed and average force.

It can be used daily for general health benefits.

It also applies for those who suffers from simultaneous Xu and Shi TCM manifestations.

To recap:
Tonifying or reducing functions of gua sha strokes are determined by time of stroke, its speed and force, and also the treatment time.

There is also one more property which defines the Tonifying/Reducing nature of the gua sha: applying the strokes in the direction of/against the meridians which is beyond the scope of this article.

Read about Above, Through, Below rule of gua sha scraping strokes.