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Gua Sha and Cupping Therapy

Appropriate TCM technical services · Provided within the approved scope of TCM department

What is Gua Sha and Cupping?

Scraping and cupping are commonly used external treatments in traditional Chinese medicine, which, by scraping and negative pressure suction at the meridian circulation sites, have the effects of unblocking meridians, promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, dispelling wind and cold, and clearing heat and detoxifying. Both are often used together to form complementary adjustment plans.

Gua Sha

Using a gua sha board made of water buffalo horn or jade, dipped in gua sha medium, and scraping along the meridian pathways on the body surface until red or purple sha points appear on the skin, to unblock meridians and expel pathogenic factors.

Cupping Therapy

Using cupping or vacuum cups to form negative pressure adhesion on the skin surface, causing local congestion or slight subcutaneous ecchymosis, which can relieve wind and cold, activate blood circulation and remove blood stasis, and alleviate muscle tension.

Applicable Population and Common Symptoms

  • Common Cold due to Wind-Cold at Early Stage: feeling cold, headache, nasal congestion, neck and back pain
  • Mild Heatstroke: dizziness, nausea, chest oppression, weakness of limbs (due to dampness affecting the spleen)
  • Pain in Neck, Shoulder, Waist, and Back: muscle pain and stiffness caused by cold, fatigue, or poor posture
  • Chronic Fatigue: long-term fatigue, drowsiness, feeling of head being heavy as if wrapped
  • Excessive Dampness: feeling heavy and tired, sticky mouth, sticky and uncomfortable stools
  • Muscle Soreness After Exercise: muscle fatigue and tightness after fitness or physical labor

Precautions

  • Operations or guidance by licensed TCM practitioners within the scope of the TCM department
  • The color and rate of fading of the sha can reflect the physical condition, but are not diagnostic criteria
  • Avoid taking a bath and being exposed to wind and cold within 24 hours after gua sha and cupping
  • People with skin injuries, inflammation, severe cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, or hemorrhagic constitution should not undergo gua sha or cupping
  • Pregnant women should avoid gua sha and cupping on the lumbar and abdominal areas
  • Sha marks will naturally fade after a few days, with the specific fading time varying from person to person

The content above is for reference only, the specific treatment plan needs to be formulated after the TCM practitioner makes a diagnosis

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Common Questions

Compiled based on real medical consultation scenarios, please take the face-to-face diagnosis of a practicing Chinese medicine physician as the standard.

After scraping, there are red and purple spots on my back, and my colleagues thought I was beaten. What do these scraping marks represent?

The color and shape of the scraping spots indeed reflect the constitution status: bright red often indicates heat or new external pathogens; purple and dark often indicates blood stasis or long-standing illness; light red or not obvious may indicate deficiency of vital energy. However, note that the degree of scraping does not completely represent the severity of the problem and is also related to the scraping strength and individual sensitivity. Scars usually fade naturally after a few days, and the fading time varies due to individual differences in constitution. You can't see the scars if you wear a high-neck or dark-colored shirt before they fade.

I feel heavy and damp recently—head heavy, feet heavy, sticky stools, and my face always gets oily. Is scraping or cupping more suitable?

Your symptoms are typical of phlegm-dampness + damp-heat. The good news is that both scraping and cupping are very effective for this kind of problem and can be used together: first scrape to unblock the bladder meridian on the back (the largest moisture drainage channel in the human body), then walk or leave the cupping on both sides of the bladder meridian to enhance the moisture expulsion effect. Many patients find that after treatment, their bowel movements become more smooth, their face becomes less oily, and they feel much lighter. Accompanied by a light diet (reducing sweet and greasy foods), the effect can last longer. Do not take a bath the day after scraping and cupping.

In the early stage of a cold, I have a heavy head, feel cold, and ache all over. I hope to find an auxiliary method other than medicine. Can scraping work?

The early stage of wind-cold cold is the advantageous adaptation range of scraping—scrape heavily from top to bottom along the bladder meridian (1.5 cun and 3 cun away from the spine) to produce scraping marks, add cupping at the Dazhui point, and many people sweat out and feel much lighter that night. But it is only suitable for the early stage of cold (within 24-48 hours); if it has developed into high fever, cough with yellow phlegm, etc., it is no longer suitable. People with weak constitution, pregnant women, etc., should not do this. Whether it is suitable should be decided after assessment by a practicing Chinese medicine doctor.

I often see athletes with cupping marks all over their backs. Do ordinary people need it?

Athletes use cupping mainly to relieve muscle fatigue and lactic acid accumulation after high-intensity training—using negative pressure to promote local circulation and accelerate recovery. Ordinary people with prolonged sitting fatigue, muscle pain after catching a cold, heavy dampness, or chronic fatigue are also suitable for cupping, with the same principle. The difference is that the strength and duration of cupping for ordinary people should be gentler—athletes need a higher intensity of stimulation, while ordinary people should aim for warmth and circulation. The specifics should be assessed by a practicing Chinese medicine doctor.

Can scraping and cupping be done at home? Can I just buy a set of tools online?

Not recommended. Although there are many DIY videos online, there are several key safety factors that ordinary people are difficult to control: 1) If the strength, direction, and meridian pathways of scraping are not correct, it may cause subcutaneous tissue damage or fail to achieve the adjustment effect; 2) leaving the cupping for too long may cause skin blisters and infection; 3) forbidden areas (such as the carotid artery area, pregnant women's lower abdomen, etc.) require professional knowledge to judge. Online videos will not tell you what situations are not suitable for operation.

The above Q&A is compiled based on common medical consultation scenarios.