This week's theme on the blog is all about the delicate skin around the eyes and how we can give the eye area a little lift and with gua sha massage.
What is the cause of puffy eyes, eye bags and dark circles?
Most of us have probably tried to wake up with swollen eyes, and there can be many reasons for this;
- Tears
- Allergy
- Dehydration
- Too much salt
- Too much alcohol
- Not enough sleep
- Imbalance in the kidneys / liver
- Low metabolism
How to prevent puffy eyes, eye bags and dark circles - from the inside out?
We can strengthen the kidneys through the herbal tea goldenrod (Solidago virguarea). Mix with a bit of licorice root, mint and nettle, and drink 1 liter daily for a month to see a difference.
Bags under the eyes can also be a symptom of low metabolism. Here we can highly recommend a skilled hormone therapist such as Sally Walker.
Dark circles under the eyes can also in some cases mean that you have a food intolerance -
Go to bed on the right side of midnight and get 8 hour sleep
Get your 2 liters of water EVERY day
Minimize your consumption of salt and alcohol
How to reduce swollen or heavy eyelids and loose skin around the eye area with gua sha massage
Loose skin around the eyes and heavy eyelids is something that happens with age. Some before others, depending on facial expressions, lifestyle and the proper care of the eye area.
How to get rid of puffy eyes with gua sha massage
If you have fluid accumulations around the eyes (puffy eyes), it is important that you focus on a super gentle and slow lymph drainage around the eyes, but at the same time also of the neck and neck, so you can open up the fluid flow to and from the face.
Use gua sha massage if you have sagging skin around the eyes
With sagging skin around the eyes, it is important that we get the blood circulation going, to speed up skin healing and rejuvenation. It will also improve the absorption of your eye care products. We can also do lifting techniques with our gua sha, which not only feel lovely but are also effective.
In Face yoga we find effective exercises that strengthen the eye muscles and promote fluid flow that help reduce puffiness and dark circles.
WHICH GUA SHA should i use to reduce puffy eyes, heavy eyelids and sagging skin around the eyes?
Flow Gua Sha
Our Flow Gua Sha is great for the eye area as it is small, handy and gets into all the right areas around the eyes. The tip is especially good for acupressure and working on lines and wrinkles. The head of the gua sha is great for lymphatic drainage around the eyes.
Sculpt Gua Sha
Sculpt is especially great as it has a small edge designed for the eye environment, in addition it has the sculpting edge that is perfect for lymph drainage and lifting.
Step by step gua sha guide to get a fresh looking skin around the eyes
In this guide you can use both the Flow and the Sculpt gua sha. We’ve also made a video with the Sculpt guide which you can see below the step by step gua sha guide.
Preparation
Always start your gua sha massage on clean, damp skin.
It’s also important to have a product on the skin before you start scraping with the gua sha in order to prevent damaging the skin. We recommend that you use a face oil or even better our Gua sha facebalm 01. A serum or face cream will absorb too quickly and you won’t have enough moisturizer on your skin during the gua sha massage.
If you have oily skin, don’t worry about using an oil or facebalm. It's just a matter of choosing the right oil or balm for your skin type. If you are in doubt which product is best for your skin - start with our Gua sha facebalm 01 or pure squalane or inca inchi oil. You can read more about our skincare HERE.
Activating the lymphatic system
Start by activating the lymph, especially if you have puffiness around the eyes.
Place the flat long side of your Gua Sha completely flat against the skin right at the collarbone. Make small pumps with the Gua Sha at this point.
We also have lymph nodes just below and behind the ear, here you can also make 3-5 pumps and glide the gua sha gently down the neck, keeping the gua sha flat and using a super gentle pressure.
The eye area
With the pointed edge of the gua sha, hold on to the point just below the point where the eyebrow starts by the root of the nose. Hold with firm pressure for 10-15 seconds. The point is most often sore so you are not in doubt when you find it.
With the same side of the gua sha, press the point at the outer edge of the eye with firm pressure for 10-15 seconds.
Hold the point in the middle of the lower edge of the eye with firm pressure for 10-15 seconds. The point sits on the cheekbone just below the pupil when you look straight out. (You can feel there is a small arc in there where the point is).
From the outer edge of the eye just below the eye on the soft part and towards the corner of the eye - scrape with the curved gua sha side. Continue up over the eyelid towards the outer corner of the eye. Continue in this circle with very light pressure 10 times.
Crows feet?
If you have crow's feet, then stretch out into the area with your index and middle fingers, and with the other hand, use the textured side of the Sculpt, Glow, Lift, or the tip of the Flow Gua Sha and move the textured side back and forth and across or in zigzag with the Flow Gua Sha over the lines.
Do this 5 times over each line with a superficial but fast pace. The gua sha is at a 90 degrees angle. If you don’t have crow's feet, skip this step.
Take the smooth side of the gua sha, place it flat on the skin and scrape with a feather-light pressure from the inner corner of the eye and all the way under the eye and out to the hairline. Here you end with a couple of pumps. Repeat 5-10 times.
Make a lift on the brow with the smooth side of the gua sha. Move the gua sha from the start of the brow to the highest point on the brow, where you then angle the gua sha so that you scrape up and out towards the hairline - and finish by wiggling the gua sha. Use a light to medium pressure and repeat 3-5 times as needed.
