An Eastern Medicine Expert's Gua Sha Routine For Lifted Eyes  

Gua sha is a long-beloved modality used historically to treat your full body, improve microcirculation, encourage immune function, and aid with lymphatic drainage. More recently—and particularly in the West and beauty spaces—it's hailed for its skin-soothing and sculpting benefits. Certainly, it's a habit I perform almost daily, so I'm all on board. 

What's so great about it is that everyone can try it, too. Gua sha has a pretty low bar for entry (learn the basics and common mistakes here). Then, as you learn more techniques and get better at your own practice, you can specify your routine for your needs.

Every eye concern is unique to itself. The way you tend to dark circles, puffiness, fine lines, sagging, and bags all require unique products, ingredients, and approaches. Certainly many of these have overlapping treatments occasionally, but we always say it's so important to identify your exact skin care goal prior to coming up with your game plan. 

And for sagging or puffy eyes, gua sha is a great way to help. The cooling stone and gentle massage can tend to swollen skin and help lift the area. "Gua sha is great because when you do your face, not only does it help the skin, but it boosts your mood, gets you up, and wakes up your face, and your eyes," she says. 

To start on the area, make sure your skin is properly lubricated with your oil of choice, and be gentle with your movements: "For eyes, it's one of the first signs of aging as it's a very delicate area. You'll want to put more oil on it—as well as on the neck— so you don't pull too hard," she says, noting that pulling too hard on mature or sensitive skin is one of the biggest mistakes she sees.