Ask A Pro: Lymphatic Drainage Tools
I feel like I am talking about this all the time, ever since the jade roller really popped up on the scene a few years back, I get so many questions about lymphatic drainage and the tools we use to do it. To make everyone’s lives simpler, I am putting the basics here to get you using and benefiting from your tools!
Before I begin though, I did write two other blogs on this topic, one about how to clean your tools HERE and another about the basics of lymphatic drainage HERE. I won’t be going into the steps for using the tools here as there is an easy 8 step process for you in the “basics” blog.
You might have one of these tools at home, my question to you is when is the last time you used it? Follow up question, do you have a consistent time when you use it, and how you use it?
The truth is, even though we have these things, and I am totally guilty of this, we don’t use them or we don’t know how to use them. I did mention that I am not going to be breaking down the steps on how to use each tool as there is a general routine you can follow in the “Ask A Pro: Basics of Lymphatic Drainage” blog post, those steps are for any tool used on the face. In this post I will be explaining what they are, the difference between them, and why you would want to use them, or more simply, the benefits. Later on we will be discussing tools for the whole body and there’s even videos we made here and on our YouTube to guide you, but more on that later.
The facial tools I am going over today are the ones I hear most often that my clients and friends have at home, or have heard of. They are Gua Sha, and the Jade and Quartz Rollers, for the body theres Dry Brushing and Foam Rolling. There are so many more ways of doing facial massage at home, and eventually I will get to them all, promise!
Like mentioned in the quote above, tools are useless left in a drawer, so the first thing you want to do is learn how to use them and establish a rhythm for use. For example, I love to use my Gua Sha stone when I am feeling sore or tight in my jaw, as it really helps me release a lot of tension, or if my skin is giving off heat, like in the case of just having used an active exfoliant. Read on to learn more about each of these and see how you can incorporate these tools, and why you would want to have them in your skincare routine.
“Where there’s stagnation there will be pain. Remove the stagnation and you remove the pain”
One of my side passions is archeology and digging up the mysteries of the past, so I loved learning about the history of Gua Sha! My original thought is: it is an Eastern modality, most likely used in healing practices to move bad energy. Here is a more scientific definition from Standford Medicine:
Coining is a traditional techniques used to treat illnesses since ancient times that is widely practiced in China (also called Gua sha) and other South East Asian countries such as, Indonesia (referred to as Kerikan) Vietnam (referred to as Cao gio). The intention of coining is to rid the body of so called “heatiness and “negative energies”
Ok, so I was partially right but I have never heard of the term skin coining! Always learning! So now you know too that if you ever hear someone talking about skin coining, or Gua Sha, you can pop up this little cool factoid, back to the point now.
Originally, Gua sha was used in Chinese medicine to move “negative energies”, that can also be described by what I am doing when my jaw is sore. I tend to grind my teeth at night during times of stress, or if I had too much caffine, both are negative built up energies in my jaw. Now, even though the energy is negative, you don’t need much pressure to move it. The idea here is more energetically moving it with the intrinsic porperties of the stone and its shape, go with me here.
We know that energy cannot be created nor destroyed, that is a scientific fact, all things in the universe have energy, even black holes. So we can believe that the amazing stones created on our majestic planet have some inherent energies, and we can tap into those energies with our intention. Be intentional when using your Gua Sha, not heavy handed.
When using Gua Sha at home, there are some easy tips to make sure you are always doing the routine correctly, at the right time for your skin, and often enough but not every day.
There is product involved with some of these modalities, you can always use the products that I use, or you can find somethig comparable over the counter, aka at Target. If you follow me on Instagram, I have posted IG Stories called “Saturday Samples” where I tested out different samples of skincare I got from Sephora. They all range in price, brand and category of product (cleanser, serums, etc.) and don’t worry, I still make new ones monthly so if you haven’t seen a product you wanted to try yet, I might still get to it! If you ever have anything you want me to review, head over to my Instagram and shoot me a message, I would love to hear from you and see what products you’re looking into, now back to Gua Sha.
Tips For Home Use:
Use on freshly cleansed skin
You need a little “slip and glide”, there are two ways to do this: apply a facial serum (vitamin/antioxidant/hydrating) to the skin followed by a facial oil, or just use a facial oil on top of your moisturizer
Always go in an upward and outward flow of movements. Think go towards your hairline, not from your hairline in.
Very light pressure is used during this modality, remember what I said before about energy and intention with your stone? Even with light pressure, you will move lymph and negative energy.
Clean your tool before and after each use, for more on cleaning your tools visit this blog HERE
Choose one night of the week to be the night you perform a Gua Sha facial massage during your nightly routine. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, the important thing is that you do it regularly.
“There are makeup artists [who] sometimes have a jade roller. If you’re really tired those are really good.”
The second common category is the facial rollers, and even though these days they are mostly jade or quartz, you can also have a metal roller that serves a similar function. Coming to us from ancient China, it is believed that around the 7th century they showed up as beauty tools for the wealthy and elite to keep their skin calm and soothed. Jade is known for being naturally cold, which as you can guess is amazing for red, irritated skin. By gliding the tool over the skin, it would soothe inflammation.
The Jade Roller in particular is really great for aggrevated, red, inflammed skin and it will always be cold so you don’t necessarily need to put it in a fridge, but you totally can. I love using this after a hot day, or a road trip, seeing as though it is anti-inflammatory there are many reasons to use it: allergies, having a small cry day, coming back from a sinus cold, stayed up late, lack-luster skin tone, etc.
The Quartz or Rose Quartz Rollers serve a similar but different purpose. I posted on my Instagram yesterday (February 24th) the qualities and benefits of these stones, so if you want to save that info CLICK HERE! The properties of these stones vary, quartz being healing and purifying drawing out negative toxins, and rose quartz enhancing your heart vibration, self love and acceptance. Depending on what you and your skin needs will determine which one of these you use and when. I have both and I use them depending on my mood and skin needs.
These doesn’t only have to be for home use, here are some ways I like to use my Jade Roller on the go.
Tips For Traveling
On top of a sheet mask after a plane trip, the air in the cabin dehydrates skin topically, plus it also feeels amazing
In my summer beach bag after a day at the beach before heading in to grab food/go out
On long road trips after spritzing some Cucumber Hydration Toner and applying my Ageless Hydration Serum, it helps refresh not just my skin but me too!
If I am traveling from different climates, I like to use it to balance out my skin. You can also use the sheet mask trick (explained below), especially a hydrating or soothing sheet mask if you went from a humid climate to a dry one.
Those are just a few for traveling, but if you’re not traveling, when and how would you use this? Like most things, you need to be consistent to see changes so stick to whatever works for your lifestyle:
Tips For Home Use:
Unlike Gua Sha, the skin doesn’t really need slip and glide, you can use your jade roller on top of toner, serums, moisturizer or just bare skin.
Try my strange method of charging your stones in the moon and sunlight, if you don’t know what I am talking about, head over to the blog about cleaning your tools to read it!
Use them 3-5x a week, I know that sounds quite often, but in reality to keep skin calm and soothed, or to shower yourself with self love, this needs to happen more often than once a week.
Always start from the center of your face and roll out (why does that phrase always cue that Ludacris song??) think anti-aging and gravity defying. You never want to pull down, or pull on the skin at all really.
My sheet mask trick: on freshly cleansed skin, apply your sheet mask, take your clean roller and roll on top of the mask from the middle of your face out to the edges. Smooth the sheet mask down in the process and help your skin absorb all the amazing ingredients. It feels amazing!
“What I find really works for me is dry body brushing; it helps improve circulation and exfoliates your skin.”
I love dry brushing, I just forget to do it before I go into the shower, so I always end up doing it afterwards, but don’t you normally exfoliate your skin after cleansing it? Yes, yes you do. So you can use your dry brush really whenever, as long as you are brushing your body evenly, don’t just do one side and forget the other!
The history of this one is my favorite, mainly because I have always had a strong pull towards Ancient Egypt and the beauty remedies they created, this is one of them. Naturally, the Egyptians practiced dry brushing along with exfoliating agents like sour milk and wine, they probably had the most exquisite skin! As this is a form of exfoliation, and our body skin is much tougher than our facial skin, it can handle this kind of “double exfoliation”. We put our bodies through so much, do it a favor and give it a good brushing so it can glow.
Tips For Dry Brushing At Home:
You can brush before or after your shower, I recommend around shower time so that your skin is also being cleansed and moisturized, and clean up is easy.
Brush towards your heart, remember you are stimulating circulation.
Use this modality weekly if not every other week, it doesn’t need to be practiced every day for you to live a lifetime experiencing the benefits, just be consistent.
Use short, quick strokes with a flick at the end
Replace your brush yearly
Make sure you are using a brush meant for dry brushing and not a body loofa brush or a hair brush as the bristles won’t be right. There are a lot of varities out there so just shop around until you find one you like.
Another form of lymphatic drainage modalities is foam rolling. Even though it goes a little deeper than your lymph system and really works out your muscles, it is also allowing the body to detox.
I had never tried foam rolling until my business partner started going to massage therapy training. With me as her guinea pig, I learned a lot that has benefited me for years to come.
Recently, we combined talents and created some at home foam rolling videos. If you have used, or are using, our 7 Day Whole Body Wellness Guide then you might have seen these videos. If not, click the link below so you can check them out. There are also 7 Days of Guided Meditation, not related to lymphatic drainage but still very important for overall wellness!
Insteresting history of the foam roller, it is the youngest of all the modalities featured here:
The foam roller was invented by Moshé Feldenkrais, a Ukrainian-Israeli engineer and physicist “known as the founder of the Feldenkrais Method, a system of physical exercise that aims to improve human functioning by increasing self-awareness through movement.” in 1987”
-Foam Rolling, https://www.therecreationalist.com
I love that its aim is to improve function and increase self-awareness, as we age the awareness of our body gets tricky and we can feel less stable on our feet. Taking regular care of your body will ensure that it will serve you for years to come. I hope you enjoy our foam rolling videos and get some amazing results with any of the lymphatic drainage tools you choose to use.
Tips For Home Use:
Find a foam roller that is the right size, shape and density for you. I personally have one thats smooth and one that has little bumps on it for rolling different muscles out.
Wear form fitting clothes, loose clothes will get rolled under it and can be more of a struggle than comfortable.
Follow the videos below! Tasha has amazing tips for using your foam roller to get out the most common knots, and she has some of her own pro-tips at the end!
As always, be good to your skin and even better to yourself,
