Ayurvedic Garshana Treatment । Health Benefits of Dry Skin Brushing
To be healthy and fit we need a strong immune system that can take us through various seasons and climate change. There are many ways to be fit and one way is by taking proper care of our skin, as our skin is the largest organ of the body, it is necessary that we get it detoxified.
Ayurveda has a traditional treatment and various therapies which can provide us detoxification. Garshana or dry skin brushing is one of the easiest practices to encourage the body to cleanse. It has simple life-enhancing and quick therapy known as “Garshana-Abhyanga”.
It Stimulates and nourishes our body and gives our mind-body a helpful boost. It can be a perfect treatment in this modern world, which can deliver a rapid rush to all systems. It is a simple therapy which can be done you at home that’s great, isn’t it?
What is Garshana in Ayurveda?
What is garshana? Gharshana literally means “to rub” or “rubbing” it is also called the “dry massage.” It is a rigorous massage that increases vitality and energy. Brushing on the body the skin cells have an exfoliating effect that smoothes the skin.
Gharshana massage is done by wearing gloves made of raw silk, wool or using a terry towel. It is a dry massage treatment that is performed without any usage of oil, some time herbal powder is used to massaged the body.
This dry massage is performed for three to four minutes every day with gloves made from raw silk. Ayurveda recommends Garshan to stimulate the metabolism, for improved blood circulation and a better complexion. When the medicated herbal powder is rubbed on a body the skin cells get an exfoliating effect which ultimately smoothes the skin.
It also stimulates circulation to all the tissues of the body so it can be great therapy for skincare. The Garshan massage stimulates the connective tissue and prevents cellulite. It does support the reduction of fatty tissue so it can also be suitable for those who want to lose weight.
How to Gharshana Ayurvedic Massage?
Traditionally, Ayurveda uses raw silk or linen gloves, but if you find it difficult to find you can use natural (non-synthetic) body brushes with a long handle so that you can reach all areas of the body. There are three principal areas you’ll have to focus on feet, stomach, and arms.
1. Feet
- Start at your feet, move-in long free-flowing motions from toes to heel repeat this movement up to about 5-10 times.
- Remember all rubbing movements should be directed toward your heart and repeatedly done on one section of the body before moving to the next step.
- Now come to the ankles, the knees, and from the knees to the hips, rub it towards the back and forth with a friction-like movement.
- Then move around the joints and hips using large circular motions.
2. Stomach:
- Rub around your abdomen in a clockwise motion, take care to be a little gentler around the more sensitive areas of your body (i.e. chest area and belly).
- Then massage the abdomen using parallel strokes with your hands moving it in opposite directions.
3. Arms
- Start with the hands and move toward the elbow joints and up to the shoulder joints and neck.
- Make circle movement at the shoulder and proceed down the upper arm with back and forth strokes covering all surfaces. Then come towards the elbow and then on the forearm, proceed towards circles on the wrist.
- Make sure to rub the spaces between each finger, continue the same sequence on the other arm.
Precaution & Care
1. Avoid applying the dry brush on your face and make sure to use a separate tool for sanitary purposes and use a brush made for sensitive facial skin.
2. After dry brushing, take a hot bath so that it promotes sweating.
3. Rinse with cold water at the end to close the pores, this may boost your immune system.
4. Now pat your body with a towel leaving some moisture from the water and apply oil of your choice. Make sure you use organic cold-pressed virgin olive, coconut, or sesame oil for best results.
Note: Avoid near the sensitive areas and where the skin is broken or inflamed.
Benefits of Dry Skin Brushing-Ayurvedic Garshana
1. It Relieves Stress: If dry skin brushing is perfectly performed it can give you the feeling of peaceful regular massage can soothe the nerves, reduces muscle tension, and calms the mind.
2. It Clean Clogged Pores: Dry brushing is one of the best therapy for exfoliation, it exuviates dead skin cells and allows the pores to breathe, and prevents toxic build-up in the body.
3. It Rid of Dead Skin: It strengthens detoxification of the body and keeps skinning uniform as baby’s skin.
4. It Reduces Cellulite: Cellulite is simply a cluster of toxic buildup in your fat cells. Dry brushing frees the toxins and allows relocation through the different systems of elimination and helps to lose body fat.
5. It Enhances Lymphatic Drainage: The lymphatic system is responsible for removing “Amma” (a cellular waste product), it allows the toxins to be drained from the tissues and transported through the blood for riddance. Blockage of your lymphatic system can lead to health problems, including inflammation and congestion.
Garshana massage is a therapy that evokes the intellect of the body and eliminates impurities. It’s magnificent simple and can be done effortlessly before bathing or showering.
Garshana massage is the best method to remove toxins, freely from the body by unclogging pores, and you can perform it on yourself at home.
Our skin eliminates over one pound of unused acids each day; it is an average in adult, mainly through the sweat glands. So Dry brushing can be the best way to stimulate all the organs within a body by detoxification as it provides a gentle internal massage.