Gua Sha Before and After: What Changes, How Fast, and How to Track It

What does gua sha before and after really look like? Right after a session, most people see a face that looks a little less puffy and slightly flushed, and both changes are temporary, usually fading within hours. There is no good evidence that facial gua sha changes the shape of your face, your skin or your wrinkles in the long term. That’s why so many gua sha results photos look dramatic: they often capture a short-lived effect, under conditions that flatter the “after”. Below you’ll learn how to read those photos, what changes in the minutes and weeks after you start, and how to photograph your own progress fairly.

What gua sha before-and-after photos usually show

Most gua sha before-and-after photos show reduced puffiness and a temporary flush, not a lasting change in structure. Those two effects are real; they just don’t last.

A typical post puts a “before” taken on waking, when fluid has settled in the face overnight, next to an “after” taken minutes after a session. The result can look like sharper cheekbones and a brighter face. A few hours later, much of it has faded.

The research behind the “glow” is modest. A small 2007 pilot study measured surface blood flow in 11 healthy people and found it rose about fourfold in the first minutes after firm body gua sha and was still raised over the 25 minutes measured (Nielsen et al., 2007). It looked at the body, not the face, and didn’t test whether anything lasted. Cleveland Clinic’s overview of gua sha notes that the research doesn’t address the facial puffiness benefit people praise on social media (Cleveland Clinic). For the full evidence picture, see our review of whether gua sha works.

You won’t find before-and-after photos of real people on this page. That’s deliberate: one pair of photos can’t tell you what will happen to your face.

How to spot a misleading before-and-after

A fair before-and-after controls everything except the gua sha; most online pairs don’t, so the setup changes the face more than the stone. Nobody has to be dishonest for this to happen.

Check these before you let a photo pair influence a purchase:

Factor	What it does	What to look for
Lighting	Overhead light deepens shadows under the eyes and cheeks; soft front light smooths them	Shadows falling differently; a brighter “after”
Camera distance	A phone held close makes the centre of the face look larger and the sides narrower	Face filling more of the frame in one photo
Jaw and head position	A raised chin or jaw pushed forward sharpens the jawline	Different neck length or chin angle
Time of day	Faces often look puffier on waking and less puffy later	A morning “before” next to a later “after”
Minutes vs weeks	A photo straight after a session shows the temporary flush and de-puffing	“After” taken the same day, or no dates at all
Posture and expression	Sitting tall or a slight smile lifts the face	Shoulders, lips or eyes held differently
Makeup, hair and filters	Contour, hair framing the face and beauty modes reshape features	Makeup or smooth, filtered skin in one photo only

Camera distance deserves a special mention. A 2018 analysis modelled selfies taken about 30 cm (12 inches) away and estimated that the nose looks roughly 30% wider than in a distant photo, with no such distortion at about 1.5 metres (5 feet) (Ward et al., 2018). An arm’s-length “before” next to a propped-up “after” can change your proportions without any change to your face.

Gua sha before-and-after threads on Reddit share real experiences, but they are personal impressions with the same photo problems. The same goes for facial massage before and after posts in general.

What changes right after a session

Within minutes, you may see less puffiness, a pink flush and a softer-looking face; over the next few hours, most of it fades. Here is what’s going on:

• Fluid shifts. Slow strokes outward and down the neck may help fluid that collected overnight move on, so the eyes and cheeks can look less puffy. It’s the same idea behind gua sha lymphatic drainage. As the day goes on, fluid levels shift again with salt, sleep and activity.
• Redness and glow. Massage brings blood to the surface. A light pink flush that fades within minutes to an hour or so is normal.
• A cool stone. A chilled stone works a bit like a cool compress and can feel refreshing on a puffy morning.
• Relaxed muscles. If you clench your jaw or frown, a few minutes of slow strokes can leave your face looking softer simply because you’ve let go.

This is the honest answer to “how fast”: the visible part of a before and after face massage is quick, and it’s temporary. Looking a little fresher for a morning is a fine reason to do it; it just isn’t proof of a lasting change.

What might change over weeks

Over weeks, the most likely changes are in your habits and how you feel; lasting visible changes are unproven. If you keep up a gua sha routine, before and after comparisons a month apart might reflect:

• A steadier morning routine. A regular session may mean your face looks less puffy on more mornings, because you’re de-puffing more often, not because the effect has become permanent.
• Less tension. If gua sha becomes a moment to unclench your jaw and relax your brow, you may notice that you hold less tension in your face during the day.
• Better habits around it. Starting a routine can come with other changes, like more care with sleep, skincare or sunscreen, and those can show up in photos too.

What the evidence doesn’t support is a lasting lift, a more contoured jaw, fewer wrinkles or less facial fat. Massage doesn’t burn fat, and spot reduction of fat isn’t supported by evidence. One small 2025 trial saw small changes in facial measurements with both a gua sha stone and a facial roller, but it compared two tools rather than testing against doing nothing (Ahn et al., 2025), so it can’t show how much came from the massage itself. Larger, longer controlled studies are needed.

The fair photo protocol

Your gua sha photos are only useful if you can repeat them exactly, so set up once, write it down and copy it every time. The method is the same one we use in our guide to face yoga before and after, with two gua sha-specific rules: always photograph before your session, and at the same time of day.

Your checklist:

• Same time. Pick one slot, for example straight after cleansing in the morning, and stick to it.
• Before, not after. Take photos before you use the stone, so you’re tracking your baseline face, not the temporary flush.
• Same light. Face a window in daylight or a lamp at face height, with a plain wall behind you. Avoid overhead light and direct sun.
• Same distance. Prop your phone at eye level, about 1.5 metres (5 feet) away, and use the self-timer. Mark the spot with tape.
• Neutral face. Lips gently closed, teeth slightly apart, no smile, chin level, shoulders relaxed.
• No makeup, hair back. So your jawline and hairline show the same way each time.
• Three angles. Front, 45 degrees to each side and profile.
• No extras. Filters, beauty modes, portrait effects and flash off. Don’t edit.
• Weekly. Once a week is enough. Compare each set with your first, not last week’s.

Curious about the short-term effect? Take one pair before and 10 minutes after a session with the same setup, and label it as same-day so you don’t mistake it for progress.

A 4-week tracking plan

Four weeks won’t prove anything on its own, but it’s enough to build a habit, learn your normal day-to-day variation and see whether you enjoy the routine. Here’s a simple plan.

Week 1: set your baseline

Set up your photo spot and take your first set of photos before a session. Start with about three gentle sessions a week of 5 to 10 minutes, following our step-by-step gua sha routine. Write down your setup: time, light, distance.

Week 2: learn your variation

Take your weekly photos. Start a short daily note: hours of sleep, a salty dinner or alcohol the night before, your cycle, allergies, stress. You’ll soon see how much puffiness shifts on its own.

Week 3: notice how it feels

Keep your sessions gentle and regular. Note how your face and jaw feel after each one, not just how they look. Retake your weekly photos with exactly the same setup.

Week 4: compare fairly

Line up your week 4 photos next to week 1 at the same size, angle by angle. Look at specific areas, like puffiness around the eyes, rather than your whole face. If one set looks puffier, check your notes for a short night or a salty meal. Then decide whether to keep going, and keep the weekly photos if you do.

For everyday ways to manage puffiness beyond the stone, see our guide on how to debloat your face.

If you see bruising or redness that lasts

Facial gua sha should never hurt or leave marks; redness that lingers or any bruising means too much pressure, so stop and let your skin recover. Traditional body gua sha deliberately leaves marks, and Cleveland Clinic lists bruising as its most common side effect, but facial gua sha is meant to be much lighter.

• Lighten up. Hold the stone almost flat, use plenty of oil and keep strokes slow and gentle.
• Take a break until your skin is completely calm before trying again.
• Skip irritated or broken skin, including active breakouts, rashes, sunburn or cuts.
• Ask your doctor first if you take blood thinners, bruise easily or have a bleeding or clotting disorder, and check with your clinician after fillers, Botox, laser treatment or facial surgery.
• See a doctor for swelling, pain or redness that doesn’t settle, rather than massaging it.

Track your own before and after with Gluvy

The fairest gua sha before and after is the one you take yourself, the same way every week. Gluvy’s gua sha video courses include about 34 guided gua sha and facial-massage routines with a timer on every step, including a short Morning De-Puffing Massage that fits right after your morning photo. The app’s progress journal lets you save selfies privately, so your baseline and every weekly set sit in one place, and reminders help you keep your routine and photo day on schedule. Our complete guide to gua sha covers the basics, and you can download Gluvy for iPhone when you’re ready to start your own record.

Sources

• Nielsen A. et al. “The effect of Gua Sha treatment on the microcirculation of surface tissue: a pilot study in healthy subjects.” Explore, 2007. PubMed
• Ahn et al. “Comparative Effects of Facial Roller and Gua Sha Massage on Facial Contour, Muscle Tone, and Skin Elasticity: Randomized Controlled Trial.” Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2025. PubMed
• Ward B. et al. “Nasal Distortion in Short-Distance Photographs: The Selfie Effect.” JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery, 2018. PMC
• Cleveland Clinic. “Why Gua Sha Might Be Good for You.” Health Essentials. Cleveland Clinic