The recent resurgence in popularity of ancient wellbeing practices like Ayurveda and Chinese medicine means we’re now seeing that “the old ones are the best” is totally true. Tried-and-tested for thousands of years; these magical habits and hacks actually work – they’re not fads.
With Ayurveda currently having a moment (Jasmine Hemsley’s book East By West on Ayurvedic cooking and lifestyle regimes was released in late 2017, and you can discover your dosha or mind-body type with one swift Google now), other Eastern traditions are also making their way into mainstream awareness.
Chinese medicine is steeped in layers and layers and thousands of years of tradition, with some of its most well known gifts being acupuncture, meridian theory, herbal medicine, certain types of massage, qigong and lesser-known skincare secrets. Briefly; much of the traditional Chinese skincare and beauty techniques include the use of herbs like Bei Qi, Huang Qi and Gogi for clarity and longevity of skin, tea, natural facemasks, and jade stone facial rollers. To learn more about Chinese Medicine, nourishment and longevity, I’d highly recommend Peter Deadman’s insightful book Live Well, Live Long: Teachings From The Chinese Noushment of Life Tradition (yangsheng).
Jade stones are used throughout Chinese medicine to help rid the body of ‘bad’ or blocked Qi (also known as prana, life force or energy), combined with acupressure points and gentle massage. If you’ve ever woken up after a rather heavy night or begin to notice your skin is looking puffy, worn and tired, the jade roller is basically your go-to solution.
Energy Of The Jade Stone
The jade stone carries a ‘sweet, light and nourishing’ energy, used to help skin and cells regenerate and heal themselves, and is all about purity, cleansing, care and love. This is very good news when it comes to healing and cleansing, as the most effective and long-term way to cleanse is by doing it with love and care. A cleanse or purification practice (like detoxing or dieting) done from a place of fear or self-punishment, isn’t necessarily sustainable or healthy, yet done with the intention of being kind and loving to yourself, it can be transformational and hugely positive. In terms of chakras, the jade stone is linked to the heart chakra, promoting both internal and external harmony, and is also known as the stone of ‘eternal youth’ (no promises there….).
Using Your Roller
Easy to carry with you whilst travelling (for post-flight puffiness), jade stone is often cold to the touch, which is even better for promoting healthy blood flow and revitalisation of the skin. If you want your roller to provide even more soothing, cooling properties, 
simply keep it in the fridge. You can use the roller after washing your face in the morning, or as part of a self-care cleansing and facial moisturising ritual. (I use mine in the morning after washing my face with cold water, and before applying home-made facial serum, but everyone’s different when it comes to how they like to use it).
Just as foam-rolling muscles can help maintain their health and ease any tension, rolling the face can help keep it at its best – with a lot less ouch when it comes to the rolling part! Toxins stored in the skin and cells can be released through rolling, reducing acne over time, and enhancing skin’s natural glow.
After washing / cleansing / moisturising / whatever your skincare routine looks like, use the roller to basically give yourself what feels like a facial and natural face-lift! Start from the central points of the face (such as between the eyebrows, bridge of the nose etc.) and work your way outwards with gentle sweeps. Follow the under-eye area and brow area to stimulate bloodflow and oxygen, thus opening up these areas and de-
puffing under-eye areas. If you have a double roller with a smaller piece of jade at one end, use this for smaller areas. Amazingly, the roller doesn’t just help skin maintain its brilliance, but it helps rid facial muscles of tension too – if you’re a jaw-clencher, or you’ve been feeling extra stressed or anxious recently, roll the jade stone along your jaw line, noticing any ‘weird’ sensations and possibly a huge sense of relief afterwards!
Practice using your jade roller for a couple of weeks every other day – especially after a night out or at the end of a busy week – and observe both the physical and subtle changes!
Leave a Reply