waxing – East Village Spa Blog

Skin care for gender affirming treatments and procedures

Transgender individuals may experience a wide array of skin changes, sometimes quite abruptly, during gender affirming hormone treatments. In addition to breakouts or changes in skin texture, hair changes can cause in-growns. Gender affirming surgeries also have a risk of scarring. Licensed estheticians are able to help with these challenges to assist their transgender guests to transition more comfortably.

Solutions for Acne:

Acne vulgaris is a common and chronic skin disease characterized by the formation of blackheads and whiteheads, papules, pustules, nodules, and cysts. Androgen hormones can lead to acne, as well as increased sebum (oil) production and clogged hair follicles. Acne may present on the face, back, and chest.

Often, people attack acne with overly aggressive scrubs which can spread bacteria and further inflame pustules. Another common mistake is using harsh drug store ingredients like skin drying wipes, or skipping essential hydration which then leads to an increase in oil production as skin tries to compensate. Acne prone skin is inflamed and angry and like the saying goes, you can’t fight fire with fire. The products below will help nurture and calm skin.

For mild to moderate acne, a skin care regimen that addresses the root causes might include:

Beta Green Tea Cleanser: A gentle blend of salicylic acid and green tea helps with inflammation and keeps excess oil at bay, without stripping skin of needed moisture.

Mandelic Arginine Serum: A gentle blend of acids designed to exfoliate skin over time without irritation or spreading bacteria. This product also minimizes excess oil without stripping skin of moisture.

Balancing Grape Seed Serum: Wild Yam extract in this serum suports skin with hormone imbalances. If you watched the show Grace and Frankie you’ve learned the benefits of wild yam for menopausal hormone changes! It works for skin too. You’ll see this product recommended frequently for any hormonal transitions.

Blemish Serum: Use this as a spot treatment on blemishes or lesions. This is a far better choice than picking at them!

Growth Factor Gel: A daily moisturizer suited for oily and acne prone skin that absorbs quickly and calms irritation.

Rhonda Allison skincare ideal for breakouts

Solutions for changes in face and body hair, including ingrowns

People taking feminizing hormones may wish to undergo hair removal. In the beginning, coarser hairs might be best treated with a laser hair procedure as opposed to waxing to thin the hair. Laser hair removal breaks down the hair cells, slowing growth. This is not a service we offer at East Village Spa, but is what we generally recommend. Waxing some coarser facial hair can lead to irritation and ingrowns and isn’t always advised.

As people age, androgen hormones trigger longer, bushier hair in the ears and eyebrows. Our licensed esthetician, Cassandra, noted that people who have shaped their eyebrows with waxing from a younger age often will have less hair growing in general, those starting later in life will be “catching up” but with a knowledgeable esthetician, even bushy brows can be still beautifully shaped and products like a brow mousse can help to keep them in place.

Ingrown hairs can be treated similarly to other breakouts. Cleanse the area with a cleanser like Beta Green Tea Cleanser (see above) or All Purpose Cleansing Pads, then spot treat with Beta Green Tea Lotion, which is a toner, 1-3x per week. Our power player for hormonal imbalances, Balancing Grape Seed Serum with Wild Yam Extract (see above) is also a useful product to treat areas prone to in-grown hairs.

Estrogen-related changes

Estrogen can cause skin to thicken and become more dry. It can also increase melanocytes which can lead to melasma, or areas of skin that darken unevenly. Melasma is particularly prevalent in people taking estrogen and darker skin types, but can impact all skin types.

To counteract dryness and thickening skin, a cleanser like the Beta Green Tea cleanser with anti-inflammatory properties and a gentle skin exfoliating acid like Mandlic Arginine Serum are appropriate. It is important to have the correct moisturizer to help counteract dryness, as well as a hydrating eye and lip serum.

For melasma, see a licensed esthetician for the best products for your skin. They might also recommend a series of professional treatments like peels or hydrafacials. Because everyone is different, it is hard to say the best course of action based on your skin type without a consultation.

Scarring

Post surgical scarring is a concern for many. To prevent keloids (thick, raised scars), products that increase skin cell turnover quickly and heal skin are appropriate soon after procedures.

Growth Factor Serum expedites health skin tissue regrowth.

Therapy E Serum rebuilds and repairs skin that has been traumatized. It is ideal for scar prevention and repair.

An important component of scar prevention and relief is self-massage of scar tissue. This video from Breathe Physical Therapy focuses on a c-section scar, but the concepts are easy to follow and apply to any surgical scar tissue.

We are here for you!

At East Village Spa, we are here for you and honored to support you at any point in your transition or your life. If you have questions, the best way to contact us is to e-mail [email protected] and one of our licensed estheticians can assist you that way. If you are local to Des Moines, IA, we’d love to see you for a service to best assess your skin needs or offer more advanced treatment options. Not local? Feel free to shoot us a note via e-mail and we’ll reach out to our nationwide network to help you find an esthetician who is a perfect fit.

Best contact? [email protected], visit our website at http://www.evdayspa.com or http://www.shopeastvillagespa.com!

Want to do a deeper dive? One great resource for dermatological issues to be aware of with gender affirming procedures is this article from the National Institute of Health.

What’s the best way to wax yourself at home? Don’t.

We’ve gotten questions from clients who aren’t ready to venture back out to the spa asking the best way to wax themselves at home. Our top tip: DON’T! Here’s why:

Wax quality matters

The wax we have is high quality and we’re comfortable using it. The wax you can order for yourself online or pick up at a store that doesn’t require a professional license is not stellar. Not only will a low quality wax hurt, but it could tear, burn skin, or be really hard to remove.

Not every type of wax is right for every person, or every body part

Your hair type, skin type, and any products or medications you take will determine the kind of wax (or combination of waxes) you need to use. Using the wrong kind can cause excess irritation, dryness, bruising or even skin tears. We have several kinds of wax on hand and our licensed estheticians will select the right wax for your hair type and any products you’re using at home.

Waxing hurts: ESPECIALLY when you DIY

Estheticians that are seasoned waxers are able to remove hair as painlessly as possible with different techniques that you won’t be able to do yourself at home. Inexperienced waxers are likely to just break hair off instead of pull it from the root. This leads to ingrowns, uneven results, bumps, and increased risk of infection.

Take it from one of our non-esthetician team members who shall remain anonymous. The first time she tried to wax herself, she applied the wax, started to pull the strip, saw stars and then panicked for a LONG time wondering how she’d get the wax strip off without ripping it (Call a neighbor, live with a strip of wax on your bikini area, or tough it out?) Sadly, once the wax is on, there is only one way to get it off and that’s to pull! It is REALLY hard to do that to yourself!

Remember the 90’s?

We’re STILL helping many of our clients with weird brow shapes courtesy of 90’s trends. If you try to wax your own brows, it could go very, very wrong. Worst case scenario, tweeze sparingly if you really can’t get in to a pro. Thankfully, full brows are in now!

Look for a safe esthetician

If you’re ready to take the wax out of the microwave (YIKES!) and put down the plastic butter knife, look for a safe esthetician. Our licensed estheticians wear gloves 100% of the time, pandemic or not, when waxing. Your esthetician should never dip the wax stick back into the wax after it has been used, and the space should look clean. You should also expect to complete a short health history so your esthetician knows if you are taking a medication, using a product, or have a health condition that could impact your service or make your skin more likely to bruise or tear.

During the COVID19 crisis, our estheticians will wear a mask and expect their guests to as well. For services where guests would have to remove their mask, like a lip or chin wax, expect your esthetician also to wear a face shield and work in a room with a HEPA air filter for your protection and theirs.

When you’re ready to book:

If you’re ready to book, visit www.EVDaySpa.com to book online. Not ready yet? This is the PERFECT time to grow out your hair for waxing. Remember, hair needs to be at least 1/4 inch long for the wax to pick it up and give you a smooth wax. If you’re isolating at home, there is no better time to grow hair you normally wouldn’t to get a great wax when it is safe for you!

FAQ: When should I come back?

A question we’re frequently asked is: How often should I get a (insert your favorite spa service here)? As far as how often you should get spa services, it depends on the service and why you are receiving it.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD I GET A FACIAL?

For general relaxation and routine skin wellness: typically a monthly facial will suffice, though we understand sometimes you have to stretch it out to every other month or quarterly. As long as you are using the products your esthetician recommends in between visits you should be fine. At a minimum, each season it is good to get checked out in case you need to change your routine due to changes in the weather and your activities.
For peels or Minus 10 protocols: you may need to visit in shorter intervals (perhaps 2-3 weeks) based on the treatment goal and where in your skin cell turnover cycle your esthetician wants you to repeat the service.
For acne facials like our “Clear Relief” facial: a monthly facial to assess skin, perform extractions, and do a deeper cleanse along with recommended home care between visits is necessary until the acne clears up.
For Hydrafacial: Monthly is a great starting point, but if you your esthetician may suggest a period of more frequent visits to address certain concerns.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD I GET A MASSAGE?

You can typically get massage therapy as often as you’d like, but any of us who have spent a day getting massage in school or testing massage students or job applicants can attest that there IS such a thing as too much massage! Your body will let you know when you’ve had enough! A few good suggestions for spacing your services:

General stress management and relaxation massages: These are fine in whatever interval you can manage with your schedule. We have clients in weekly (sometimes twice weekly), lots of every other week and monthly massage clients, as well as some who are able to treat themselves on special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries.
Sports massage: If you’re training for an event, regular massage at weekly or every-other week intervals are helpful to prevent injury and keep you on your training schedule. The type of massage your therapist recommends during training, shortly before an event (1-2 days) and shortly after an event will have different session goals, techniques, and duration.
Injury or specific focus work massages: The frequency will vary for these services based on what you and your therapist are addressing. It is possible to overwork an area and for most kinds of massage, we don’t want to further inflame an area so your therapist will suggest rest periods between massage. Typically we’d ask a client to come more frequently at the beginning of treatment for a specific issue until it has subsided (2 sessions in a week is not uncommon at this stage), then maintenance massages. Your therapist will gauge frequency based on how long the benefits of the treatment seem to last. Sometimes even a quick 30 minute treatment here or there can help maintain progress.
If you are seeing multiple providers to treat the same condition: We often partner with chiropractors and physical therapists for greater treatment effectiveness. Do make sure your massage therapist knows all of the treatments you’re receiving for the injury or health concern (i.e. physical therapy, chiropractic, acupuncture, etc…) and make sure your other providers know you’re receiving massage so you don’t over treat a condition and all providers are on the same page with scheduling service frequency.

HOW OFTEN DO I NEED TO WAX?

Wax intervals vary greatly depending on the person, hair texture, ethnicity, hormones, and heredity play a role in how often you’ll need to book your follow-up waxes. It is important to grow hair to at least 1/4 inch before waxing to make sure the hair catches in the wax.

Facial waxing:Typically 3-4 weeks is common between waxing for brows, upper lip, and chin.
Brazilian/bikini, back and chest waxing: 4-6 weeks is a typical interval for Brazilian, back, and chest waxing.
Leg waxing: Leg hair needs a bit more time to grow in enough to wax, most people need to go 6-8 weeks once their hair is on a good growth schedule.

Are you ready for a rebook or looking to schedule your first service? Learn more and book online. Don’t hesitate to give us a call with your questions at (515) 309-2904.

So you think you want a Brazilian wax?

Thank you to our guest contributor (who shall remain nameless) for a “Real woman’s” account of her first Brazilian wax.

Have you ever thought such things as:

“A lot of people I know get Brazilian waxes, there must be something to it!?”

“I hate shaving my bikini area. A lot.”

“I have waxed my eyebrows a million times, a Brazilian wax can’t be THAT bad, right?”

“I haven’t shaved in so long, I might never shave again…”

Dramatization of tropical vacation to protect the author’s identity. Actual events included lots of empty cocktail glasses.

These thoughts are what eventually talked me into getting my first Brazilian wax. I had returned from a fantastic tropical vacation, which forced me to keep things trimmed up “down there”, because that’s what we ladies like to do when we are in swimwear. And each morning I went to tackle this issue, I grumbled and complained to myself about how much I absolutely despised shaving this area! The angles, the tiny razor nicks, the razor BURN! Why on earth WOULDN’T I try waxing!

When I returned home, the temperatures topped out at 30 degrees for a couple weeks, I became lazy and had no need to shave. I can’t be the only one right? A little over 4 weeks from when I returned from the beautiful tropics, I decided I was going to take the plunge. I scheduled my first ever Brazilian wax at the spa one morning while I was at work. I didn’t even flinch. I had 3 days to prepare my nerves, which were oddly nonexistent. I talked worriedly to probably every esthetician we have on staff about my concerns, and always received the typical “It’s really not that bad” response. So for the last 2 days leading up to the procedure, I was ready. It can’t be that bad. It just can’t be. I’m sure it seems to last 5 minutes, and you’re done, and everything is smooth and great and the world’s a better place!

Fast forward to brave little me, lying in the treatment room, awaiting the first “pull”. When that first pull happened I realized, I wasn’t ready. Nothing could have prepared me for this! How on earth is this classified as “not that bad”!? I now completely understand the “AHH KELLY CLARKSON” situation in The 40 Year Old Virgin. Holy smokes.

I spent a bit of time trying to figure out how I had made such an extreme mistake on my expectation of the pain vs. the actual pain. I realized the reason I initially thought it was so incredibly terrible was because I had absolutely no expectations whatsoever. I had no clue it would hurt on that level, because in my mind I thought, “how bad can pulling a few hairs out really be? My eyebrows aren’t terrible…” In reality, it is pulling hundreds of hairs out at once, so of course it’s going to hurt! A lot.

However, within about 10 seconds the discomfort is completely gone. With each pull, it became more and more bearable. I was in and out of the treatment room in under 30 minutes! We do book the treatment for 40 minutes here at the spa, but sometimes it can take much less or a little more time. It just depends on the person, the hair growth, etc. Brazilian waxes can only be done with at least ¼ inch of hair growth. If you arrive for your appointment and your hair is not long enough, the therapist will let you know. Typically this is about 4 weeks of hair growth, but can definitely vary depending on the person. It has been 2 weeks since my wax and I have almost no regrowth at all. I could literally attend a last minute pool party comfortably. (Granted, it’s still March… in Iowa… so a last-minute pool party is not likely.)

I had no discomfort after the treatment, aside from one tiny ingrown hair that lasted about a day. There was no rash, no “razor burn”, really no discomfort at all afterwards. These are the reasons I am now a forever Brazilian wax receiver. Any amount of discomfort felt during the treatment could never outweigh the amazing outcome of receiving it.

If our guest writer has you convinced that a Brazilian wax is really “not so bad” you can click here to book yours online! Have more questions! Click here for another post on waxing.

More Waxing FAQs: Your most delicate questions answered!

Our friend Colleen from Star 102.5 and I chatted awhile back about how it seems like all of a sudden lots of women our age (and quite a bit older) are starting to get bikini and Brazilian waxes regularly. Colleen invited her East Village Spa esthetician Camille to visit with her on air to share a few pointers with her listeners who might be considering getting waxed for the first time.

We wanted to share the info with you too since we didn’t have time to cover it all on-air. Plus we know that your most burning questions might have been to delicate for a morning radio show.

Colleen (left) and Camille discussed waxing on air on Star 102.5

Q: Isn’t bikini waxing just for twenty-somethings?

A: Maybe that used to be the case, but we see lots of women who are older, even grandmas, in for regular maintenance bikini and Brazilian waxes! First of all, hair starts to migrate as we age so while someone might not have felt the need to wax at 22, they might notice more hair creeping further down their legs in their 30s or 40s. Second, women wax for many reasons, whether because they like the look or they like not worrying about stray hairs when they wear a swimsuit. We find it is popular with busy moms and athletes who feel like they get less irritation from workouts like running and biking without hair. Shaving is really hard on the skin so many women are just ready to be done with razor burn.

Q: Does waxing hurt?

A: Yes! But we all agree that the more you wax, the less it hurts. Your skin becomes used to it and your hair grows back finer over time. A product like the Relax and Wax “no scream cream” applied 45 minutes before a wax service can help dull the sensation. Most of us feel like waxing hurts way less than painful razor burn.

Q: I’ve shaved forever, do I actually need to grow out my hair to wax?

A: According to Camille, you will need at least 1/4 inch of hair for the wax to work (most people can do this in 2 weeks). If your hair has grown 3-4 weeks, you’ll get a better result because the hairs on a different growth cycle will have had time to catch up.

Q: What about my “backside?” Do people really wax that?

A: The majority of people who get Brazilian waxing wax the back side as well. To quote one of our team members, “It looks odd if you wax the front and not the back.” Our estheticians have been waxing many years and guessed that 95% of Brazilian wax clients opt to wax the backside during a Brazilian.

Many first-timers are most freaked out about the backside before their visit, but all of our estheticians agreed it is the easiest spot for them to wax, and the least painful for the client. One of our estheticians also wanted to reassure self-conscious guests that in 6 years of waxing she has seen lots of rear ends and the space between the cheeks looks about the same on every single woman and this is no big deal for your esthetician.

Q: Do I need to get on all fours if they wax my backside?

A: At East Village Spa, our estheticians prefer having the client stay on their back but bring their knees up to their chest when doing the backside. They only use the “all fours” or other methods like side-lying for reaching the backside for women who can’t bring their knees to their chest (for example, someone who has had a hip replacement or who is farther along in a pregnancy).

Q: Is the esthetician there when I undress?

A: No, you will have privacy to disrobe from the waist down and your esthetician will leave you with a cleansing wipe to thoroughly clean the area to be waxed. You’ll be able to drape yourself with a towel for modesty while she re-enters the room, but she will remove the towel while she’s working.

Q: Is it weird for the esthetician doing my wax?

A: Camille said this is the number one question her first-timers ask and she has been waxing for years and sees it as a part of her job to help people with skin care and grooming, very much like it is normal for a doctor to examine and treat people. Camille typically sees 10 or more Brazilian wax clients each week; sometimes 50% of the services she provides in a typical week are waxing services! She knows her clients appreciate her fast, safe, and professional services and she’s happy to be able to provide something that helps women.

For more information, check out the FAQs section on our website here.

Have other questions about female waxing or ready to schedule? Give us a call at (515) 309-2904 or book online here!