Five Lessons I Learned After a Trip to a Day Spa

Today it's time for another Fave Five post.  This isn't really going to be a "Fave" five but in keeping with the theme of "5" on a Friday, I'm going to tell you about five lessons I learned after our recent trip to a day spa while we were on our vacation in Raleigh.  Perhaps it will save some of you from going down the same unfortunate path.  So hang onto your makeup brushes, ladies.....here we go!

1.  Never be totally truthful on the questionnaires they give you at the day spa.  For example, I dutifully put down that I only drink about 2-3 cups of water a day and listed the rest of my fluid intake as coffee and diet coke.  Oy!  Big mistake.  For the rest of my time at the spa, I was reminded again and again that I MUST increase my water intake.  Not only did I get the lectures, but they also kept bringing me BIG glasses of water to drink.  I fairly sloshed from the facial room over to the manicure room.

2.  Never, NEVER look in any device that purports to show you the "hidden" skin damage on your face.  This is going to scare the bejeebers out of you.  I'm serious.  It will cause you to do unwise things....things that you probably wouldn't agree to, if you hadn't caught a look at yourself looking like some big spotted toad.

 3.  Remember that facials include a step called "extractions." 
After we'd made our escape, er, left the spa, I said to my daughter, "Wow, that facial was something else.  It wasn't so bad until she started pressing on my face.  Honest to Pete, it felt like she was trying to push a baby out of my pores.  What in the world was she doing?"  "Oh, that's called 'extractions.'  She was getting all of the built-up stuff out of your pores," replied my daughter.  NOTE TO SELF:  Next time, ask for a facial WITHOUT extractions.  I can live with build-up.

4.  NEVER, EVER agree to an "acid peel", especially if you have a special event to attend in the same week.  I had never had an acid peel.  The sound of it didn't sound very enticing, to be truthful.  But there was that darn glimpse I'd had of hidden sun damage so I let them talk me into an "anti-aging acid peel."  They assured me that there would be just minimal discomfort and that my face would peel a little in a few days.  Ouch!  It burned.  "Don't worry," the operator laughed, "it's all good for you."  Uh-huh!  She was just a little too cheerful.  I kept waiting for her to wash off the 3-4 layers of acid that she had brushed on my face but it didn't happen.  Jeepers, what was this?

Before we left, I asked at the front desk about the peeling.  "Are we talking strips of skin hanging down from my face?" I asked.   "Oh, no,"  they assured me.  "It will be just like the little peeling you get when you've had a sunburn.

That night, back in the hotel, I looked in the mirror and almost fainted.  I saw wrinkles all over my face.  I hadn't seen that many wrinkles since college when our drama class had been taught to soak tissue papers in spirit gum, wrinkle them up, stick them on our faces, and then cover it all up with pancake makeup to simulate "aged" skin.   What the heck?  I finally figured out that it was like putting egg whites on your skin and letting it dry on there.  After it dries, when you move your facial muscles, all sorts of wrinkles appear.

Ugh!  Now here it is, 3 days later, I'm peeling, parts of my face still feel stiff, and I have a wedding to go to tomorrow.  These people haven't seen me in several years and I'm going to show up looking like a wrinkled prune.  Oy!

5.  Don't let the spa technicians talk you into buying lots of products.  In my defense, the spa operator who did my acid peel kept going on and on about how I shouldn't use any product containing acid on my face for 5-7 days after my procedure and so I was scared to death that if I did, my face would dissolve.  I'm pretty sure that most of my facial products are anti-aging and contain retinol or some form of acid.  So I let her talk me into buying the stuff that she kept pushing into a pile in front of me.  When the bill was tallied up, I was too embarrassed to say, "Let's remove some of these things, shall we?"  Consequently, I could have bought a good camera for what I ended up spending.  Ugh!  I blame it all on that darn machine that showed me my sun-damaged skin.  And I'm not even someone who did much sunbathing, ever!  I'd hate to see what someone looks like who was a sun-worshipper. 

There you have it....my five lessons learned.  If I ever visit a day spa again, I think I'm just going to stick to getting a manicure.  If you'd like to see what others are writing about for their Friday Fave Fives, visit Susanne's blog at Living to Tell the Story.  Have a wonderful Easter weekend celebrating Christ's resurrection.