Rest and Rejuventation: Balancing Your Nervous Systems for Healthy Skin

How can we achieve the healthiest, most vibrant skin? It’s not as complex as you may think….

In its simplest form, our skin is made up of layers of cells. These cells require adequate nutrients and oxygen as well as the ability to remove metabolic waste to thrive. If we facilitate those 3 simple things, our skin would have no choice but to be vibrant and glowy! If its truly as simple as that then why do we all feel like we are struggling with our skin???

Everything about conventional living, while making some things incredibly convenient, is essentially working against what our cells need to thrive. We spend tons of time in doors, working on computers, staring at our phones, working long hours, not getting enough sleep, etc. All of these things cause the symptoms that are blocking cellular vitality:

• Stress

• Inflammation

• Stagnant Lymph

Ok, so what can we do about it?

We have to rest. We have to! We have 2 types of nervous systems in our body. The symphathetic nervous system is responsible for our state of awareness. It becomes hyper-active when the “fight, flight, freeze or fawn” response is engaged during times of great physical or emotional demand. In today’s society not many of us have to worry about running away from an attacking bear, BUT our bodies don’t know the difference between a predator attack and an overwhelming amount of emails and project deadlines. It might seem silly but we live in a world that creates an excess ‘symphathetic’ load which leads to all sorts of imbalances in our brains and bodies. If our systems are constantly prepared to flee at any given moment we can’t heal.

The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for allowing the body to function in the “rest and digest” state. When this response is engaged, it triggers salivation, digestion, lowered heart rate, and slower deeper breathing. In this relaxed state our body systems are able to function without threat. Our cells are able to regenerate and healing mechanisms are able to engage. Until we prioritize spending time in the parasympathetic state, our bodies wont be able to carry out the necessary functions leading to more imbalances, less than adequate cellular activity, sluggish inflammed skin and premature aging to say the very least.

We highly recommend making time to come in and experience a deeply relaxing treatment from one of us to help induce the parasympathetic state. The Wholelistic Face Lift Facial, Manual Lymphatic Drainage Facial, Lymphatic Body Treatments & The Wholelistic 90 min Facial all do this beautifully! In the meantime, here are some things you can do at home for FREE to help your body rejuvenate:

• practice deep breathing: This doesn’t have to be fancy. Just sitting quietly and comfortably place one hand on your heart and one on your belly. Really pay attention as you inhale slowly and deeply through your nose and exhale through your mouth. Do this for just 5 breaths in the beginning and add more as you become more comfotable with the ritual.

• unplug during meals: Even if you are super busy and only have a few minutes to inhale a bag of chips on your lunch break, make the effort to honor your meal time. If we check emails, watch tv or scroll on IG while we eat, our bodies stay in the sympathetic state and won’t digest and assimilate nutrients properly.

• yoga nidra/guided meditation: There are tons of free guided meditations on all streaming platforms. Some are specifically for better sleep or for stress management but all of them will help you drop into a meditative state. Try typing ‘yoga nidra’ into the search bar and choose different ones until you find ones that you like.

• turn your skincare routine into a ritual: Washing your face and nourishing your skin with serums and moisturizers can feel like a chore at the end of a busy day. We invite you to reframe it in your mind as a luxurious ritual. Take your time and pay attention to how your skin feels under your fingertips, enjoy the smells, and allow your facial muscles to relax as you massage your cleanser and anoint your skin with supportive potions.

Take care of yourself! You are magic and deserve to experience a magical existence. We hope to see you soon! If this was helpful, please do share it with someone in your life that could benefit from some functional relaxation!

So, you want to heal your acne...

Clear Skin Acne Program: What you need to know

At Wholelistic Esthetics, we understand the frustration and self-consciousness that can come with having acne. That's why we're thrilled to offer the Clear Skin Acne program, a comprehensive solution designed to help you achieve smooth, blemish-free skin. If you're interested in learning more about this life-changing program, we highly recommend watching our informational video. In this video, you'll discover the science behind our innovative approach, the personalized skincare regimen we'll develop just for you, as well as some tips for how to make the most out of this program to achieve skin success. It's a great way to gain valuable insights and get a clear understanding of how our Clear Skin Acne program can transform your skin and boost your confidence. So, grab a cup of tea, sit back, and prepare to embark on your journey toward a clearer, healthier complexion.

Microchanneling; what's the deal?

We have heard your requests and are bringing in a new treatment to specifically target healing hyperpigmentation as well as regenerative scalp treatments to help stimulate hair regrowth!!  While researching which treatments would be best, we discovered microchanneling and we can’t wait to share it with you.
Similar to microneedling (but better), MICROCHANNELING is a non-invasive procedure designed to stimulate your body's natural ability to heal itself, generate collagen, elastin and other building blocks of healthy skin. Combining the latest technology of microscopic needles as well as advanced treatment serums that contain the growth factors, antioxidants and hydrators your skin needs we are able to achieve beautiful results with no downtime and minimal discomfort.
 

As we age, our collagen and elastin production naturally slows down overtime. By stimulating a regenerative response within your own body (instead of relying on “magic fix” topical or surgical treatments") we have the ability to effect real change in the visible signs of aging.

• Microchanneling is perfect for anyone wanting to target:

• Acne scars

• Skin tightening

• Hyperpigmentation

• Rosacea

• Pore size reduction

• Hair regrowth

Another great thing about microchanneling is that it is safe for all skin types as well as fair-dark complexions. That's not always the case with other more invasive treatments! Because the action of this device combined with the specific skin fortifying ingredients used we have an opportunity to heal damage below the surface of the skin. That underlying inflammation is ultimately responsible for so many of the “issues” that show up topically!

Sun exposure is just one of the many ways our skin cells can be damaged. Oxidative stress, environmental pollutions & toxic conventional ingredients as well as trauma left by acne can all damage the skin matrix causing our skin to go into crisis mode and create melanated skin cells to help protect the damaged area.

While the skin is healing, topical ingredients in the home care products we recommend may have some effect in blocking the tyrosinase enzyme that is responsible for melanating certain skin cells.

If you are interested in experiencing Microchanneling, please contact us about booking your sessions! You deserve to love what you see when you look in the mirror and we love helping you achieve those results.

Clear Skin Acne Program

We are so thrilled to share that Melody is now a Certified Acne Specialist through Face Reality, a skin care program that focuses solely on helping clients getting clear skin! Face Reality was created by Laura Cooksey, an esthetician in California. She struggled with acne for decades until she found an esthetician to help her. She became an esthetician and started researching everything she could about acne, its causes and treatments. Now Face Reality has helped thousands of people get the clear skin they desire and boasts over a 90% clear rate by the end of the 90 day program.

“I became an esthetician to help people realize their beauty and feel confident in their skin. I also happen to LOVE extractions. So, specializing in acne care was an easy next step.”

-Melody

The 90 day program starts off with a Clear Skin Acne Program appointment. Melody will go through your consultation to provide all the info you need about how the program works and what’s expected from you and how you care for your skin at home. Then she performs a skin sensitivity test and evaluates the current condition of your skin’s barrier and determines the specific kind(s) of acne you may be struggling with. This initial appointment also includes your first facial!

At the end of your facial, Melody will walk you through the exact recommended home care products that will be most helpful in balancing and healing your skin. She will also have a treatment plan for you that most commonly includes regular follow up facial treatments every 2 weeks or so, depending on your skin. There might also be nutrition and/or lifestyle changes that are suggested to encourage the best and longest lasting results.

There is only a 2 week time span between the “before” image on the left and the most recent pic on the right. This client has noticed less inflammation and less blackheads.

In the “before” photo on the left, you can see that this client has been struggling with inflamed acne. She has dedicated herself to her home care routine and come in to Melody for her regular facial treatments for the last 6 weeks. We love to see the reduction in overall redness, inflammation and texture in her skin!

At the end of the 90 days you’ll have an opportunity to continue to get facial treatments and your home care routine may continue to be adjusted based on what Melody thinks will best support your skin and keep you clear!

If you, or someone you know, have been struggling with acne and are ready to finally get the clear skin you deserve, click THIS LINK to book your Clear Skin Acne Program appointment today!

Why do we even get wrinkles???

Wrinkles and fine lines are inevitable. I know that’s probably not what you wanted to hear from me, but it’s true. As we age our skins collagen production naturally slows down, our hormones shift and all the damage from all that careless sun exposure of our youth makes itself quite comfortable on our faces. Those three factors all contribute to creating a skin matrix that is weakened and susceptible to wrinkles.

Our skin is made up of several elements that all come together to create a kind of scaffolding or intricate matrix. Collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid are elements that you are probably familiar with. As we age our dermal layer thins and less collagen is produced. These changes in the scaffolding of our skin cause it to loose laxity and texture. Then when we make our normal human facial expressions and are continued to be exposed to gravity (weird, right??), lines form.

Glycation is also at play: this happens when the glucose in your blood stream attaches to proteins (like collagen) and degrade collagen and elastin fibers in the dermis by making them link. This results in weakened scaffolding and the weak tissue folds in on itself.

OK OK OK but what can we do about it?????

First of all, embrace it babe! It is 100% natural and normal for you to start to have fine lines and wrinkles. But, here are some tips for encouraging healthy collagen production within your own body to help maintain that youthful glow as you age gracefully:

• Use topical antioxidants to help repair environmental damage and help prevent future damage.

• Apply SPF everyday. Every. Day. EVERYDAY!

• Include a variety of antioxidants in your daily nutrition.

• Add supplements that boost your body’s ability to create collagen instead of supplements that claim to have collagen added to them. I’m not convinced that our digestive tract can see that collagen and move it to our skin like it’s implied…

• Limit the amount of sugar you put in (and on) your body. (Glycation happens even when a topical treatment has glucose so that’s why I prefer salt scrubs vs sugar scrubs for body exfoliation)

• Incorporate Vit C, A & E into your daily routine. Adding retinol and/or bakuchoil are good ingredients to look for as well. You can check out our recommended treatment serums here

• Invest in our skin tightening, collagen forming Plasma Fibroblast treatment. This topical procedure not only smooths out the surface of the skin but it also stimulates the production of your own natural collagen! That means that over the course of 3 months post treatment, new collagen moves up to the surface of the skin to strengthen the skins scaffolding again! for more info about this treatment, click here

As always if you have any questions or would like to book an appointment don’t hesitate to reach out to us!! We love hearing from you.

xoxo,

Chelsea

Fall Facial

It’s gloomy and rainy as I write this, but that’s just part of this next season we have moved into! Fall brings us that crisp morning air and warm afternoons so you don’t quite know how to dress. It also can do a number on the hydration balance in our skin. Welcoming in this seasonal change we have come up with a wonderful combo for our Fall Facial! As with every facial, we start out with a double cleanse and perform our signature face, shoulder & scalp massage. The combo below will leave your skin refreshed, nourished & ready to take on the season:

This warming enzyme exfoliant is loaded with hydrating ingredients to balance the skin while providing a deep yet gentle pore cleanse. It smoothes and re-texturizes with capsaicin, vitamin C and honey.

Bring on the yummy spices! Papaya & pumpkin work to hydrate and nourish uneven skin tones, sensitive, sunburned or rosacea-affected skin. This mask leaves a gorgeous glow and smells like all the warm pumpkin vibes this season brings!

Why Melody Became an Esthetician

One of the questions I get asked the most from clients when I meet them is, “So, what made you want to do this?” and the reality of it is, I don’t really know for sure but I’m quickly figuring it out. 

If I told you I’d always wanted to work in the skincare/beauty industry, that’d be a straight up lie. I certainly didn’t have a skincare routine when I was younger and I didn’t pay much attention to what I was using on my face or putting into my body. In fact, I’m still trying to work out that balance! 

I have always worked in either retail or customer service in some form with a lot of manual labor jobs sprinkled through out. I love seeing the work I do make people happy more than anything and I just wasn’t feeling like I was able to do that in the jobs I had. For the past 4.5 years I was a manager at a local grocery store, and loved what I did. I loved the people I worked with and the job I was doing made me feel like I was making a difference (I mean as much as you can when you’re just one person in a corporate setting). Enter COVID. 

There were a lot of changes that happened in a very short period of time and people were not happy. I was getting cursed out by customers and told they were going to make sure I lost my job because we were following guidelines and mandates that they didn’t like and I was TIRED. I had thought that this was going to be my career for a good period of time and now I was completely lost and didn’t know what to do or how much longer I would be able to handle being screamed at before going crazy. I started to look back at all of the ideas I’d had before going into management and I started to think about if any of these options still peaked my interests. 

Then the lightbulb went on and I remembered that I had played with the idea of becoming an esthetician about 10 years ago. The idea of going back to school even for a profession like this intimidated the hell out of me. I was always the type of student who kept her grades just high enough to be able to play sports. Could I even deal with school and work and everything else going on at the same time?? Before I could talk myself out of it, I decided to talk to Chelsea and get her input since she had been in the industry for a few years and could kind of prepare me for it in a way. She was probably more excited about it than I was, and that helped me make my decision to completely change careers. 

I’ve seen what Chelsea does and just how happy she makes people who come to see her for their Wholelistic experience. The more I learned about that side of things, the more interested I became in wanting to spread that goodness around!

I’m so very grateful to Chelsea for having the faith in me that she does and for giving me the opportunity to learn so much more than I ever could have imagined. I’m also grateful to YOU for trusting me and allowing me to help you achieve the ultimate GLOW. 

Becoming an esthetician was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, and I’m so glad that I finally get to make a difference in people’s lives. The amount of support that I’ve gotten from everyone is truly amazing and I feel like this is going to be a wonderful thing that I get to share with all of you!

Why Chelsea Became a Wholelistic Esthetician

We are all made of vibrating energy and stardust.
I’ve always turned to holistic healing over western medicine. Acupuncture, plant medicine, massage therapy, nature therapy (and so many others) are infinitely more powerful as preventative medicine. Don’t get me wrong tho, if I break my leg, take me to the hospital! I’ve always felt a little witchy and woowoo. I believe we are all connected to each other and that we are all just small parts of one whole big Universe that is in fact just a big energy vortex. I wasn’t always aware of it but now I can look back and see that I’ve always had an inner knowing about things. Which road to take, which plant to choose, etc.
I grew up playing with potions I’d create in the bathroom in the middle of the night when I was supposed to be sleeping. I’d play in the woods for hours talking to the trees and plants and the energy they held. My mom taught about the very safe (and very recognizable) plant edibles I could forage for in our yard like Sorel and violets and honeysuckle. I would lay in the grass and watch energy move as it radiated off all the living things around me.
Then that ability faded as I got older and was way more concerned with “being cool” and surviving middle school. Flooded with mainstream media that has only one purpose: to program us into believing that we need to buy the latest material things to make us cool enough!
In college I was gifted a book called The Secret Life of Plants by Peter Tompkins and something inside me woke back up. The whole book explains plant energetics from a measurable scientific standpoint. Using electrodes attached to leaves, he was able to document how things like light, water and nutrients effect the plant but he was also able to document the energy and EMOTIONS of plants! In one experiment he studied a persons house plants and when the plant owner went away on vacation, even though someone else was coming over to maintain the regular care routine, the electrodes picked up signals that the plants stopped thriving. The only thing that had changed in its environment was the energetic being that was caring for them. The plants missed their owner!! The owner returned and the plants began to thrive again.
The combination of science and spirituality and interconnectedness that book presented re-lit the fire in me. I quite drinking and smoking because I felt obligated to have a pure pristine body to be able to gift back to the plants when it was my time to get laid in the ground. I started learning about permaculture, biodynamic farming and using the energy of the moon cycle in order to do justice in the preservation and cultivation of the magic of plants. I started learning about medicinal herbs and botanicals. I created grownup versions of those childhood potions by infusing oils with whole plant materials to use around my house and in/on my body because I realized that I was also a vibrant energy life force just like the plants. I would do facials for myself and my friends experimenting with different natural ingredients and playing with the synergy of materials in order to heal our ailments. When I would look at a jar of sweet almond oil infusing with bright golden bits of calendula I could see the energy. When I would look at the jar of moisturizer from cvs I would see nothing. It was lifeless.
Once I graduated college I started my career in music. I still relied on whole plants for some things but I was also on the road for much of the time got away from my infusion practice and didn’t spend as much time in nature. When I was 32 I decided it was time to stop touring and “get a real job”. I asked myself what I would love to do and I immediately thought of those facials and potions I had so enjoyed back in college! I enrolled in my local beauty school to get my esthetics license.
There I learned the basic functions of the skin, proper sanitation/sterilization and how to safely perform treatments on people. It was a clinical setting and while I gained some very important and necessary information, the curriculum lacked the magic that had made me love esthetics (although I didn’t know it was called that or that I could even do it as a job when I was back in college). We were given mainstream mass produced products to use that were lifeless and as we moved through the course work the skin was treated as this shell that had ‘problems’ that we needed to ‘fix’. It was the client vs her skin and we needed to decide which topical magic cream was going to cover up the issue so she could look just like the magazine cover. That’s fake news, my friend. When I graduated school I was very excited to start down this new path of nurturing women and helping them to feel beautiful and good about themselves!! There’s nothing better than the feeling of seeing a new light in someone’s eyes after a treatment. But, in the back of my mind I felt like there was something missing.
I found a job at a local Day Spa where I learned all about how to move through a busy spa day. Facials and waxing almost nonstop through the day. Basic protocols and mainstream products that I was required to use and sell. After doing this for about 6 months I couldn’t understand why my clients were not seeing results. They enjoyed their monthly treatments but after that much time using the products I had sold them I would have thought we would have seen a difference in the health and vitality of the skin. And that’s when I finally made the connection. These products are lifeless and we are expecting them to perform magic.
This inspired me to take a deeper dive into the skins function and how our bodies work as a whole to keep us alive and vibrant. The same way I could look at a crop of plants and figure out what sunlight, water and nutrients would support that particular life force thriving, we can do the same for our bodies! And when given the proper tools for the job, our bodies are amazing magical machines that want to thrive and have beautiful glowing skin that radiates from the inside.
I realized that I couldn’t help my clients the way that I wanted to (and genuinely believed I could) with outdated protocols and lifeless products they were spending way too much money on. I spoke with my boss about changing some things at the spa but they were not interested in investing any money in elevating the services or products so I began toying with the idea of going out on my own. I even went to tour a potential office space just to see what the possibilities were. Then the universe stepped in to make sure I stayed on this path (MY path). My boss found out I had looked at an office space and fired me that day. It was a blessing in disguise because I was then forced to jump all in!
I started reading more books on inner health and wellness and made the connections about how a thriving inside body would present as a vibrant outside body. I came across an amazing instructor, Anne Bramham of the ASTECC school that focuses on the magic of the lymphatic system. This was the golden key. Our everyday lives in today’s society are not set up in a way that allows our bodies to thrive! Our water, air and ground are all polluted. Our food has been modified for mass production and the nutrients have been systematically stripped out. Blue screens flood our eyes all day every day. Our culture values hard work and sacrificing everything for your career so while we think we are doing the right thing we are actually killing ourselves. Everything in our society is getting more and more lifeless and our poor bodies are struggling trying to keep us going. No wonder we are all depressed and anxious and dealing with adult onset acne!! I’m crying a little as I write this because it hurts my heart to think about all of us having to live this way. To see my sweet clients come into my treatment room so bogged down, so stressed out, their light so dull as they push themselves to be everything for everyone.
As I built my business I slowly began to experiment and build my protocols in a way that would sustainably help heal. After massive amounts of research on products, ingredient sourcing, manufacturing practices and environmental impact I found products that I could feel good about using. I spent thousands of dollars and traveled far away to learn from people that were clued in to the magic of skin health. With each new certification and specialization I found another piece of the puzzle. Now by combining what I’ve learned about working with the lymphatic system, the connective tissue of the skin, the vibrant magic of plants, nutrition and lifestyle wellness, reiki and my own intuitive pings I am able to facilitate the kind of healing that I always knew was possible.

E x p a n s i o n & G r o w t h

Three years ago I took a big step and opened this business knowing that we as a society needed to turn our focus more toward holistic healing and wellness support. The beauty and wellness industry is such an interesting and ever growing field and how we as individuals relate to it and move through it can be a beautiful healthy thing. I have been so blown away by the response of all you Wholelistic Babes over the last several years. You have shown me so much love and support (even through a freaking pandemic) and I have gotten to watch your skin, health and overall wellness improve. You’ve allowed me to become part of your lives and I can’t tell you how fortunate I feel.

Now, we look forward to the next step in the Wholelistic Esthetics evolution:

A second location in downtown Charles Town WV!!!!! (the Martinsburg location will continue operating full time as well)

Y’all. When I say I am excited, let me tell you that I am E X C I T E D!!!! Melody started working with clients in March 2021 and she is so wonderful that we needed to give her the space to be able to see clients full time. She continues to do trainings with me as well as advanced certifications. So, beginning in August 2021 Melody will be in the Charles Town location Tuesday-Saturday (by appointment only). It will still be the Wholelistic Esthetics that you have come to know and love. Same amazing botanically based products, same gloriously relaxing treatments will the offered, still lots of plants in every window.

This new additional location allows us to get more clients off the wait list and into the treatment room and I couldn’t be more thrilled about it! Keep an eye out for pictures and updates and of course a GRAND OPENING PARTY!

Yoni Steaming?

Yoni Steaming

Yoni is a sanskrit word for vagina, so the practice of Yoni Steaming is a simple ritual where you sit over a pot full of steeping herbs and allow the steam to penetrate your vaginal canal. Done with care, this is safe and has been used for centuries to cleanse, strengthen and nurture your most sacred space. Benefits of steaming: help regulate and balance hormones, aid in detox of the tissues, support energetic healing of the womb space and heal womb trauma as well. 

How to:

Bring 16 oz of spring water to a boil on the stove. Once it’s boiling, remove from heat and add your herb blend, then cover the pot and let steep for 30 min. You want to give the steam a chance to infuse with the herbal magic and also let the whole concoction cool down. We don’t want any steam burns down there! Next you can do one of 2 things: float a metal bowl in your toilet, pour the contents of yoni pot into bowl and then sit on the toilet for at least 30 min. OR carefully move your pot under a special stool (or portable toilet seat works well like this one from amazon), cover the outside with a towel to keep the steam in and then sit on the stool or seat for at least 30 min. Enjoy this time! Read, send love to your womb space, acknowledge that you are an amazing rockstar of a human and thank yourself for nurturing your body in this way! Wholelistic Esthetics Herbal Yoni Steam Blend contains (all organic): Nettle, Red Clover, Angelica Root, Rose Buds, Calendula, Mugwort & Saffron. 

Happy Steaming!

xo

*This is not recommended if you are pregnant. I am not a doctor. It is recommended that you check with your health care provider before beginning any new treatment.