Coping Mechanism: Treatments to treat yourself
A belated valentine to the professionals who keep me upright, an ongoing series.
I got myself a hydrafacial and lymphatic drainage treatment as a Valentines Day gift. As I laid atop a heating pad, tanning bed goggles gently shielded my eyes from the extraction spotlight, I meditated on the gratitude for the many professionals who work on maintaining and improving the various areas of my whole being. Clogged pores called specifically for this occasion, but there’s a rotation of expertly skilled people who help me with chronic neck pain, fluctuating weight, lifeless hair, mental anguish, and even somebody to instruct me on when to breathe. My little black book is filled with experts in their fields who are not only there to help fix my problems, but in all respects are also often independent, or small business operators. They are part of the spinal cord of what keeps this town upright.
In Los Angeles we don’t have winter. We have Awards Season. This stretch between the holidays and Spring Break is when a lot of the primping business books. Winners who reach the podium rattle off thanks to their teams; listing their agents, managers, studio execs. Just once, I wish somebody would include the members of their roster who got them up there looking camera ready throughout the whole circus.
But also, a lot of showy events were cancelled in the wake of the LA fires. Those who financially rely on these cultural tentpoles, like hair and makeup artists, nail techs, estheticians, etc., they don’t only exist for the lifestyles of the rich and the famous. If you’ve ever wanted to graze in the meadows of Hollywood life, just book an appointment with their glam squad. I am not a rockstar, but I get my hair cut by the same angel who goes on tour to style THE CHICKS! There are Kardashian universe celebrities meeting us in downward dog on the mat 1 foot away at yoga class. This is where I flex! Stars - they really are just like us! No backgrid required.
Going back to that hydrafacial experience. My skin is being sucked and serumed with combo of willow bark, glycolic and salicylic acids, et al. I’m immovable on my back feeling like a stick of cold butter thawing on the counter in a liminal plane of relaxation and distraction from the extraction. I do all my best brainstorming on a treatment table in this state. And since this newsletter is meant to be a meta extension for accountability on all of my “self-care,” I’ve decided to kick off a recurring series where I highlight all of the pros I’ve cultivated over the seven years I’ve lived in La La land.
Being a “regular” helps diminutize this mega-metropolis into a little village. If this were 19th century France I’d go to my local boulangerie, and then down the street to fill my basket with eggs, and then pop into to the bookshop, and then as I head home I’d be interrupted by a bulky sigma man trying to flirt by eating my raw eggs. But the 2025 version of me roleplaying as Belle in my little provincial town looks like a routine where I go to work out, I see my therapist, and I go get a massage - mind, body, spirit. It all financially adds up, of course. I have to pace everything out over quarterly, monthly, weekly standing slots. But if this writing practice exists for one reason, it’s to admit how indulgent my habits are and then excuse any guilt on account of MATERIAL.
Allow me to share some pages from my little black book, a section of my Rolodex, filled with names I would like to send all of the love to and graciously thank all of these people for treating me so well and enabling me to treat myself so well.
This is the stuff that I’m a repeat customer of to maintain status quo. The ‘can’t live without them’ practitioners.
While it is LA-centric, not everyone is based in LA! A lot of the points of access from these pros are also available to people who aren't local; whether that's through a Facetime consultation or buying some products to keep at home, digital packages for on the go, etc.
First up: FACE (exterior)
Face: Shine On Beauty Bar - Silver Lake
I see Erin Hesterly at Shine On Beauty Bar on Hyperion Blvd. You’re in good hands with all of the estheticians. The owner invests in training and certifying their beauticians in the elite Biologique Recherche methodology and iS Clinical skin care, and the aforementioned Hydrafacial machine. They also use the only depilatory wax I’ll allow anywhere near my nether regions - that blue wax. IYKYK. I was entranced by their lymphatic facial massage trainings posts and booked a “February Special” as soon as they shared a link on their story.
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The Biologique system is giving ‘medical’ - but there’s nothing invasive on the menu here. Shine On stocks the whole B.R. collection (get your P50 1970 Lotion there before it’s discontinued!), and carries a small collection of dainty jewelry, some choice indie natural makeup items, Korean sunscreen, red light masks, and hair care for down there. I usually ask Erin what she’d prescribe me and walk out with a bag full of goodies to keep up with at home. On this recent trip, the notorious B.R. Masque Vivant, and dermatologist developed skin pads by Vivant to help with texture caused by sun damage + aging. The pads make me nostalgic for a time that is probably the whole reason I’m here. I didn’t like washing my face as a young teen. I just swiped those old Neutrogena oil-controlling cleansing rounds on my face until I felt a tingle. (Now available on Ebay for $25! And listed as “vintage” lol.)
Shine On leaves me feeling snatched and fabulous. But if you’re looking to go below the epidermis, let’s say softly in a more lasting manner, I’ll talk about my favorite medspas and treatments in another newsletter.
