Many of us have been putting off things like haircuts, massages and minimally invasive procedures. How to safely resume them, and why they’re important.
Miranda DiGiacomo, hair stylist at Louis Anthony Salon in Tonawanda, often posts before-and-after photos of her clients on her social media.
As the world begins getting back to the “new normal” all of us are excited to start back doi…
The images demonstrate her talent for trimming away scraggly dead ends and styling blondes or brunettes with sleek, healthy locks – a needed improvement to the “before” pictures, several of whom have delayed their usual trims due to Covid-19.
But to DiGiacomo, haircuts are not just for routine maintenance purposes.
She is among others in cosmetology and spa care industries to not only notice fluctuations in appointments during the pandemic, but to also emphasize the pivotal role of self-care in mental health.
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“Self-care is so underrated and overlooked when talking about overall health,” DiGiacomo said. “Not only is getting haircuts good for the health of your hair and its growth, but it’s also good for your mental health. When you look good, you feel good. That’s one of the biggest reasons I got into this industry. I love helping people feel better and more confident in the way they look.”
Like every salon and barbershop in New York, Louis Anthony Salon closed its doors from last March until June.
“People were already depressed and feeling hopeless,” DiGiacomo said, “and to not be able to do the simplest things to make us feel better, like getting a haircut or going to the gym, was very frustrating.”
Lancaster resident Josie Sonberg noted that whether venturing back outside herself, or welcoming customers to shop safely in her quaint boutique on Central Avenue in Lancaster, people going back out in the name of self-care hope to feel “alive again.”
“This year is going to be such a big year,” Sonberg said. “People are going to be coming out and they want to feel good, and they want to look good, and they want to do everything to feel alive again, because the year has been so ‘blah’ and so depressing.”
Sonberg echoed DiGiacomo, saying she notices that more people are going back out to stores and spas for the same reason: to get life back to normal.
“That’s why people are going around getting services again,” she said. “They’re getting manicures, and pedicures, and having their hair done and coming in and getting nice clothes. They don’t want to live in sweatpants anymore. They want to be in clothes where they feel good again and feel glamorous a little bit.”
When Louis Anthony reopened its doors in June 2020, they were booked for two to three months solid, DiGiacomo said – mostly regulars who missed several appointments.
But afterward, those numbers died down again. Perhaps people were scared to be in public, or were not used to getting their hair done anymore, DiGiacomo said.
Nonetheless, even after restrictions were lifted, Louis Anthony was still slow for quite a bit, even around the holidays, usually their busiest time.
Finally, in the past few months, as business has begun to pick up again, DiGiacomo informs locals of both the how-to-return steps, as well as reassurances about cleanliness.
“What I’ve been saying this whole year is to just do what makes you feel comfortable,” she said. “Hairstylists and cosmetologists have to go through sanitation training before we even get our license to practice. Of course, this past year has been unprecedented and extraordinary circumstances, which we adapted to.”
That means meeting people at their individual comfort level. DiGiacomo invites people to still wear masks even though they’re no longer required for the vaccinated, and also offers to do the same.
“I can’t speak for every stylist and every salon,” she added, “but our priority is and has always been the safety and satisfaction of our clients.”
Meanwhile, Jill Rosa, licensed massage therapist and owner of Relaxation Station in Elma, noted that a handful of regulars still came in consistently throughout the last year, adding that she feels it was somewhat of a “refuge” for them.
“There is just something about massage therapy that people feel safe, and they felt safe even during a pandemic,” Rosa said. “We did not get a lot of people saying that they were too afraid to come in.”
Safety precautions mandated by New York State were strictly followed, she said. Today, even as restrictions lift, the spa still screens people upon entry, and encourages anyone feeling ill to stay home and reschedule their appointment without penalty.
Not only did people give feedback that they felt safe, but Rosa said she believes that their visits were healing.
“We’ve all been affected by some kind of trauma the past year or two,” said Jill Rosa, owner of Relaxation Station. “I think massage therapy just helps people with that so much, and I think people were able to overcome their fears because they knew that the end result was so beneficial to them.”
“I think that massage therapy just provides such a different level of nontraditional medicine to people,” Rosa said. “We’ve all been affected by some kind of trauma the past year or two. I think massage therapy just helps people with that so much, and I think people were able to overcome their fears because they knew that the end result was so beneficial to them.”
To Rosa, it is important to get back into self-care now more than ever, also expressing relief that massage therapy is becoming more recognized by the medical field, versus being perceived as a luxury.
