In today’s healthcare system, we see integrated healthcare and integrative medicine. This approach to illness is defined by a collaboration of multiple healthcare professionals and medicines, from allopathic to homoeopathic. This allows for a more multifaceted, patient-centred approach as it encompasses research and techniques from western medicine, eastern medicine, multiple cultures and newer developments. It also facilitates an approach that factors in multiple systems of the body, looking at the sum of an individual as a whole instead of just its individual parts.
Meet April, your integrated facialist
April has developed a trusted reputation, both locally and overseas, for her integrative approach to facials, working on multiple facets of the body’s health and function to improve the skin’s health, longevity, and glow.
“To me, an integrated facialist follows this same ethos, factoring in much more than just skincare products and topical treatments to achieve skin health,” says April. The skin is a reflection of one’s internal health. When the body functions properly, the skin functions properly, so we need to look deeper than just what’s on the surface.”
April’s signature facial treatments incorporate a layered approach, combining techniques she has learned from around the world over her massive 40 year career journey.
“There are so many different facets of life that impact on how the skin looks and functions, so why would anyone attempt to treat the skin based only on how it looks on the surface? The nervous system has a massive impact, and the corticosteroid hormones produced in response to stress can wreak havoc on skin function. When the facial muscles are tight, the lymph isn’t flowing. This is just one example of how we work on numerous systems in the body, it’s much more than just a facial.”
“Some years ago, after I’d been providing facials for decades which layered together things I already knew like peels and lasers, I experienced a treatment in London that changed the way I practice today. This was my first buccal facial experience, and though it was executed fairly poorly and without much love, it truly felt like a whole body experience. This was my light bulb moment that made me realise that I need to be treating the skin from the inside out, further laying my clinical skin knowledge, products and technologies with muscle work and lymphatic drainage. Additionally factoring in the client’s lifestyle, physical health, genetics (having studied in all of these areas) means that my facial treatments are a truly holistic experience, which incorporates and impacts elements of the entire body and mind. This inspired me to create the term ‘Integrated Facialist’ which I use today.”
“There are steps that I take while performing my treatments which give me clues into the client’s physical health and mindset as well,” says April. “I’m always monitoring how the client breathes and moves, how they respond to touch and pressure across specific areas of the face, neck and shoulders. These, plus other more nuanced details, help paint me a picture of what’s going on in my clients’ lives, and what I can do to help them. I’m always happy to refer my clients to other healthcare professionals as well, if I discover certain health concerns which are out of my scope of practice. I often make discoveries like this just by looking at their skin or monitoring their movements during treatment – which is exactly why the holistic approach is so important. Everything is linked.”