The real difficulty comes in helping my client to feel comfortable during a painful treatment. The treatment area that comes to mind is in extractions of an active acne client. I have the perfect tools, training and skill to ease their discomfort, but they still have their nerve endings. Each impaction has to be worked on one at a time and the amount of discomfort builds with each one.

I use a very simple method: I have clients hum during the exact moment that I have to clean out the pimple or pustule. This technique works like a charm. I find that keeping the total extraction time under 12 minutes is ideal in creating less stress that my clients can tolerate.
Other areas that I find my clients need extra comfort is in the area of stress relief concerning achy, sore muscles. When I have to work on a sore muscle, the best tool I use is to distract them with a funny story while I work on the pressure points relating to the muscle. Laughter is one of the better forms of medicine.

In 1976, Shelley Hess wanted to become a medical researcher to find a cure for acne. Even with Johns Hopkins medical studies, Hess’ career path took a turn, leading her to being mentored by a Tibetan doctor on holistic practices. For 11 years she was guided into the skin care career she currently holds. Although Hess did not become a doctor, she found a way to assist thousands of men, women and children by handling many skin care problems and giving back a sense of confidence to those who found difficulty in feeling content about their appearance.