Not used to being pampered

Did you know that when you get a facial you have to take all of your clothes off? Yeah, neither did I.

For Christmas this past year, I got a spa package gift certificate from my parents. I didn’t ask for much else, there wasn’t anything I needed. At that point, I wasn’t sleeping all that well, I was kind of stressed and I just wanted to relax. The package included a pedicure, facial, massage and a couple other services at a spa nearby.

So far I’ve used two of the five services on the gift certificate, one of which was Friday. That was when I went in and got the facial.

They call you back into a room and tell you to disrobe and put on this toga/towel-looking thing you velcro around yourself. Yes, they leave the room while you do that, and yes, the place is legit. I asked if I needed to keep my jeans on and she said I could but I’d be lying on a heated table under two blankets so it didn’t really make sense.

So. I put on the toga thing, get under the blankets and stare at the ceiling. When the girl finally comes back in, she asks me if I’ve ever gotten a facial before. I, of course, say no, couldn’t she tell by me not understanding the whole dis-robing thing?

This all sounds kinda bad. OK. Well. It wasn’t.

The facial part is pretty relaxing. They put different lotions on and exfoliate your face. Then for a little while they put a steamer about 10 inches from your face, aiming it directly at your nose. That was a little weird. Then they lay a hot washcloth on your face. They also – and this is why you wear the toga thing – massage your fingers, hands, arms and shoulders, which I was unaware of beforehand but SOOO glad was part of the deal. And it was at that point, I could have fallen asleep and then just rolled right off the table. It was THAT relaxing.

But it was only 30 minutes. So about the time I get fully relaxed and almost fall asleep, it’s over.

I go back for a massage the week of my birthday. And I believe there’s a good chance I will need to make this facial/massage thing an at least semi-regular habit. It’s expensive, but WHOA is it worth it.