Nordic House Spa

Day 4 in Maidenhead, and this lobby keeps outdoing itself. Absolutely gorgeous.

Today Petra walked us through stroke direction based on lymphatic watersheds, drawing it all directly onto our lovely TA Liv. Watching the map come together in real time, and then seeing it up close on skin, made something click that no diagram ever fully did for me.

Ended the night with dinner alongside some of the best people. Going all the way to London to take this class meant I got to make friends from all over the EU, and honestly could not be happier. These gals are absolute class! France, England, Northern Ireland, and me repping the USA. Stellar group, stellar week.


📍 Maidenhead, UK
Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving

Day 3 in Maidenhead, told in snacks and small victories.

Started the morning by finally figuring out how to put a lid on my tea without a small crisis (progress). Then into a hospital lobby so nice I had to double check I wasn't at a hotel.

Lunch was excellent, and so was the local wildlife. There was a pigeon outside eating like it also had a big class day ahead of it. Absolute unit. We were basically colleagues by the end of lunch.

Homework continued in the background and way into the night as it does.

And then, dessert. I'd heard Beard Meats Food rave about the Bischoff cheesecake here, so obviously I had to test the claim myself. Verdict: worth the hype. Pizza wasn't bad either.

Three days in, one very content pigeon, and me.


📍 Maidenhead, UK
Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving

What makes this program stand out? You watch a LIVE surgery. 👀

Day 2 in Maidenhead. That day we observed a live surgery and got to ask questions while it happened.

Watching Dr. Fulvio explain his thinking in real time, why he made certain calls, how things shifted mid-surgery, was genuinely one of the most incredible things I'd witnessed in this field. Getting to see what a patient actually goes through, and the decision-making behind it, hit different than any textbook ever could.

Huge thank you to Berkshire Grove Hospital, Dr. Fulvio, and the whole staff for hosting us. And of course, thank you to Petra for putting together an experience that is true nitty gritty learning.

People have asked me since my return what's different about Petra's class, and here's one of the answers. I have never heard of a post-op care massage focused class where you get to observe a surgery and ask questions in real time. The other thing that's unique is Petra herself, her attention to you, to detail, and her willingness to share and answer questions is what makes this class stand out.

Three days still to go at that point. Already one for the books.

📍 Maidenhead, UK
Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving

Day 2 in Maidenhead, homework and dinner YES please.

Booklet open, another day of class in the books. Ended the night with Elite Kebab, a little local spot that ruined me for gyros back home. Genuinely don't know why the US hasn't caught up on this one. It's funny because it's also one of the first things I get when going home to Denmark. Kebab pizza, yum.

And yes, the homework started. Thigh lift and lipo case study, staring at me from the desk. No peeking, want a case like this? Take the class :D

📍 Maidenhead, UK
Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving

Day 2 in Maidenhead, Aftercare Academy class in pictures.

Coffee, my trusty pencil case, and a croissant to start the morning right. Then straight into watershed anatomy on our lovely TA Liv, a full box of KT tape, and watching Petra demo a taping technique that genuinely changed how I think about taping for lymphatics.

Some days you learn something new. Some days you learn something that rearranges what you already thought you knew. This was the second kind. Even though I've taken KT taping classes before and thought I knew it all, it's honestly awesome to be proven wrong and learn something new. Petra was so kind, even when my tape was wonky.

📍 Maidenhead, UK

Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving

That night I got back from dinner with my class, our educator, and TA. It was 8:30pm, we'd started at 9am, and my brain was fully cooked.

That day's class went deep on corset making and got us all on the same page for what this class would entail. We were prepping for watching a surgery take place, and understanding how taking measurements and fitting garments connects to post-surgical care for elective and cosmetic procedures. I was tired, but it was so worth it.

Day 1, done.

📍 Maidenhead, UK
Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving

Let me take you back to Day 1 of advanced plastic surgery recovery training in Maidenhead with Petra Erving.

I walked into the hospital that morning not fully knowing what the day would hold. By the end of it we had a new booklet, a head full of knowledge, and a foam corset we built from scratch, piece by piece, right there in class.

There was something different about learning with my hands instead of just reading about it. My understanding of post-surgical support got really elevated, i have taken classes on this subject before, but the way Petra put this course together well day one blew my mind and as you will see the remaining days were no less informative and transformative.

We ended it the best way possible. A walk along the river with the group, straight into dinner together. Good people, good food, and a real day of learning behind us.

One day down, four to go.

📍 Maidenhead, UK
🎓 Training with Aftercare Academy by Petra Erving