Mindy Austin Hair Services

This is so true and close to my heart!

😘 repost .the.alchemist ...

Today, I did the most sentimental blowdry yet of my career. I have been blessed to have this client for several years. When she first started coming to me, we would chat a little bit during our time together. Nothing too heavy, just about the weather and how our days were going. Fairly quickly though the verbal communication became less and less and we both enjoyed quiet relaxation time when we were together. I soon learned from her daughter that she was progressing in dementia, which made sense as to why we didn’t chat during our appointments anymore. I really look forward to our time together though. Cut and color every 4 weeks and weekly shampoo and blowouts in between. My most frequent guest. We haven’t made small talk in a few years. Eventually a caregiver started accompanying her to her appointments. My client would sit in the chair and just trust me to take care of her. No consultation needed. She just depended on me to do whatever she needed. Today, as my assistant was shampooing her hair, I was told by her caregiver that my most wonderful client wouldn’t be coming back next week. Her and her husband need more full time assistance and will be moving a few hours away to be closer to their kids. It hit me hard. It hit me even harder when I heard that my client didn’t know that this would be her last appointment with me and that we weren’t going to tell her so that she wouldn’t get sad. I understood. Dementia is complicated and upsetting. But let me tell you, I couldn’t help but cry as I blowdried her hair for the last time. My client keeps her eyes closed during the blowdry as she relaxes so I knew she wouldn’t see my tears, and I turned my chair so no one else in the busy salon would see either. But I privately cried as I gave her the best blowdry I could provide for the last time. I made sure to pull myself together before I turned the blowdryer off which would signal her to open her eyes. I had to blowdry my last section for a while because of that. When I glanced at her in the mirror as I blowdried she sat there peacefully, eyes closed, with a soft smile on her face. I wanted to tell her how much I appreciated her and that I would miss our peaceful visits together. I wanted to wish her the best, but instead I just said “I’ll see you soon!” And I went to the break room and let it all out. I cried so much. And as I told my salon team why I was crying I could see the understanding in their eyes because they have felt the same way about their clients. One of the stylists expressed it perfectly when she said, “And people think we JUST do hair.” ⁣⁣
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If you are a client of mine currently or have been in the past, please know that the connections I have made with you mean more to me than I can say. It’s not about hair. I appreciate you and love you all, thank you for letting me be a part of your lives.⁣⁣
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•I originally posted this one year ago today. I still think about this guest often and am so so grateful for the impact that she and this experience had on me.

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