In aesthetic medicine, the patient-practitioner relationship is a significant one that is often underestimated. From the initial consultation, the client entrusts the clinician to undertake what can be a life-changing treatment for many. As an aesthetician, assessing patient mental health is paramount before agreeing to deliver an injectable procedure. 

For those patients who are good candidates for aesthetic treatments, how can such treatments improve their self-image and wellbeing? In this post, we’ll be discussing the mental and psychological benefits of aesthetic treatments.

Insecurities and a desire for change

For many patients, aesthetic treatments are viewed as a minor, profile-enhancing fix — a luxury health and wellness procedure that makes them feel empowered and confident. However, many people battle with significant physical insecurities that can become debilitating and all-consuming. For these individuals, the desire to make a material change to their appearance may be something that they have spent years considering.

Whatever your client’s reasons for undergoing Botox® or filler treatments, it’s crucial that you as the aesthetic practitioner can play an emotionally supportive role in the consultation process to put them at ease and acknowledge their fears, hopes and concerns. Aesthetic treatments are a significant investment, and patients will have spent extensive amounts of time researching clinics and providers. By choosing your clinic, they’ve trusted you with a significant aesthetic procedure that they hope will improve and enhance their quality of life.

Assessing patient mental health

As a healthcare professional, you have a clear duty of care to your patients. One of the first steps of the patient consultation process is obtaining an in-depth aesthetic and medical history within the aesthetics practice to determine whether they are a suitable candidate for treatment. 

A mental health assessment is an essential part of this discussion, and knowing the right questions to ask your client is the best way to get them to open up and establish any red flags or signs of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). This step is vital, now more than ever, as we emerge from a year of being stuck in lockdown — this trying time may have had an especially severe impact on the mental health of your patient.

Tips for completing this assessment include:

• Explore psychological reasons for treatment
• Use questionnaires or validated screening tools
• Acknowledge patient perspectives with empathy
• Use your instinct as a healthcare professional and know when to refuse treatment

Mental Health Benefits

Once you’ve identified your client as a suitable candidate for Botox® or dermal fillers, you should take the time to understand and acknowledge the mental and psychological benefits that come with cosmetic beauty treatments for many patients. Your ability to identify and discuss this with your client will build a rapport and instill a level of trust in you as an aesthetics professional.

Some of the benefits experienced by aesthetic patients include:

• Improved confidence and self-esteem – When treatments have been professionally customised and undertaken according to the patient’s requirements, they’re likely to obtain the results they sought during the consultation process. When this aesthetic ideal is reached, individuals feel more comfortable and confident in their skin. The positive mental effects of this increased confidence profoundly impact self-esteem – this can often extend to personal and professional lives.

• Better quality of life – Many people experience life-changing psychological results from their cosmetic procedures. Physical insecurities may have caused them to attempt to conceal the area of concern – this can often be done subconsciously through makeup, strategically placing hair over the face, or avoiding certain angles in photographs. With the results experienced from aesthetic medicine, individuals can be free of this insecurity and move on with their lives without continuing to worry about it.

• A renewed feeling of youth – Aesthetic treatments are often sought out by individuals who have noticed the effects of ageing on their skin. Specific cosmetic procedures give the skin a new lease of life and leave patients looking and feeling younger than their years. This physical change often alters the individual’s mindset when they look in the mirror — this is especially true for those who have experienced premature signs of skin ageing from smoking, sun damage or genetic conditions.

Summary

There’s no doubt that several mental health benefits come with receiving cosmetic procedures from a qualified professional in a safe and professional environment. As an aesthetic practitioner, understanding and acknowledging the benefits patients hope to experience is paramount to your success in the aesthetics industry. Just as important, though, is having the ability to successfully carry out a mental health assessment to ensure that every client you treat is a suitable candidate.

If you’re an aspiring aesthetician and interested in undertaking any of our aesthetic training courses, get in touch to find out more. Call us on 0203 514 8757 or email contact@acquisitionaesthetics.co.uk to speak to a member of the team.