Episode 44: A Psychologist's Tips On Managing The "Corona-Coaster"

We discuss at home IPL and Hannah shares her own results. Plus! Dr Aileen Alegado joins us to chat about mental health during Covid-19

Beauty IQ Uncensored Episode 44 Transcript - 'A Psychologist's Tips On Managing The 'Corona-coaster' '

Hannah Furst:
Welcome everybody to Beauty IQ the podcast.

Joanna Flemming:
I'm your host, Joanna Fleming.

Hannah Furst:
And I am your cohost Hannah Furst. Have you seen Jo, this is a new thing on the internet and this is how I know people are clearly going crazy in lockdowns around the world. There's this new trend on Instagram, which is, what Seinfeld character are you? What Kathy & Kim character are you? What food are you? What dog are you? What cat are you? What cow are you? It's insane.

Joanna Flemming:
And it's just photos of your name over a still image.

Hannah Furst:
There's nothing to it.

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah, there's no method.

Hannah Furst:
It's like I knew when that trend started, I was like, "Okay, we've really..."

Joanna Flemming:
We've hit a low point.

Hannah Furst:
We've really hit a low point in society that this gives us so much joy.

Joanna Flemming:
I feel it was just an offshoot of memes though.

Hannah Furst:
But I'm so guilty of this. Because I go to every single one that's shared on stories and I try to find my name.

Joanna Flemming:
Same.

Hannah Furst:
And I can never find my name.

Joanna Flemming:
I found you on Kath & Kim the other day I was scrolling from my-

Hannah Furst:
Why didn't you send it to me.

Joanna Flemming:
Let me see if I can find it for you now. And I'll send it to you. Hang on one sec.

Hannah Furst:
Okay. All right. Let me have a look.

Joanna Flemming:
This is so you.

Hannah Furst:
Oh, actually that is me. That's like me when I go, "What? What?"

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah it is. A 100% it's your face. We'll share that to our stories when this episode comes out so that people can vote. Oh my God, that looks like you. Anyway, what is on today's episode Hannah?

Hannah Furst:
On today's episode, we're talking about at home IPL, which I have been doing in isolation. We are also talking to a clinical psychologist on the corona-coaster as she calls it. And of course the products we didn't know we needed.

Joanna Flemming:
I'm glad that we are talking about this topic today because I always say that laser hair removal was the best thing I ever did as an 18 year old girl. And I really haven't had to have mine touched up very much in the last how old am I now? That would have been nine years ago now.

Hannah Furst:
Yeah, that's amazing.

Joanna Flemming:
I was really intrigued when we got this IPL machine because I have always been, "No, surely they don't work." I've had that medical grade laser that (beep) works. We know it works, but does the IPL actually work? You've been using it Hannah.

Hannah Furst:
I have been.

Joanna Flemming:
And I'm now tempted to get it so that I can do my arms.

Hannah Furst:
Yeah. So basically we went into lockdown, and I literally straightaway messaged our buying team and was like, "Can you please get an at home IPL device?" And they did. And it's called selfie stick. And I'm one of those people-

Joanna Flemming:
Selfie Skin. You said selfie stick.

Hannah Furst:
Selfie stick, Selfie Skin. Okay. It's called Selfie Skin. I was writing a article for it, but I actually had to use it for six weeks to see if it actually worked. And you can't really tell on the areas that you've got laser hair removal because your hair is so thin in areas that... My legs hardly have any hair. So I've just been topping up my legs, my Brazilian, and my under arms with the machine just for good measure. But what I did was I shaved my arms and I did my arms from scratch. I've only waxed my arms. I've never done hair removal, laser hair removal on there. And within six weeks, I think I probably did six treatments. You recommended to do 12 treatments to get the best results. We'll put a link in the episode notes, so you can see the before and afters, it really, really works. You saw the photos, right?

Joanna Flemming:
Yep. And I was convinced.

Hannah Furst:
It wasn't completely gone, but the hair was significantly reduced. Not that there's anything wrong with arm hair, but I've always waxed my arm hair.

Joanna Flemming:
Yep. Same. Everyone has a personal preference on body hair. Let's just put that out there.

Hannah Furst:
There's actually nothing wrong with arm hair whatsoever. But it's up to you, whatever your personal preference.

Joanna Flemming:
A good point on IPL versus laser as well as you just said then that it reduced the hair. When I was back in clinic years ago, we used to call IPL, laser hair reduction and then actual medical grade laser, laser hair removal. So that's a really good comparison of the two technologies I think it's the wavelengths that they use for a medical grade laser are different to what they use for IPL. Because IPL can be used for hair. It can be for age spots. It can be for general tone of the skin as well. So it's not just for hair removal either.

Hannah Furst:
You definitely want to do a patch test to assist your skin's tolerance. As you can imagine, I did not do this and I did my legs on the highest setting, my whole leg on the highest settings first. Well, it kind of was a burn. You know when you get laser at the clinic and they turn it up really high and you get those red kind of bumps and lumps. Looks like a rash because I literally did not check how my skin would react to the highest setting first. So that's the first thing that you need to do. The second thing that I've been doing is I've been using the Skinstitut Laser Aid to soothe the area afterwards. I specifically used that on the time that I used it on the highest settings. You can use it on your face, but don't use it in your eyes. I actually wore sunglasses when I was doing it.

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah. That's a good idea.

Hannah Furst:
So don't expect that you would get results straight away. You need to use it every week for about 12 weeks and then monthly for three months after that. And I've really noticed, I think within six weeks, I started to see a reduction in the hair on my arms. Same as laser hair removal, please remove all fake tan on the areas. And I have to repeat this, do not use on tattoo's because I nicked one of my tattoos. I wasn't being careful. And I just was like, "Whatever." And I nicked the end of a tattoo. And it burnt the skin.

Joanna Flemming:
Owie.

Hannah Furst:
Avoid using it over dark freckles or moles. And that's really the main things that I found to be the most helpful, but really you've got to check your skin's tolerance before moving the setting up. And I don't use-

Joanna Flemming:
Definitely.

Hannah Furst:
... I use the second or third setting on my face because I don't want to end up with any red irritation or rash on my face.

Joanna Flemming:
And just being realistic about expectations as well with how much it's going to reduce the hair too. Don't expect to have a completely hair-free Brazilian after three sessions. That's not going to happen.

Hannah Furst:
The thing that I'm not sure about is the fact that if you get laser hair removal in clinic, if you're then using an IPL one at home, is it like two different modalities? So like it's not working. I just wasn't sure what the deal was with that.

Joanna Flemming:
I don't think it's so much that it's not working, but you're right. There's two different wavelengths of light. Good question. Probably for a laser therapist to answer. One of my friends the other day before we went into Lockdown 2.0, sent me a message and she was like, "Hey, I've just had some laser and I think the lady might have burnt my bum hole." I was like, "Okay." She's like, "It's really sore."

Hannah Furst:
That's happened to me before.

Joanna Flemming:
She was like it really hurts. And I was like, "Okay, come pass my house. I'll give you..." I gave her some soothing gel, but it's just like... It's like Laser Aid. Just like an aloe vera gel, but she came good in a couple of days. And she was like, "It hasn't grown back. That was amazing. I'd be happy for her to burn my bum hole every time I went, if it meant nothing was going to grow back." You want to say the before and afters and read my full verdict, there's also a link to any question that you have about IPL, which we're not going to obviously read through here. But if you've got all the questions that you might have on IPL, there's a link through to our ultimate guide on that.

Joanna Flemming:
So we'll pop the links in the episode notes, if you are interested in learning more about Selfie Skin. All right. So today's topic is probably a little bit more relevant for those of us in Victoria, but still relevant to everyone around Australia at the moment. Today, we have joining us Dr. Aileen Alegado clinical psychologist at Mindset Psychology in Sydney. Now welcome to the show, Aileen, thank you for joining us today.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Thank you very much for having me.

Joanna Flemming:
We thought we'd invite you on because Hannah and I've spoken about this-

Hannah Furst:
We need this.

Joanna Flemming:
... in episodes previously that mental health wise, it's been a real struggle being in COVID times. It's very uncertain. There's a lot of anxiety.

Hannah Furst:
Are you sure? Are you sure it's uncertain, Jo? I'm not sure if it's uncertain, I haven't heard that before.

Joanna Flemming:
Well, we said it's unprecedented Hannah. And we saw Aileen that you've been sharing a lot of really helpful tips on Instagram for managing stress and anxiety during this period. And you've also written an ebook called Coping Through COVID, which I've had a flick through as well. Can you explain to us from a psychological point of view, why a lot of us are experiencing really heightened anxiety at the moment, obviously aside from the obvious?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Yeah. Look when it first happened as a psychologist, all I could think about was no one in the world that is alive has ever experienced anything this. So from the psychology of how to deal with a challenge this is going to be phenomenal. So I started off thinking what will be the implications in regards to isolation, mental health, the uncertainty, the lack of control, all of which we're all going to be faced with as this starts to unfold. And hence, when I started writing the newsletter, initially the ebook was meant to be a newsletter that turned into an ebook because I thought there was so many things that I couldn't exclude. Once you start starting about writing at what are the things that people really need to pay attention to, to be aware of, because this is going to be a challenge for each and every single one of us. If we're going to go through this and successfully onto the other side,

Hannah Furst:
For those of us based in Victoria like Jo and I were in the middle of Lockdown 2.0. And I think what's happened for us is that we had a really, really brief stint of freedom, which was like you're back into it. And then all of a sudden it's taken away from you. So is it normal to feel more stressed now than at the beginning of the crisis?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Yes. It's definitely normal to be more stressed now and to be more anxious because if you think about it, when it first started, no one really knew what was going on. And at least there was this solace that we found in each other, that we're all in it together because everyone we knew was having to go through the same difficulties. And so having to do it again and having survived the trauma there was an element of novelty with it that I think some people, obviously, tried to do the best that they could not knowing what's on the other side. And having survived that to be on the other side and have that little bit of freedom and relief only to actually be put back into lockdown. It really is tough.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
It really triggers emotions of stress and helplessness. There's some injustice that comes up for some people, which you could totally understand and is totally normal. And the difficulty is that not everybody is in the same position. As humans we can't stop ourselves from comparing to others, knowing what they are able to do. And then the fairness of what you're not able to do.

Hannah Furst:
Yeah. I must say I've been following a few people on Instagram and I'm thinking I'm going to have to hide them because they're all holidays in Noosa. And I'm like I can't look at that right now.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
From a perspective of someone from Sydney, I can just tell you that everybody's in Sydney is I'm on edge about these things as well. So they're not as smug as maybe Victorians feel because we only know it's probably a matter of time that it's probably going to happen to us. And so that's a very different psychology that people are going through. Where they're have their freedom, but they're apprehensive and they don't know what to do with it.

Joanna Flemming:
Can you recommend any strategies for remaining positive or keeping feelings of stress at bay and trying to stay motivated and creative while we're living in this limbo, which is kind of applicable for everybody around Australia, because as you just said, you're anticipating something more to happen. And we're living in this space where we don't know when lockdown is going to end, what can you recommend?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Well, that's right. The first rule of thumb in terms of anything that we can't control. These things are happening and everybody's in the same position, but what we have control over is our mindset and the beliefs and value that we hold. So being able to focus on the opportunities that this locked down might be able to give us. And we're having to dig deep with these things because we know how difficult it is. But if we look at our opportunities to be able to take a break, reevaluate and reassess what we're doing in life, being able to live in a very simplistic or minimal way. Some people would value the time that they get to spend with family that often we don't get in a very distracted, very busy world. There's a lot of positive things that if we are actually true to focus on what we have, what we can be grateful for that generally helps with motivation. And for us to continue to push through, be creative, be in a positive mindset and get the most out of a really bad situation.

Hannah Furst:
On to, exercise. So I think the hardest thing for me was that I went back to the gym and then literally I think two weeks later the gym was closed again. It's probably not the right time to stop exercising now that we've gone back into lockdown. So can you explain to us how exercise can impact anxiety and depression, and the kind of exercise that you might recommend during this time?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Yeah. So exercise is one of those things that I call it the Panadol or the panacea of any mental health issues. The first thing that you would be asked if you go to a psychologist and you're having mood problems, or you're not happy with something, the question will be, "Do you get some exercise?" And that is because it releases endorphins that are feel good hormones. Most people generally know that, but not only that, it actually helps physiologically other functions of your body and your brain. So it helps with digestion. It helps with clarity of thinking. It helps with your sleeping. It also influences if you exercise, it will influence your choices in terms of your eating. So these are basic fundamentals for stress management and obviously the more able you are to manage stress, the better you are in any situation, how difficult it is, and it helps you as well in terms of immunity. And so you're less likely to be sick.

Hannah Furst:
In terms of the kinds of exercise because I'm not at the gym anymore, so I'm just walking. So my heart rate isn't really going up. Is that okay? Is it okay to walk and do yoga rather than doing some high impact exercise? Or do you recommend a bit of both?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
They say that depending on how much your heart rate can get going. So you can have intermittent fast walking in terms of having your heart rate go up. It really is a measure of how much you can circulate blood in your body. So not leisurely walks, but much more probably brisk walks. That's just more for your cardio. And if you're looking at being able to strengthen parts of your muscles. For example, if you're sitting down all day in a desk, it's probably not a bad idea to obviously walk so you can move around. But it's probably not a bad idea to probably do some back strengthening exercise like lifting weights, or maybe doing some core and strengthening for being able to stay upright in such a sitting sedentary type of environment.

Joanna Flemming:
Some good tips there for anyone that is feeling really down and out. And just feels they aren't really coping very well with the current situation. What resources can you recommend for anyone in that position?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
So the good thing about the pandemic is once it happened a lot of health and non-for-profit organizations have rallied to actually get some really useful materials and resources that they've put out for free. So it's just a matter of looking for reputable sources. There's a lot of them on the internet, places like Butterfly Foundation, Lifeline, the World Health Organization has put really useful resources there for mental health. Beyond Blue, Center for Clinical Interventions and various psychological societies that have helped in terms of giving resources to people to use. And if all that fails because often it can be overwhelming to have so much information come to you from the internet, talking to people that are of health backgrounds, such as your GPs, Allied Health Professionals, they often would have resources that they use, or they can refer you to. That will be really helpful. And because they know you often those resources that get given to you also is quite individualized rather than a generic one.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
So I recommend that. And also one of the positive things that the government had done in this pandemic is to make telehealth available for everybody, which it didn't use to be. It used to be only for the people in rural areas. So what that means is that if you don't even want to go to your GP or you don't really feel comfortable leaving the house, or you're in lockdown, that you don't have to suffer in silence, that you can actually go online, find an online therapist telehealth, and that will be possibly bulk billed or included with Medicare rebates, which is really good. And I encourage people to try that out and keep looking for the right person that is the right one for you, even if sometimes the first of the second time, sometimes isn't a good match.

Hannah Furst:
Yeah. In your ebook you raised some really interesting points around human behavior and social interactions. How does isolation typically affect people?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
So I talked about in my ebook, how historically isolation has been done as a form of punishment because humans have a core human need of connection. So whether that's connection to nature, connection to a purpose or a meaning into something. So if you think about corporal punishment where you get put in a box with no light stimulation, not that that's what lockdown looks like to us. This is actually when people are devoid of any stimulation, that's really at the core of what makes us fearful of isolation. Because fundamentally even if we were introverts or extroverts, we still want to have a form of connection to something. To feel that we are a part of something bigger and to feel isolated or alone is actually one of the greatest human fears as well. So that creates depression and anxiety for most people that have that belief.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
So isolation effects people generally quite negatively, but in saying that the people that have embraced isolation and I'm going to change the word isolation to solitude, which is more of a willingness to focus on thinking or a project or a idea. And this is when you have philosophers, and inventors, and brilliant minds like Albert Einstein come up with creative ideas that are out there that the universe or the world finds pretty novel. And they've managed to come up with those ideas in isolation or solitude in the absence of the distraction and the business and expectations of the world. So there's a lot of opportunity for creativity. If you can create that space in a positive manner.

Joanna Flemming:
Well, there you go, honey, you should be writing your romance novel. I've started that, right. So around working from home, Hannah and I are really grateful to still be working and have something to fill our days. But there is a difficulty with separating work life from home life. I've seen a little saying going around that working from home should be changed to living at work. Do you have any tips for breaking that up, and making that process seem a little bit more separated?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Yeah. I think we can look at it more in a good way or in a bad way where we are obviously stuck in one place, and then we don't have that variety. And we don't have that stimulation and the movement that we usually would have if we're moving from home to office, but we can actually mimic that if we set it up in terms of routines. So thinking about when are you most energetic and then putting activities in the time of the day that you find that you are most productive at work, which obviously wasn't available to us before. We're not confined to our 9:00 to 5:00 working as long as you can get your work done. And that might mean that you might be working until late at night, but you can actually get a lot of your other things done during the day.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
So there's some positive things there. If you actually really look at your own productivity throughout the day, creating routines around that, when are you most energized? When do you need rest? Being able to move energies around and set some boundaries or parameters so that you have a workstation, you get ready for your workstation. And then when it's lunchtime making sure that you move away from your desk the same way that you will probably leave the office to go and get lunch. So move away and then have lunch, and make a personal call during that time, so it feels a break. And then being able to structure your day to what works for you.

Hannah Furst:
Something that I've personally found really hard. I don't know if other people feel the same, but I used to be able to work really long hours and it didn't really affect me. I'd be at the office until 6:00 or 7:00 and the day would just fly. But now I find it really hard to put in those like... And maybe it's a good thing that I'm out of that habit, but I'm finding it really impossible to really do those solid day like that. There's something about being at home and being isolated, at six o'clock I'm like, "I have to stop now." Is that normal?

Dr Alieen Alegado:
That is totally normal. Because you've got to think about isolation in itself is exhausting. I don't think people think isolation as being exhausting because it's restful, but resting and isolation are two different things. We have an idea in our head of how to be spending time. And then we get overwhelmed by how to do that in an environment that is novel and new to us. For you probably being in the office, got you in a mindset or a state of flow that staying an extra couple hours is not really going to make a difference. But once you're at home, there's nothing really that demarcates that for you. And so the mindset or the flow is probably very different.

Joanna Flemming:
So if you want to have a read of Dr. Aileen Alegado's ebook, it's called Coping Through COVID, and you can find that on Mindset Psychology. So thank you so much for joining us today Aileen.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Thank you so much for having me. It's been wonderful to chat and just to normalize everything. Everybody is just going through the ups and downs. I call it the corona co-star, where some days you feel good and you're onto it. And then some days you just don't really feel doing anything and that's okay. We just need to practice some kindness and compassion.

Joanna Flemming:
Thanks so much.

Dr Alieen Alegado:
Thank you.

Hannah Furst:
I thought that was really interesting Jo, and I really appreciate you choosing that guest.

Joanna Flemming:
That's okay.

Hannah Furst:
I really liked it. I still think there's some stigma or there's maybe some people still feel stigma around admitting to the fact that they see a psychologist, or even feeling a bit of shame around seeing a psychologist. Like there's something wrong with you. I've had a lot of sleep problems. So I've always seen someone, it took a really long time to find someone good though. You don't really gel with a lot-

Joanna Flemming:
It's like dating. You've got to find the right person for you. If you're opening up about your life, you want to click with that person in some way.

Hannah Furst:
I have found the best, I'm so happy with him actually. And I go maybe every month. And you actually get 10 sessions subsidized by the government each year. so go see your GP. And I think now, is seriously now of all times to be using those 10 sessions. I would highly recommend particularly if you're in Victoria right now.

Joanna Flemming:
And some work places as well offer a program called EAP, which we have at Adore Beauty, which is really, really great. And it gives you the option to source that support through your employer. So just check with your work whether they offer EAP, but that's also a really good option.

Hannah Furst:
I spoke to our HR department actually because I was having a little bit of a hard... I was having a harder time than you I think. We had a couple of reviews that were quite personal and I literally did not sleep. And I was like, "I don't want to do this anymore." I was like I'm quitting the podcast, but I didn't guys because there's more positive than anything else.

Joanna Flemming:
But it is really hard to see that negativity sometimes when you're trying to put content out there. And you put yourself on the line and that's really hard to hear sometimes.

Hannah Furst:
And I don't mind constructive feedback, but when it's directed at you as a person it can be really challenging. And actually our HR manager who actually was on My Kitchen Rules experienced something really similar. She experienced something really similar, where people were sending her horrific things on the internet, so she had actually recommended that I use the EAP. But I said I'm already seeing someone. I don't need to use it.

Joanna Flemming:
If you're having a hard time, again, just seek support. As Aileen said, you don't have to suffer in silence. You can reach out to someone. And it is really helpful, both from mine and Hannah's perspectives. It's absolutely worth seeing someone and talking about how you're feeling. So we hope everyone's doing okay. So my product I didn't know I needed is... And I've done this before The Beauty Chef GLOW Inner Beauty Powder. So the reason I'm doing this again is because they have reformulated the original GLOW from when we first did that episode with Carla, is that episode two or three or-

Hannah Furst:
Four.

Joanna Flemming:
... four. I got there in the end. So if you want to listen to that full episode about The Beauty Chef, go and listen to it because it's really interesting if this is the kind of stuff you're into. But I've been taking GLOW for years and have been obsessed with it. It honestly made such a difference to my digestive health. I can't speak highly enough of it. They've just done a new formula. So it actually tastes a heat better. I actually put mine into orange juice with pulp as I think I mentioned on that episode, that that's my little trick to being able to stomach it because it is a bit gritty. And it has a specific flavor. So if you're not used to taking supplements, you might not like it. But that's my little trick for taking it really easily.

Joanna Flemming:
And they've added, I think it's provitamin A and biotin as well. So it's better for your hair, skin and nails too, as well as being good for your skin. But the biggest difference for me was that because it's got the pre and probiotics in it that made such a difference to my gut health. And I just am obsessed with it. And also now I've got my dad onto it and he takes it every day.

Hannah Furst:
No, really? Cute.

Joanna Flemming:
He takes it in orange juice as well everyday. So he said he's feeling better too. So if a 65 year old man is saying that, then you should probably try it.

Hannah Furst:
Oh, he's joining the bougie bitches.

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah, he is. He is. And he's also started using a moisturizer as well.

Hannah Furst:
Ah, bless.

Joanna Flemming:
And he uses his SPF. Anyway, that's me over with. Hannah, tell us.

Hannah Furst:
It's taken me a while to get here. And I was like, "Oh man, I should have done this the week that it was all the big news and everyone was talking about Instagram." But I just didn't. Anyway, it is the Dyson Corrale and the reason I wanted to try it was because I'm going through this whole trying to grow healthy hair. But you can't change how fast your hair grows, but you can actually improve the quality of the hair that you're growing. I've got this whole new hair routine. If you've seen my hair two years ago, you would understand-

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah. She put it on her Instagram page.

Hannah Furst:
How bad was it Jo.

Joanna Flemming:
Go and look at it. Go and look at it guys.

Hannah Furst:
What I'm doing this time around because I'm trying to grow my hair in preparation for becoming a hippie in Thailand because that's in a couple of years time. Because we won't be able to travel. So in preparation for that journey, I'm growing my hair. So anyway, I thought as part of that, I would try out the Dyson Corrale because it's got these flexible plates, which doesn't really mean much. But what that actually does is it controls the head so well that you only have to go over each spot once or twice.

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah. Because you know how, when you're straightening your hair and the bits come out the side as you clamp down, that doesn't happen it controls the hair.

Hannah Furst:
It's really amazing. The way that it does that. I think that's the best thing about it is the level of control that you have over each section of hair. So I only had to go through most sections once. And so I have very frizzy hair, frizzy, curly, coarse hair. That's unheard of for me. I usually have to go over at least four or five times. And I wish I didn't have to, but I do. So you also don't really have to blow dry it beforehand, which is good if you lazy. And the other really good thing about it is it's cordless. So I actually leave it charging and then I pull it off. You don't have to plug it in. You just pull it off the charge and you can sit on the couch and straighten your hair, which is just a dream for me.

Hannah Furst:
Okay. Now I have to talk about the price. This was the thing that really was a stickler for me. I just think that if you don't own a straightener and you're looking to invest in a really good straightener. And you're going to use it three, four times a week and you curl your hair with it as well. Then you may want it, you may say, "Okay, it's worth it because I'm going to be using it thousands of times in the next few years." But it's $700. And so I think that it's not going to be affordable for most people.

Joanna Flemming:
We're bougie bitches, but even for our stuff that's a stretch.

Hannah Furst:
Yeah. So even for me I was like, "Yeah, that's probably out of my budget at the moment." But if you are investing $500 every time you get your hair dyed blonde, you're spending so much on having these... And then if your hair's falling out because the thing about the Corrale is you can put it on 165 degrees.

Joanna Flemming:
Which is much better for damaged hair.

Hannah Furst:
A hairdresser told me a story. This girl came in every... I think every six weeks to get her blonde redone. And then because it started falling out, she was going to Sinclair Dermatology. She just was spending so much money on her hair falling out because the bleach had damaged it so badly. So, look in that case... Do you know what I mean? I think it's an incredible straightener, I'm so blown away by the technology.

Joanna Flemming:
One thing I really would've liked to see them do is use air technology in some way. I walked into the briefing going, "Oh, is it going to be some kind of vacuum for your hair?" But it wasn't. But still the flexible plates are pretty cool.

Hannah Furst:
I'm surprised that no one has thought of it before.

Joanna Flemming:
The flexible plates?

Hannah Furst:
Because it really works. You only have to go over each section once and heat damage-

Joanna Flemming:
If you want to see these in action. We actually did a YouTube video and Yaz in our team who has wavy frizzy hair. She tried it out and gave her honest verdict on it. So if you're looking for someone, who's going to tell you everything about it and show you how it works. Go to our YouTube because she did a really cool review on it.

Hannah Furst:
I'll be using it through this the next couple of months of hair growth. So that's part of this new routine of try not to damage the hair so that you can grow really strong, healthy, luscious hair.

Joanna Flemming:
And what other products are you using?

Hannah Furst:
So I'm using the Apotecari Hair Food and Mane Event. They're my supplements. Micah from our haircare category, she swears by those supplements. And then I'm also using the Kérastase Extentioniste, I actually can't use the shampoo because I've had my keratin treatment more on that later. I know.

Joanna Flemming:
Can't wait to hear about that.

Hannah Furst:
I will be using, they've got a serum, and they've got a mask, and they've got a length caring gel cream. What about mask wearing? Have you ordered a special mask?

Joanna Flemming:
One of my really good friends is actually making them for our whole friendship group. So she's at home at the moment and she's actually, as we speak sowing us fabric masks.

Hannah Furst:
Cute.

Joanna Flemming:
I know. I thought I was so nice of her. So she's doing us all little custom facemasks so 2020 that's the world we live in.

Hannah Furst:
I think I bought one of the most... I spent so much on mine, I spent more than-

Joanna Flemming:
Really where from?

Hannah Furst:
Actually it wasn't that expensive. It was Enol, and so one of my friends she's a fashion designer. And she does suiting and she had all these really beautiful fabric that she's making masks. She's sold so many. How is she going to sew them all? I don't know, but it's blue flowers. That's the one I've ordered.

Joanna Flemming:
Cute. I've asked for a leopard one, but I also have surgical ones at home. Currently they're the best ones you can wear.

Hannah Furst:
Really.

Joanna Flemming:
Obviously you have to throw them out every time.

Hannah Furst:
Do you?

Joanna Flemming:
The surgical ones you need to throw out-

Hannah Furst:
Why?

Joanna Flemming:
... every time you use them. The fabric ones need to be three layers and you meant to wash them every day.

Hannah Furst:
Wow. Okay. I better get a few more fabric ones.

Joanna Flemming:
Yeah. Might need to.

Hannah Furst:
All right, well stay safe.

Joanna Flemming:
Yep. We'll see you next week guys. We're not going anywhere.

Hannah Furst:
Thanks everyone for joining us today.

Joanna Flemming:
Don't forget to subscribe and tell your friends. It helps other people to discover us. And also we really want to know what you thought about this podcasts so you can leave us a review. That would be much appreciated.