Bodyside Laser Clinic in North Vancouver's Edgemont Village offers a variety of laser services – including pore reduction, reduction of fine lines and wrinkles, skin rejuvenation, and spider vein treatment for the face, body and legs – but co-owner Janet Christie specializes in hair removal. Before training to use lasers, Janet worked as a nurse and midwife in her native South Africa. She moved to Canada in 2008, and opened Bodyside along with her business partner Sarah Manvell in 2010.
Hair removal is a very personal procedure for clients at Bodyside, and it's also something that is close to Janet's heart. Janet suffers from hirsutism, which is a condition of excessive male-pattern hair growth in women. “From when I was a small child, at about five or six years old, my mum was bleaching the hair on my arms, back and chest,” explains Janet. “As I grew older, I became very aware that I was different from others. Luckily, I was never teased.”
Unfortunately, this is sometimes not the case for Janet’s clients, many of whom have been ridiculed because of unwanted body hair. Thankfully, they have Janet, who offers compassion and empathy alongside her skillful laser treatments.
