Beauty Therapy Diploma NVQ Level 2 advice

[MissClaireB]

Hi all,

I'm hoping someone may help with my anxiety and help with some advice to help me go forward.

I won't dwell too much but as a child and growing up all I wanted to do was do Beauty Therapy.

I was put down growing up and was told I was thick and ugly to persue this course and therefore doubted my own confidence and took a different route in life. Since and increasingly as growing up confidence became worse with constant reminders which affect my everyday life.
After a different career path in the travel and commercial move industry, I met some lovely people on the way who have taken beauty therapy and are beauty therapists they are people who I wouldn't say are close friends but people I am still in contact with and listening to me with the above conversations said "are you mad, go for it its brilliant" "do it"

I am 31 now without me leaving full time work I am now hopefully enrolling on a part time beauty therapy course for 1 year. My issue which is causing me so much worry is having the confidence to basically practice on paying clients who come into the college spa, the tutor also mentioned you must have lots of practice on family & friends, I'm a natural worrier and now all I can think of is I have few family and very few friends. Not from choice but mainly because i shut myself off from people thinking i'm not good enough, or expect I will be let down. Now I'm going through this thought if i dont have many people around me will I fail?? already that negative brain has come out again ,and again I have no confidence and worried that I need about 50 people outside my college course to practice on.
Can anyone help put my mind at ease with what actually happens on this course?.
All I can think off is " what if" "what if she dont like the way I do something" "what if I do something wrong" etc.
I know this sounds a bit silly coming from a girl my age but seriously I can't tell you how much I was put down as a child which has made me like this all throughout life so far or since I can remember.

Thank-you for your help

 

[JenBella]

Like you, I moved into the beauty industry later in life at the grand old age of 32!
I am also a worrier and remember feeling sick with worry about everything relating to starting my course...what if the tutors dislike me, what if I mess up, what if I wax someone's leg off, what if I burn them...absolutely everything there was possible to worry about I worried about it!
I can only say to you to go for it, tell the negative voice to get stuffed and keep reinforcing in yourself that YOU deserve to fulfill this ambition, anyone putting you down is doing so from a bad place and you shouldn't pay any heed to other people and their horrible negativity. Listen to all those people telling you to go for it- that's who you should be paying attention too, they are in the biz and they know what they are talking about.

I always wanted to work in this industry too and felt I wasn't pretty enough, skinny enough, etc etc til I just thought sod it, I'm going to do it. I made mistakes, I turned my mothers eyebrows green, I turned my friend a rather deep shade of dark dark mahogany so much so that she looked like a different race! But for every mistake you make you learn from. Tutors know that students are new to all this and it is their job to train and mentor you to the required standard. Truth is, you will make mistakes but there is nothing wrong with that! It's how you learn.

We practised on each other in class and did need people to practise on outside college too, models can be hard to find at the best of times but have a think about friends and their friends, family etc- how many models do you think you would have a pool to work from? Plus ask your college how it works with practising, how many people you need etc. I'm sure they can help, sure imagine if someone was attending from another country with no family friends etc there....
The nitty gritty is easy to work out, I found that in a class setting everyone got close and helped each other out immensely. It's quite a caring industry.

Go for it...there is nothing you can't achieve and it's better to push yourself to fulfill ambitions rather than look back in later years and think What if?

 

[MissClaireB]

Thank-you for reply, made perfect sense and I really apprecaite your time to reply to me. Actually made me get teary just that actually someone replied to me, but you also made me crack up at the little mistakes.

So pleased for you that you had the "sod it" attitude too and managed to fulfil your dream and hope all is going for you?

It was actually my family who took the constant 'mick' out of me not just for beauty but through everything I did.

Nevermind here and now is what I need to think about.
I can and will ask family and friends and their friends I feel like a burden on people and kind of expect that I will be let down without me asking so assuming that people will say yes and then say no or let me down when it actually comes to it.
It's also having that confidence to be forward with people when applying things whether it be nails,makeup etc I'm already thinking how I need to apply it or hold their fingers/hands etc lol it's mad I haven't even started yet and i'm driving myself insane and I have the enrolment form ready to post and I'm still debating, even though I past my exam last week at the course interview and was accepted but will only have a garunteed place when this is sent.

 

[JenBella]

Send it!
Honestly if this is something you want to do then go for it! You sound so like me, not wanting to be a burden, people letting you down and all that.
From a personal point of view getting qualified and setting up on my own has been the hardest but most fulfilling thing I have ever done. Actually fulfilling the ambition gave me a great sense of achievement and boosted my self esteem.
Yes it is hard doing something totally new but once you do it, then it's no longer new and you build from there. Don't worry too much about how you position hands and all that, that's what the classroom is there for and believe me you will surprise yourself.
Some of my models let me down and it was incredibly frustrating but you forget about them and get on with it. A lot of the girls in my class got stuck for models and we all helped out by asking our friends etc to come in. People love a treatment. I remember reading something on here were someone mentioned Fake it til you make it...and that made a lot of sense to me. Those nervous worried feelings inside, nobody knows you are feeling them, so put your chin up and take those first steps..you will mess up, people will let you down but you will come out the other end feeling amazing and it will really help you grow as a person and allow you to perhaps leave that person who still listens to what she was told as a kiddie. As hard as it is to grow up in a dysfunctional environment you can choose to give those people control over your life now or show them all how wrong they were.
I look forward to reading future posts telling us all about how the course is going and if you managed to turn anyone's eyebrows green!
And this site is fantastic for learning, so many threads on every topic you could imagine, amazing industry icons helping and mentoring..it's a gold mine!

 

[MissClaireB]

What a lovely person you are and what truly nice words to say, you are right it's better to try then never knowing. So glad that you turned it around and now you have your own business that's so great and really pleased for you.
Unfortunately I am always thinking what others are thinking of me,but like what you said I just have to try and keep my head up and keep positive and not to be afraid to ask for help.
Yes this site looks good and will be looking at it quite a bit I should imagine,and will try and update where I can.
Thank-you very much for your time and advice but above all listening it goes along way and I appreciate that.

 

[Studio One]

I know exactly how you feel, I felt the same way before I started at collage at the grand old age of 37 and qualified at 40. Now I see it as one of the best things I have done. Like you I felt I did not fit the bill, older, not that pretty, quiet and shy, but once you start, you come out of your shell a little at a time.

I too don't have that many friends to call on as models but you will still get through remember the girls you meet at collage will be glad of some pampering if you need to practise and you won't be the only one over 30, that also worried me before I started and I found that there were about 7-8 of us "mature students". We all got on well with each other and with the younger girls, so no need to panic.

I am now 7years down the line and have been running my own salon for years now. If I can do it then so can you.

Good luck and keep us posted with you're progress. Remember we're all here to help if you need us.

 

[MissClaireB]

Thank-you so much for your lovely comments also. That is so nice to hear that you done this and the position you are in now is so nice and really pleased for you.
I will keep you updated and it's just so nice to have people such as yourselves and theother lady who takes their time to read and listen and respond to me.
Well with good advice hopefully I can do this and take a chance on something that means so much to me.

 

[LauraC]

Hi Claire, I'm starting my level 2 NVQ in September, I'm 32 and like you my self confidence is pretty low, I'm going to be in the same position with models and for the same reasons as yourself, some of the things you have written sound like I wrote them.
I'm not being a great help to you, but I wanted to let you know that reading your thread and the other ladies replies has helped me feel not so alone, silly and like I'm too old to be starting training now!

This is my first ever post on SG too!

I hope you get that enrolement form sent ASAP.

Laura x

 

[MissClaireB]

Ahh thank-you Laura, shame you feel the same its not a nice feeling is it when you want something so bad but rather than just do it we think too much.
It dosne't matter about not helping now but I guess going forward we can help each other I guess I'm sure we'd probably need advice from one another maybe one of us is stronger at one subject than the other.


Thank-you for your support also, such really nice people I have had comments with so far and yes first day posting lol

Good luck to you too Laura, where will you be studying?

 

[sammi_xxx]

I know exactly how you feel hun, as I was growing up, I didn't have much confidence, got the mickey taken out of me all of the time in school, I thought I was ugly too - I still feel the same way now but after doing a beauty therapy course in college it made me realise everybody is different and my tutor gave me the confidence to go further.

I'm only 20 at the moment and didn't do anything at all when I left school as I thought I was thick, my GCSE's where rubbish! So I sort of gave up on myself.
Until one day my mum suggested I did nails..
So I had a look into it and decided that was what I wanted to do, sod school and anybody else!!

Also need to mention, I have only 2 best friends, one is a lad and the other is a girl - but not too keen on beauty.
Other people I meet are just those I get along with.

I start my NVQ Level 2 Nail Services in Sept and I honestly can't wait, I do have to work on paying clients this time around but with the help of tutors and other people around me my confidence has grown and I know I can do it.
The closest people too me are a huge help, they support me alot, my mum, dad, my sister and my boyfriend.

I'm so glad I decided to take a massive leap and go for it because if you don't, some day you will regret it.

Hope I helped xxxx

 

[billie173]

Hi all,

I'm hoping someone may help with my anxiety and help with some advice to help me go forward.

I won't dwell too much but as a child and growing up all I wanted to do was do Beauty Therapy.

I was put down growing up and was told I was thick and ugly to persue this course and therefore doubted my own confidence and took a different route in life. Since and increasingly as growing up confidence became worse with constant reminders which affect my everyday life.
After a different career path in the travel and commercial move industry, I met some lovely people on the way who have taken beauty therapy and are beauty therapists they are people who I wouldn't say are close friends but people I am still in contact with and listening to me with the above conversations said "are you mad, go for it its brilliant" "do it"

I am 31 now without me leaving full time work I am now hopefully enrolling on a part time beauty therapy course for 1 year. My issue which is causing me so much worry is having the confidence to basically practice on paying clients who come into the college spa, the tutor also mentioned you must have lots of practice on family & friends, I'm a natural worrier and now all I can think of is I have few family and very few friends. Not from choice but mainly because i shut myself off from people thinking i'm not good enough, or expect I will be let down. Now I'm going through this thought if i dont have many people around me will I fail?? already that negative brain has come out again ,and again I have no confidence and worried that I need about 50 people outside my college course to practice on.
Can anyone help put my mind at ease with what actually happens on this course?.
All I can think off is " what if" "what if she dont like the way I do something" "what if I do something wrong" etc.
I know this sounds a bit silly coming from a girl my age but seriously I can't tell you how much I was put down as a child which has made me like this all throughout life so far or since I can remember.

Thank-you for your help

Hi love go for it I did mine last year passed April best thing I did I'm starting my level 3 in sept good luck xxxx

 

[billie173]

Hi love go for it I did mine last year passed April best thing I did I'm starting my level 3 in sept good luck xxxx

By the way I was 29 when I started mine had a baby then thought i would follow my dreams x

 

[beautybyK]

I have terrible anxiety and had exactly the same thoughts as you before I started. I just finished my level 2 last month and I am going back for level 3 in September. I am so glad I pushed myself to do it as its one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. Yes at times its stressful but you have so much support from others in your class and the tutors. My advice to you is go for it! If you don't you will always regret it as you will never know but if its not for you you can always leave. My confidence has increased so much and my anxiety is finally on its way out and I believe its down to completing my level 2. Sorry if this doesn't make much sense iam on my phone lol. If you need more advice or even just a wee chat feel free to pm me xx

 

[MissClaireB]

you girls are so incredibly supportive its unreal and I can't tell you how much this means to me and didn't realise how many people felt the same but from many directions and walks of life it's overwhelming and I cant tell you how much I appreciate everybodys time and consideration to reply.

Sad I know but sniffling away at my computer because I just didn't think anyone would respond at all and again think that "who would want to listen to that boring person" this is how I think constantly.

I have read all your comments and each of you have each had your own inspiring stories and this has really touched me.

Thank-you so much, I really am truly grateful.

 

[sammi_xxx]

you girls are so incredibly supportive its unreal and I can't tell you how much this means to me and didn't realise how many people felt the same but from many directions and walks of life it's overwhelming and I cant tell you how much I appreciate everybodys time and consideration to reply.

Sad I know but sniffling away at my computer because I just didn't think anyone would respond at all and again think that "who would want to listen to that boring person" this is how I think constantly.

I have read all your comments and each of you have each had your own inspiring stories and this has really touched me.

Thank-you so much, I really am truly grateful.

Awww your gonna make me cry!! :sad:

 

[billie173]

you girls are so incredibly supportive its unreal and I can't tell you how much this means to me and didn't realise how many people felt the same but from many directions and walks of life it's overwhelming and I cant tell you how much I appreciate everybodys time and consideration to reply.

Sad I know but sniffling away at my computer because I just didn't think anyone would respond at all and again think that "who would want to listen to that boring person" this is how I think constantly.

I have read all your comments and each of you have each had your own inspiring stories and this has really touched me.

Thank-you so much, I really am truly grateful.

What college u looking at x

 

[LauraC]

Claire, I think this couse is going to do your confidence the world of good, you sound like such a sweet, humble girl and I find it incredibly brave that you have posted this very personal topic.
I'm happy for you that so many ladies have come forward with thier support and stories.
This thread has really hit home for me and is really helpful to know I'm far from alone.

 

[JenBella]

Totally agree with Laura, fulfilling your ambition will be the making of you. I also think its incredibly brave in how honest you have been in your posts.
Think of this forum as your support clan, here to help you on your way and to answer questions and give advice and experience.
If you ever need any advice or have questions or just want a bit of a chat feel free to PM me.

 

[laurakate]

Big hugs going out to so many of you on this thread.

I notice that on days where I'm not confident it is often because I have that niggle in my head about not being good enough. I think some of that is derived from the fact that I came into beauty later in life (i know 22 isn't late but it's not early either). Like there are times where I feel guilty because being from an academic background, I feel that a lot of people didn't think I was doing the right thing in doing beauty (including some tutors!)

The frustrating thing is that it's really hard to silence that horrible voice in your head that says you're not good enough. Further to that it can make you feel more vulnerable to any critisism that you may or may not recieve at some point.

It's not easy. Maybe if it's easy people take it for granted. Like I know lots of people who went onto beauty straight after they left school and there are times when I think "you don't know how lucky you are" but then I think "well maybe they don't appreciate being in beauty so much because it's what they've always done".

Wishing you the very best of luck. Anxiety is horrible but if you can take on the things that anxiety could potentially stop you from doing, it can be a very empowering experience.

Let us know how you get on

 

[MissClaireB]

Thank-you again everyone for all your lovely comments and stories I really enjoyed reading everyones comments and really amazed by everyones responses and how very different they all were but all felt the same in some way.
I can't thank-you enough for all of your supportive, kind, caring, and freindly messages and it's nice to know that you all have been there in some way or form and made it through that dark worrying cloud. People on here like I said before have replied from all ages, that in itself has inspired me to go forward and at least try.

But really and honestly thank-you girls and I wish you all the very best with your successes.

and course I will keep you posted and contact you should I need support,thank-you xx