MANSFIELD — Rebecca Johnson knows you must care for yourself in order to care for others.
“If you’re not OK, then you can’t be OK for anybody else, especially if you have kids or you’re taking care of your older parents,” Johnson said. “The world’s hard right now.”
Johnson celebrated the one-year anniversary of her small business, Exhale Day Spa, this week.
Johnson said she founded the spa in an effort to provide a calm, welcoming space that promotes self-care and positive mental health.
“I’ve been a hair stylist for 24 years, and then I work a full-time job taking care of (adults with) special needs right now, I’ve done that for 14 years,” she said. “The last couple years, I’ve been wanting something different in my life.”
The spa’s services include Japanese-inspired head spa treatments, customized facials, massages, oxygen spa therapy, infrared sauna, waxes and teeth whitening.
“I just want women to be able to feel good about themselves. I want to be affordable,” Johnson said. “I want them to be able to come in, walk in, take their shoes off, get a robe on, relax and just feel all their troubles disappear.”
Sauna customers can purchase session packages and choose different settings that focus on anti-aging, detoxification, cardio, muscle recovery, heart health, weight loss or relaxation.
Japanese-inspired head spa treatments are designed to revitalize the scale, reduce stress, relief headaches, improve sleep and address thinning hair.
Oxygen therapy involves breathing in pure oxygen, which Johnson said is good for headaches and the immune system. Customers can also choose a light fragrance to add in for an aromatherapeutic element.
Exhale offers hours by appointment, plans to expand regular hours
As a mom and caretaker for adults with special needs, Johnson said self-care has played an important role in her own life.
“It’s gotten me a lot of peace of mind. I feel better about myself. I know that I’m important,” she said.
Johnson currently splits her time between living and working at a group home and running Exhale Day Spa, but plans to expand Exhale’s hours in the next few months.
She plans to eventually focus on her business full-time, working at the group home on an as-needed basis only.
“I work about 95 hours a week. So even when I work, I stay there. I live there for seven days, and then I’m off seven days,” she said. “It’s very rewarding. They are like my family. It’s hard to make a decision to kind of walk away.”
Johnson said the COVID-19 pandemic and her brother’s death further reinforced her desire to promote mental health.
“This is really important for me. Since COVID, I’ve seen a lot of mental health go down and I don’t think a lot of people understand mental health. I don’t think people think it’s a real thing,” she said.
“I’ve seen repeat customers and they like coming in here. They feel special; they feel happy; they understand that they are important. They’re in a better space.”
Exhale Day Spa is located at 1350 West Fourth Street in Mansfield. To book an appointment, customers can call 419-775-5615 or email exhaledayspa419@yahoo.com. Johnson said the spa will begin offering online scheduling in January.
Exhale currently offers hours by appointment only, but Johnson said she hopes to implement regular hours soon.
