Your first visit
Come in with a question.
Leave with a plan.
You don’t need to arrive knowing the treatment. Tell us what you’d like to change, and we’ll help you understand the options — what each one does, what it doesn’t, and what makes sense first.
What you can expect
No pressure to treat
Leaving with information and nothing booked is a perfectly good outcome.
Consultation before recommendation
Nothing is suggested until someone has actually looked and listened.
Personalized planning
A sequence built around your face, your goals, and your calendar.
Clear pricing first
You will know the cost of each stage before you agree to anything.
Questions encouraged
Bring a list. We would rather answer twenty than assume one.
You’re not late, and there’s no hurry.
Almost nobody walks in knowing what they want done. They walk in knowing how they feel when they look in the mirror — and that is a perfectly good place to begin. The first appointment starts with your goals and a conversation, not a menu of procedures.
- You have never been to a med spa and are not sure what the etiquette is.
- You cannot tell the difference between half the treatment names you have read.
- You have watched enough trends online to be wary of all of them.
- You do not want to look done. That is the most common thing we hear.
- You have several things on your mind and no idea which comes first.
- You are quietly worried about being sold something you do not need.
None of that disqualifies you from booking. It is the reason consultation exists.
Your features. Your goals. Your version of beautiful.
From a first-time client
“I left with a plan on paper and one thing to start with.”
On being told to do less
“I've never had anyone in this industry tell me to do less.”
Illustrative client stories written for this demonstration practice. They are not real reviews and are not presented as verified.
The appointment itself
What your first visit looks like.
Tell us what you're noticing
In your own words. “I look tired” is more useful to us than a product name.
Meet your provider
You will be seen by the provider whose focus matches what you want to change.
Assessment & conversation
Skin, proportion, history, and anything you have had done before.
Understand your options
What each approach does, what it does not do, and what it asks of you.
Build a plan
Written down, in order, with pricing for each stage and what can wait.
Decide what happens next
You decide. Taking the plan home to think about it is normal here.
Treatment, when appropriate
Same-day treatment is sometimes possible — and sometimes it is not the right call.
Follow-up & review
Most results are judged at two weeks, not two days. A review point is built in.
Not every guest is treated on the first visit, and that is by design. Whether same-day treatment is appropriate depends on the treatment itself, what the consultation finds, medical considerations, the schedule, and your own preference.
Where to begin
Start with what you want to change.
Not with a procedure name. Choose whichever of these sounds most like you and we will take it from there.
Fine lines & expression lines
Lines that show when I move my face — and now when I don't.
Read the Wrinkle Relaxers guide →Facial balance & volume
Something has flattened — cheeks, temples, jawline.
Read the Dermal Fillers guide →Lip shape & definition
I'd like definition without looking obviously treated.
Read the Lip Enhancement guide →Loose or crepey skin
Skin quality on the neck, décolletage, or arms.
Read the RF Microneedling guide →Body shape & stubborn areas
Areas that don't respond to training or diet.
Read the Body Contouring guide →Weight & metabolic health
I want medically supported help, not another diet.
Read the Weight Management guide →Men's aesthetics
I want to look less worn out, and still look like a man of my age.
Read the Wrinkle Relaxers guide →Prefer to read first? Browse all treatment guides — plain-English explanations of what each treatment does, and what it doesn’t.
Treatment planning
Aesthetic care is usually a sequence, not an event.
Very little of this work is best done all at once. We think in four plain stages — and most guests only ever need one or two of them at a time.
Refresh
Small, low-commitment improvements that make you look rested. Often where a first visit begins.
Correct
Addressing something specific that bothers you — texture, pigment, a line, a proportion.
Restore
Rebuilding what time has quietly taken: structure, skin quality, density, tone.
Maintain
Protecting a result you like, at the lightest touch and longest interval that holds it.
Nobody needs all four. The point of naming them is so you can see where you are, what comes next, and what can comfortably wait.
Looking your best isn't a one-time event.
On several concerns at once
“It felt organised rather than overwhelming.”
Illustrative client stories written for this demonstration practice. They are not real reviews and are not presented as verified.
Consultation, or straight to treatment?
Book a consultation when…
- This is your first aesthetic treatment.
- You know what bothers you but not what addresses it.
- You are weighing several options against each other.
- You have had work elsewhere and want a second opinion.
- You want the cost and sequence mapped before deciding.
Book a treatment directly when…
- You have had the treatment before and want it again.
- You already know the category you want to be seen in.
- You are continuing a plan already agreed with a provider.
Your provider may still recommend something different once they have assessed you — including doing less than you booked, or nothing at all today. Being talked out of a treatment is a legitimate outcome here.
Who you’ll meet
The people who will help you.
Dr. Elena Marlowe, MD
Founder & Medical Director
Clinical leadership, consultation, advanced aesthetic planning, and medical oversight — with a conservative, whole-face approach.
Avery Sloane, RN
Nurse Injector & Aesthetic Provider
Refined injectable treatments designed to soften, balance, and refresh without changing the expressions that make you recognisable.
Mara Castellan
Laser & Body Specialist
Laser, body contouring, and skin refinement planned in series — with realistic timelines and no guesswork.
Noelle Brandt, NP
Wellness & Hair Restoration Provider
Aesthetics and whole-person wellness together — hair restoration, medical weight management, and healthy-aging support.
Brad Richardson, PA-C
Physician Assistant · Men's Aesthetics & Injectables
A straightforward, understated approach — helping clients look rested and refreshed without looking obviously treated.
Not sure who to book with?
Samantha Thomas
Client Experience Coordinator
Often the first person clients meet at La Rive — and the easiest place to start if you are not sure who to see. She can talk through what you are considering and point you toward the provider whose focus fits what you want to change — before you book anything.
Contact La RiveIn their words
What people say about their first appointment.
“I had put this off for two years because I assumed I'd walk in and get talked into a list of things. That isn't what happened. We talked for most of the appointment and I left with a plan on paper and one thing to start with.”
“I asked for filler and was told, politely, that it wasn't what I actually needed yet. I've never had anyone in this industry tell me to do less. That's the reason I go back.”
“Nobody has asked me what I had done. A few people have asked whether I've been sleeping better. That was exactly the point.”
Illustrative client stories written for this demonstration practice. They are not real reviews and are not presented as verified.
Before you arrive
What to bring, and what to think about.
- Bring a list of medications and supplements you take, if any are relevant.
- Be ready to talk about aesthetic treatments you have had before, and when.
- Bring photographs or references if they help you explain what you want.
- Mention any event, holiday, or deadline you are working toward.
- Arrive with questions — including the ones you think are silly.
- Treatment-specific preparation is sent to you when a treatment is actually scheduled.
Preparation that depends on the specific treatment — timing, products to pause, anything clinical — is given to you by your provider once a treatment is actually scheduled. We do not publish general medical instructions here, because they would be wrong for somebody.
On bringing questions
“She read the whole list and answered every one.”
Pricing & payment
Nothing should be a surprise.
- Consultation comes before treatment decisions — always in that order.
- Treatment pricing is discussed with you before any treatment is performed, stage by stage.
- Where a plan is staged over time, you will see what each stage costs and which parts can reasonably wait.
- Financing may be available for some treatment plans. Details are reviewed with you rather than assumed.
- No treatment should ever happen without you understanding the plan and the cost first.
On pricing clarity
“No pressure, no invented urgency.”
Illustrative client stories written for this demonstration practice. They are not real reviews and are not presented as verified.
First visit questions
The questions we are asked most.
Maybe it's time to do something for you.
Ready when you are.
One conversation is enough to know where to start. Nothing is decided before you decide it.
Not sure where to start? Contact La Rive and Samantha will help you choose.
“She asked what I wanted to look like, not what I wanted to buy.”